I need to keep water out of the run

[PirateGirl]

I used these catch basins with the matching hose to drain water from around my shops. You might look at a trench drain as well.

JT

I like JT's catch basin idea, not much digging needed, you could bury it in the run at the lowest point. You can then cover it with landscape fabric and whatever bedding you have in the run and the chickens can walk all over it and scratch and dig as normal and not get their toes caught. You could buy one cheap or make your own if you've got a spare bucket or something around.

 

[aart]

I'd try to dig a trench at the end of the run(outside the run) opposite the pop door, see if it'll run out.

 

[unbaked pegga]

WOOD CHIPS!!! FREE!

Wood is absorbent. The top exposed chips will dry out while the bottom chips absorb. Call your local tree service and ask them to dump a truckload of chips in your driveway. I have a similar problem, I was sinking my boots in mud. Now I wear old shoes, no mud. Yard leaves can get slippery. I promise, you won't regret using wood chips.

By the way, the ground underneath will turn to some of the best soil you can get, better than stuff you pay for. The chips and chook poo start m breaking down, earth worms do their thing, and you end up with garden soil to die for.

I wonder how much that would cost? I am not a young chick and I have already been fighting this for 2 years plus. I don’t know why my neighbor felt so compelled to drop that run on the ground. I had already paid the company I bought it from $100 to come out and raise it up the year before. And I paid my neighbor to extend the run. But what do you do? Nothing, if they live next door

That's pretty bad. I hope someone who knows more about drainage can give some advice about how to permanently fix it.

In the meantime, see if you can pick up any form of litter - it's not the season for it but any sort of dried leaves, wood chips or mulch (preferably aged but you might not have the luxury to be too picky about it), wood shavings, grass, weeds, pretty much anything like that, and use that instead of sand. It won't fix the drainage issue, but enough of it will help form a mat that your chickens can walk on that's above the water level until the drainage can be fixed. If you collect plant/wood matter from neighbors (or some tree trimming companies or city services will dump mulch for free) it won't cost anything and surely must be easier to manage than heavy bags of sand.

I only have sand in there so I can scoop the poo out every day. You wou think all that sand on the outer side of the run would help. Isn’t that what is used to keep flooding out of cities when it starts flooding?

 

[unbaked pegga]

Hard to tell from pics, but it appears the water is coming from behind the coop and run. If that is the case possibly you could set out about 1 foot from the back of your run a dig a diversion ditch around to the front corner that would allow the water to drain around the coop and away down the yard. The ditch doesn't need to be very deep 4-6 inches take the dirt that is removed and place against the coop side to form a kind of higher bank to help hold the water out. Then you can add wood chips etc. to dry out the coop inside. I wouldn't use sand which will continue to stay wet. Hope this helps

I already dug a ditch a couple of years ago, see picture and I couldn’t tell much difference, honestly. A company raised it up for me a couple of years ago and they splintered wood where there are too many screw holes to do this I don’t think. I don’t kno what to do. It rained last night and the run is a soggy mess. I hate it

 

[Cryss]

I wonder how much that would cost? I am not a young chick and I have already been fighting this for 2 years plus. I don’t know why my neighbor felt so compelled to drop that run on the ground. I had already paid the company I bought it from $100 to come out and raise it up the year before. And I paid my neighbor to extend the run. But what do you do? Nothing, if they live next door

I only have sand in there so I can scoop the poo out every day. You wou think all that sand on the outer side of the run would help. Isn’t that what is used to keep flooding out of cities when it starts flooding?

Tree services have to pay junk yards to let them drop off a load of wood chips., and they have to travel to get there. They would love to be able to drop them somewhere close to where they are working and not have to pay. They will gladly drop the chips on your property for free! It's cheaper for them and they don't have to travel to the dump. Just call some local tree services and ask.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I only have sand in there so I can scoop the poo out every day. You wou think all that sand on the outer side of the run would help. Isn’t that what is used to keep flooding out of cities when it starts flooding?

Sand does provide drainage up to a point but from your photos the water level is basically higher than the level of the sand. Without anywhere for it to drain, you'd either need a lot more sand (to build up the top level even higher) or something like wood chips which can almost mat over the top of the water.

That said, with the amount of water that seems to pool there, no amount of sand or chips is going to "fix" it.

 

[sweetater22]

Sand alone is no good to stop water, sand has to be in a bag or some other type waterproof container to divert the water. Wood chips inside will help when wet, also mounding dirt or sand in bags around the back side of he run that will send water to your ditch will help. Will your neighbor not help you do that. A truck load of chips can be 6-8 tons you don't need anything like that, check with your city or county if they have wood chips at your local garbage dump where you can get a smaller amount. Our you can buy at most farm store baled wood shavings that would be useful.

 

[jthornton]

I already dug a ditch a couple of years ago, see picture and I couldn’t tell much difference, honestly. A company raised it up for me a couple of years ago and they splintered wood where there are too many screw holes to do this I don’t think. I don’t kno what to do. It rained last night and the run is a soggy mess. I hate it

Does the ditch slope down away from the coop? The ground looks sorta flat, for a ditch to work it must have a small downward slope toward the direction of intended flow.

Edit: looking at your original photos the base of the run is containing the water like a dam. Unless it has some way to go under the bottom of the run it will just stay in the run. Dig a hole under the boards and put some gravel in so the water can pass through. The side shot of the coop and run looks like you have quite a bit of slope, you just need to let the water out.

JT

 

[wyoDreamer]

x2 on buying a bag of woodchips from the store. I can get a bale of wood chips for $5 at the Tractor Supply near my. You really don't need much for the area you have there. And the bale is compressed, so when you open it up, it will fluff up to a much bigger volume. Your chickens will love to dig in them and will shift them around continuously. I had to put my waterer up on a cinderblock to keep it clean...

 

[Cryss]

Not sure pine shavings work the same as wood chips. Chips are chunkier and will fill the space better I would think. As for a truck load being more than you need, well that depends on whether you have a garden or trees. The extra chips are amazing mulch for your flower and vegetable garden and around your trees. And all for free which shavings are not. That being said I do use pine shavings inside the roost area.