Laying box problems

[tnvarmint]

I use the Brower 406B 6-Hole Poultry Nest and for the most part love it. I have it for 2 years now and it has held up wonderfully. My only complaint for it is that the removable panels in the bottom of each box always fall out from the upper three boxes. I have yet to be out there when it happens but I bet which ever girl happens to be sitting there when it happens is not very pleased . I am wondering if anyone else has had this problem if they are using these boxes? If so what was your fix if any?

My first thought is to maybe take a dowel and some of those conduit wall clamps (I am sure they have a name but no idea what it is). Just put the wall clamps on the bottom of the layer boxes and slide the dowel through to hold it in place. The main problems with this would be that I would have to drill a hole in the side of the box to fit the dowel through and then actually getting the dowel through. My coop is about 5 ft deep and the boxes are probably about 3 ft long so that only leaves about a 2 ft space to get a 3 ft rod into. If that makes sense. I could pull a board off of the side of the run to give me more room I guess.

Here is a picture of the box that I use.

 

[aart]

Do the floors install like shown in Step #5 here?:
http://browerequip.com/NESTS/downloads/ISB406B.pdf
Are floors 6 different pieces?
And do they rest on the part of perch assemblies(Step #3) that go to back of nests?

 

[tnvarmint]

Yes floors are 6 individual pieces. They are maybe 8"x 8" with flared up sides at about a 30 degree angle or so. I would have to go out and look but as I recall they do probably rest on the perch bars for the inside walls. The outer walls have a small angle press welded or something of the sort.

 

[tnvarmint]

Now that I think about it, I could possibly go front to back with the dowel or a 1x2 rather than length wise. That would also make it a lot easier to remove and clean it out. The nesting box is attached to one of the walls of the coop and I have an access door that I use to check for eggs. Allows me to get into it without going inside of the coop (coop is only about 4 ft tall inside and well I am about 6'5").

 

[aart]

Yes floors are 6 individual pieces. They are maybe 8"x 8" with flared up sides at about a 30 degree angle or so. I would have to go out and look but as I recall they do probably rest on the perch bars for the inside walls. The outer walls have a small angle press welded or something of the sort.

So they just sit there and are easily dislodged?
That kinda stinks....bad design.
Hen probably stood up and moved it with her head.
Not sure of an easy 'fix', some pics of where you access might help.
How often do you actually have to remove the floors for cleaning?

 

[tnvarmint]

Normally during the summer months I clean it and the coop out about once a month. Don't always remove the bottom panels though. Sometimes I just scoop out the bedding and such with a small garden trowel or just a gloved hand. During the winter months, I only clean out the coop a couple of times. I am no expert by any means but I have read that leaving the hay in the coop with a layer of poop helps insulate it during the winter. We don't get extreme cold here in the mountains of NE Tennessee like those up north but it still gets somewhat cold.

I will look at getting some detailed picks of it tomorrow. Sun is going down right now and the girls are already on the roosts. I am honestly thinking that simply putting some 1x2 across the bottom will work to hold it in place. One on each box should work but two on each would definitely do the job.

 

[aart]

I am honestly thinking that simply putting some 1x2 across the bottom will work to hold it in place. One on each box should work but two on each would definitely do the job.

A couple of well placed sheet metal screws might do the trick too.
Can't believe there's nothing there to 'click/lock' the bottoms in place...SMH.