Is there such a thing as nontoxic weatherproofing stain?

[kristenm1975]

I'm building a coop that's going to be used in lots of rainy weather, and while the roof cap and bottom boards are going to be pressure-treated lumber, I'd like to coat the whole thing with some sort of weatherproofing stain that won't be poisonous to the chickens if any of it leaches into the soil they peck in and eat bugs from.

Thanks for any advice all!!

 

[patandchickens]

Paint. Or stain if you prefer the tradeoff of "have to recoat more often, but don't have to scrape loose paint off when you recoat".

Any ol' kind.

I don't believe there is anything you can buy at the hardware store these days that is going to cause one bit of trouble for your chickens, once it is dry. So, just pick your preference

If you paint, prime first -- it makes a BIG difference to the longevity of the paint coat IME.

Have fun,

Pat

 

[Aero]

Shellac is non-toxic once it dries and protects well. Anything else is going to have some properties that are harmful to ingest for your chickens, then you via eggs.

 

[kristenm1975]

Thanks! Those both sound good. I was going for the plain old varnished wood look, then realized once I got the wood home that I apparently got two different kinds of wood and they aren't the same color. Kind of takes away from the look I was going for. I'm hoping I might find some kind of medium colored wood stain that will even out the two colors. Might just have to go with paint after all.

Either way, thanks for the info.

 

[Tad]

I used a stain, on my coop, that was "livestock" safe found it at home depot,

 

[kristenm1975]

Thanks Tad, that sounds about right!