HenSpa

[jvp0719]

Does anyone out there have a HenSpa? I have a few questions before I begin using mine.

 

[bucky52]

henspa?

 

[jvp0719]

http://www.henspa.com/Henspa Features.htm

 

[janinepeters]

I had a henspa and used it for a year; I did not like it for various reasons. But before I blabber on with my complaints about it, what are your questions?

 

[jvp0719]

My biggest question I guess is the bedding. It seems that the chickens roost on the poles and their poop is supposed to fall through the screen to the floor. Since I don't plan on moving it all that much, if at all, how do you clean the coop? If I put the screen in and put the bedding on that, I can clean it a lot easier. However, it says I should not use the screen in the summer. Can I use it in the summer?

I would be curious to hear the things you did not like about it. Also, if there was anything you DID like about it.

 

[janinepeters]

My biggest question I guess is the bedding. It seems that the chickens roost on the poles and their poop is supposed to fall through the screen to the floor. Since I don't plan on moving it all that much, if at all, how do you clean the coop? If I put the screen in and put the bedding on that, I can clean it a lot easier. However, it says I should not use the screen in the summer. Can I use it in the summer?

I would be curious to hear the things you did not like about it. Also, if there was anything you DID like about it.

I did use the screen (or rather, what I got was a tarp, not a screen) in summer, and I don't really see why it makes a difference, as long as you keep it clean. And it is very easy to clean with the screen/tarp in place.

What I like about the Henspa:

• We did not have to build it
• The roof lets in a lot of light

What I did not like about it:

• If you don't move it, you can't clean it.

• In winter when you can't move it, not only does it quickly get filthy in the bottom, but it becomes a nice cozy dark place for the hens to lay their eggs, apparently more attractive to them than the nestboxes, and you cannot reach the eggs without cutting your way into the coop.

• Even if you move it everyday, the hens completely destroy the grass under it in a day's time. Maybe if you had only 3 or 4 and moved it daily, they grass would be OK. And it's really only spacious enough for 3-4 hens, if they are going to be confined in it all the time.

• Too flimsy - the roof cannot withstand severe winds, and ours partly blew off, so that it was flapping around. Pretty scarey. If you buy it, you should reinforce the roof. I think they advise you to keep it in a shed or barn in winter, which you really should do. It's just not sturdy enough to withstand our winters (Massachusetts), and with the flimsy roof, it doesn't stand up to severe wind in any season.
• It has to be on very smooth, level ground so that it makes close contact with the ground, or hens can squeeze out under it.

We trashed it, and ended up buying a large sturdy shed, added windows, roosts, nestboxes, and two runs. It is so much better - the birds have plenty of space, they can get out of the wind, and I know their roof won't blow off. And I can easily clean it out and can always reach their eggs.