How to add straw

[SamIamNam786]

Guys I lifted my coop with cinder blocks and when I added vinyl to winterize it, the vinyl doesn't reach all the way to the bottom. So I'm planning to add straw. Would adding SOME along the perimeter help with wind reduction? Or would I need to add entire bales the entire way around? Id add along the three sides that isn't along the fence.
ALSO ETA: Will straw lead to mites when used in winter? How long does the straw last before needing to clear it?

 

[AidKD]

I think it would help, but you'll just have to make sure that you add enough so it doesn't get blown away from the bottom.

 

[aart]

I would move the vinyl to the outside, so snow doesn't get trapped between mesh and plastic, then you could go further down.
Or not.
I would put the straw on the outside so the chickens don't scratch it all away from where it needs to be.

 

[K0k0shka]

I would just get more vinyl/plastic/shower curtain and extend the cover down to the bottom, instead of using straw. It would be easier, cleaner, more practical, and probably cheaper, because yeah you'd need whole bales and that will add up in bulk and cost (hauling them, placing them etc.) to go all the way around.

 

[perkolator]

One of the best solutions for what you're doing I heard someone mention recently -- bags of dry leaves stored along the fencing as a wind break, and to use them up through the winter as bedding

 

[K0k0shka]

One of the best solutions for what you're doing I heard someone mention recently -- bags of dry leaves stored along the fencing as a wind break, and to use them up through the winter as bedding

Leaves make great bedding year round, not just in the winter! I wouldn’t use bags of them as wind blocks somewhere where they can get wet though, because they can mold.

 

[SamIamNam786]

I would move the vinyl to the outside, so snow doesn't get trapped between mesh and plastic, then you could go further down.
Or not.
I would put the straw on the outside so the chickens don't scratch it all away from where it needs to be.

I thought a long time about this, but I decided that the wind would much easier rip up my vinyl on the outside than if it were inside,bc the wire cloth provides some wind barrier.