Hidden Forest Coop

[Jetpad]

Well, it looks like I'm going to have to dig up part of the drain. I had removed a bunch of dirt in the bottom of the run so that I could do deep litter and unfortunately that dirt was what kept the water in part of the perforated pipe. I had buried the pipe too close to the coop in one part but I'd put it there because I was tired of digging and I didn't want to dig any farther into the hill. We are having heavy rains today and a large puddle is growing in the run.

 

[aart]

Well, it looks like I'm going to have to dig up part of the drain. I had removed a bunch of dirt in the bottom of the run so that I could do deep litter and unfortunately that dirt was what kept the water in part of the perforated pipe. I had buried the pipe too close to the coop in one part but I'd put it there because I was tired of digging and I didn't want to dig any farther into the hill. We are having heavy rains today and a large puddle is growing in the run.

That's a huge slope to deal with....you'll figure something out.

 

[vehve]

Do you have gravel in between the dirt and the pipe? Some landscaping cloth between the dirt and gravel would be good too. And once you get the water averting structure put in place above the coop, I think you're going to have a nice and dry run.

 

[aart]

Quote: Another thought, as long as you have some rain to work with...lol... why not dig a small trench to drain that puddle downhill?
That way if water ever does get in there again under the deep litter is can drain out.

I have a trench/swale dug in my yard to drain water away from a certain area, no gravel or pipe just a swale...works good.

 

[Mountain Man 60]

Hey D,

Congrats on the progress the amazing new coop. Just wondering if the black hardware cloth you mention is wire or plastic. I have not seen the wire covered black locally. Let me know where you found it.

Thanks

 

[Jetpad]

Hey D,

Congrats on the progress the amazing new coop. Just wondering if the black hardware cloth you mention is wire or plastic. I have not seen the wire covered black locally. Let me know where you found it.

Thanks

It's plastic covered wire. It seems to be very durable. I got it from www.academyfence.com

 

[Jetpad]

Do you have gravel in between the dirt and the pipe? Some landscaping cloth between the dirt and gravel would be good too. And once you get the water averting structure put in place above the coop, I think you're going to have a nice and dry run.

Yes, I've got gravel and landscaping cloth around pipe. The problem was since I put the pipe (and gravel) so close to the gravel I used under the foundation blocks, the water just passed from gravel-to-gravel-to-run instead of from gravel-to-pipe. I think I need to move the pipe farther away from the run (up the hill) or put some sort of barrier between the pipe/gravel and the block/gravel.

 

[magdalene74]

frankly i think it is ridiculous that you can buy three acres of land and not be "allowed" (on your own land mind you) to have chickens.. for crying out loud. THIS is why i just spent my entire inheritance on a piece of land OUTSIDE of town... and if they try to incorporate me later im fighting tooth and nail...

 

[RichnSteph]

frankly i think it is ridiculous that you can buy three acres of land and not be "allowed" (on your own land mind you) to have chickens.. for crying out loud. THIS is why i just spent my entire inheritance on a piece of land OUTSIDE of town... and if they try to incorporate me later im fighting tooth and nail...

I totally agree. We have a similar problem out here. Once we got our land purchased and had the house one it I started laying out plans for our out-buildings and was told that there is a 15' easement around the property that I can't build on. So I told the county guy that he needed to come out and measure the property inside the easement and only tax me on the "usable" land at the end of the year instead of the entire acre. He looked at me like I'd lost my mind.

OP I'm sorry to hear about your water issues. We're fortunate that we live in the sand hills and water drains like crazy here, and we're in a drought currently so there isn't any water.

 

[Jetpad]

In this first picture, you can see how close the pipe is to the coop. That pipe is really way to close to the coop and it is obvious now that water is going to seep out into the gravel under the concrete blocks in addition to going down the pipe. It is hard to see in the shadow but on the side of the pipe closest to the coop, I've dug out all the gravel down to the bare dirt. This probably isn't the correct way to fix the problem but I think it might be good enough (for chicken work).


I mixed up some mortar and made a barrier in-between the coop foundation/gravel and the french drain pipe. I'm sure some water will find its way past the barrier but it should cause a lot more to end up going down the pipe. It was really only a problem when there is a heavy rain that lasts all day. This was like the fourth or fifth time I've had to pull up the pavers. Hopefully it'll be the last.