Need exposed run solution!

[Lezabee]

new to owning chickens and my run is exposed so the sand is getting wet and staying wet. I want to know if it's possible to do deep bedding in exposed run that's on top of concrete. What's my best option to keep smell down and less water left in run.

 

[reluctant farmer]

new to owning chickens and my run is exposed so the sand is getting wet and staying wet. I want to know if it's possible to do deep bedding in exposed run that's on top of concrete. What's my best option to keep smell down and less water left in run.

We put a tarp over half of the run. Helped to keep that part dry. The rain helps to wash away the poop.
Good luck to you!

 

[aart]

new to owning chickens and my run is exposed so the sand is getting wet and staying wet. I want to know if it's possible to do deep bedding in exposed run that's on top of concrete. What's my best option to keep smell down and less water left in run.

Can you put a roof over the run?
Does the concrete drain well?
Please post pics of your run for more suggestions.
How many birds do you have?

Wood chips is the best way to alleviate smell...they'd probably work OK on concrete.

 

[Lezabee]

Can you put a roof over the run?
Does the concrete drain well?
Please post pics of your run for more suggestions.
How many birds do you have?

Wood chips is the best way to alleviate smell...they'd probably work OK on concrete.

We have 4 chickens and I am able to make a roof if needed also gonna raise the coop and run another 5 inches

 

[paintedChix]

leaves would work well for that area. AS they break down, add more.

 

[aart]

We have 4 chickens and I am able to make a roof if needed also gonna raise the coop and run another 5 inches

Small, barely big enough for even just 4 birds, so tough to manage without having to clean it out regularly.
Not sure what to suggest....not sure a roof would help, unless it was really big.

Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[Painted Calls]

That is a super cute coop, however I have to agree that it is way too small for 4 birds. The companies that make these pre-fab coops are horrible for leading people to believe how many chickens they will house. I'm assuming that it probably said 4-6 chickens. In reality, I personally would use that for one chicken. Maybe 2 bantams.

I would use a layer of wood chips over the sand and cover at least half the run with a roof. With something that small, a large patio umbrella or a canopy lowered down would work if you didnt want to do a permanent roof.

Maybe make future plans for a second larger coop and run. More is always better anyway!

 

[ConnecticutSB]

I have almost the same coop and also have 4 chickens (seems much larger online!). Realized immediately that that the size was not going to work so I built a large run off the other side of the coop. That lasted a few days until I realized that it needed to be covered and the cover couldn't be flat (found out the hard way when the trapped rainwater nearly snapped the frame of my new constructed run. I added two posts in the middle of each side of the run and connected a crossbar between them. That allowed me to bungee a tarp in a tented shape over the top of the run and keep everything dry inside. Now that it is dry out there, I use hay in the coop (over pine shavings) and the run. The chickens love to scratch through it, a single bale lasts forever, there is no smell and the chickens turn everything over with their scratching. There is actually very little left at the end of the month and I compost that and add clean hay. I am in the process of building a larger and sturdier coop, but the funny thing is all 4 chickens shove themselves into the nest box part of the coop at night. I worry about the size but they only sleep in about 1/3 of the coop.