Line bottom of chicken run with hardware cloth?

[nateritz]

Hi, I am in the process of building my chicken run and need advice. As of now it is all dirt, and after reading many posts I think I will add sand/gravel to it. My question, however, is if I need to line the entire bottom of it with hardware cloth to keep out predators. We have skunks, raccoons, and stray cats in our area. At the very least I will be burying the wire a foot down around the edges, but is it overkill to line the whole floor? The run is 8 x 20 feet, so that requires a lot of wire. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

is it overkill to line the whole floor?

Yes.
Just put an "apron" about two feet wide around the outside perimeter, and dont worry about burying any​

 

[ChanceRider]

I guess it really depends upon your comfort level. I did line the entire bottom of my run with hardware wire that I screwed onto the frame. It was actuallyuch easier to line the entire bottom than to bury an "apron" of wire around the perimeter. My run is about 16'
x 7', somewhat smaller than yours. My birds have access to their run 24/7; I don't worry about preditors, and we have plenty! Good luck with your project... I'm in the process of designing our next coop, about 24' x 12' and haven't yet decided on the new run. I wish a new coop/run would just appear!

 

[Carpe DiHen]

Quote:
ChanceRider, is it hard to rake out?

 

[elmo]

If you put hardware cloth down in your run you'd need to bury it under a good, deep layer of dirt, sand or gravel so the chickens could scratch there without injuring their feet. I used the "apron" method tacked down on the surface of the ground outside my pen.

 

[ChanceRider]

I covered the wire with 4 - 6 inches of soil. A year and a half later, the chickens have yet to dig down to the wire. Really, it was easy to do and I have yet to regret lining the bottom of the run with wire. In fact, I did the same thing with the duck and meat chicken pens. The dirt covering the wire makes for easy cleanup.

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

It was actually much easier to line the entire bottom than to bury an "apron" of wire around the perimeter

An apron isnt "buried", but lies flat on the ground, and is merely covered with enough dirt to allow grass to grow up through it​

 

[nateritz]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I think I will just lay it over the entire floor and cover it up with dirt and gravel rather than going the apron route. There are lots of obstacles in my way to do the apron method. Appreciate the insights!

 

[BriteChicken]

I'm building a Tractor/ Coop for my backyard in Huntsville AL so I can move it around my backyard to house 5-6 egg layers (red star) what would be the best wire to attach to the bottom of my tractor/ coop?

So they don't hurt themselves scratching yet it protects from predators...

 

[Doodleloo]

I covered the wire with 4 - 6 inches of soil. A year and a half later, the chickens have yet to dig down to the wire. Really, it was easy to do and I have yet to regret lining the bottom of the run with wire. In fact, I did the same thing with the duck and meat chicken pens. The dirt covering the wire makes for easy cleanup.

Can the birds still eat bugs and stuff through the wired bottom? I'm considering the same thing