linoleum flooring

[barefootfarmers]

Has anyone used linoleum as flooring in their coop? I was thinking that it would be easier to clean out

 

[spotstealer]

I have a 4X6 coop. I put linoleum tiles on the floor, covered by a dusting of saw dust. It works great and is easy to clean and is biodegradable. I have a large access door on one end. I picked up one of those dust pans on a long handle that reaches all the way back into the coop. I just pull the poop toward the door and into the wheel burrow. The flooring with a layer of sawdust makes it easy to clean. I eliminated my poopy board because it was easier to clean up the sawdust. I considered the use of sand and a kitty litter scoop( I will be using it in my run) but I would have a hard time reaching all the way in the coop. I use linoleum in my brooder pen also.

 

[Garrison]

Lots of people do. The part you really have to clean is under the roost, get something you can take out and dump into the compost pile and hose off, you will like your chickens much more. I used a washing machine pan works great. The roost is on hinges I prop it up pull out the pan and sweep out the litter that I put on top of the floor into a wheel barrow, takes all of 5 minutes.

 

[fl_deb]

I have used a roll type vinyl flooring on an 4' x 8' plywood as an attached run to the coop and on the poop board inside the coop.


The only problems I had were that the roll stretched in some places which made it difficult to get all the air out as I used contact cement to attach it.


I find keeping an eye on weather dictates cleaning days as when it is dry here, the poop adheres like cement if it is allowed to be mushed down and dried on the vinyl. Cleaning daily helps to prevent this, as does letting chickens free range in yard.

But even the most adhered poop can be cleaned before rain day, by wetting down everything lightly, and letting it set a few minutes, then use the back of a garden rake, as that straight edge will allow you to scrub a little if you need to, but more importantly get that stuff into the compose to get it ready for the garden.

 

[patandchickens]

Lots and lots of people on BYC use vinyl or linoleum flooring, it is sort of a minor religion hereabouts

I have to say though that, having some pens in my coop with vinyl flooring (I didnt' install it, it was there from being used for dog kennel by previous owner of property) and other pens with painted plywood or bare cement (covered by bedding obviously), I truly see NO DIFFERENCE AT ALL. Properly primed and painted plywood works just as well.

If you think 'ah, but vinyl will keep the wood from rotting when I hose the coop out', think again, it is virtually impossible to PERMANENTLY seal the edges and so water WILL get under there and actually rot the flooring MORE if you have vinyl/linoleum than if you didn't. Plus which, you really don't need to be hosing out a chicken coop anyhow LOL

So by all means use linoleum or vinyl if you want to, but IME just plain painted plywood is really just as good

Good luck, ahve fun,

Pat

 

[spotstealer]

Thanks for bursting my bubble, Pat. All kidding aside though, thanks for the advice. I do agree that properly sealed/painted wood is important from a rotting point of view.

 

[Hoosierchickengal]

We used vinyl flooring scraps from another project for our brooder boxes and I love the easy clean up! Priced vinyl flooring for our coop today, and unless I find another lucky Craigslist scrap vinyl find like this last bunch, we're just going to go with painted plywood on the floor due to cost.

Garrison-I LOVE your washing machine pan solution under your roost! I've been searching for ideas for easy clean-up under ours. Great idea!

 

[zekii]

We used linoleum flooring and ran it up the walls about 10 inches. Was a little work to get it down, but now we're happy we did.
We did not glue or nail it, but secured the top edge with a metal strip, and then silicone caulked the corniers and the top edge.

 

[RamonaBellamy]

We are looking to build a 16x20 hen house and have seen that many people do use the linoleum flooring, but my husband's concern for the health of the chickens was the off-gasing of the linoleum. Is there a certain linoleum or vinyl that everyone is using?

Thank you!

 

[JackE]

I used an rubberized roof coat product I got from Lowes. (Blackjack#57) It comes in a 5gal bucket. It's made to handle all kinds of weather extremes on a roof, so protecting a chicken coop floor is nothing to this stuff. It's been down over two years on my coop's floor, and when I clean out the coop, it looks as good as when I first put it down. With a big floor like you are going to have, this is the way to go. Just open the bucket, STIR well, dump it out on the floor and push/apply it with a paint roller. It totally seals all the floor seams, plus the gap where the walls meet the floor. Unlike vinyl or linoleum, this stuff becomes a permanent part of the floor so nothing can get under it. Linoleum over time will break down in a coop and start deteriorating. Then you have to go back and redo it. Not a big problem in a small coop, but a headache in a big one.
Jack