OSB walls?

[bayareapilot]

"Rats can with out a doubt kill full grown chickens. They are just as dangerous as a mink or weasel. Maybe more so as there is usually more than one. Though they are easier to kill because they'll eat the rat/mouse poison. "

I have to vote 'NO' on the rat/mouse poisoning. Mainly because it often ends up going after non-target animals (like raptors) that eat the poisoned rat or animals that peck at the poisoned droppings that the dying rat leaves behind (they DON'T die right away).

Rats are very intelligent little critters (some studies have suggested that they are on par or higher than a dog in terms of intelligence). Have you actually lost FULL GROWN chickens (not bantams or something like that) to a rat or have you 'heard' of it happening (hearsay). It might very well be true, but color me a little skeptical since rats are smart enough to want to pick their battles wisely. While I could see them going after a small chicken or a chick,,,, I dunno about a grown regular size hen or rooster.

Main reason for my post is to 'just say no' to the rat and mouse poison - its' effects can 'boomerrang in very unpleasant ways.

 

[Mamatomany123]

We used OSB board for our addition. We sealed and painted it with a few layers. It hasnt been long but si far its holding up. We also ,(obviously) have it elevated so it never sits in water and the roof overhangs helps it not get wet when it's a calm rain. We did anchor it down into the concrete and it is also attached to that metal post which is in the concrete. The door is not osb but we stained then sealed that as well.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

In answer to your queries, I considered and rejected OSB. In my climate (North FL), the heat and the humidity combined are simply too much for OSB to survive exposed for years, let alone hold up to determined rodents. If forced to use it, the Behr is an EXCELLENT choice, I've had nothing but good luck with it, using it to significantly extend the life of an old pool house in TX on the property of my old home, which was already showing its age (and lack of maintenance) when I bought it. Ultimately, I settled on HZ10 Hardie Board secured to PT 2x and 4x4s with exterior (deck) screws. Weighs a ton, the build was hard on my tools, but can't fault the durability.

You may not need to structure your roof that way, there's risk you will trap condensation between the surface of the OSB and the felt paper, under your steel roof, particularly when there are significant temperature differentials (think water condensing on metal surfaces). I chose a galvanized steel (29ga, may regret that in the coming years) 5V roof panel on purlins, set across my rafters. No concerns with trapping humidity, allows plenty of air flow in the coop w/o being drafty where the birds are, and because hot air rises, on warmer days it (theoretically) draws cooler air under the shade at the bottom of the coop and upwards to exit through the central "shaft" of my u-shaped coop design, taking humidity from spilled water, etc with it.

Since you've already bought materials, this probably isn't what you want to reed, but maybe it helps save you effort on the roof build.

 

[Folly's place]

Back to the rat poison issues here; when you do have a rat infestation, they do kill chicks and bantams, and if that's who you have, it matters a lot! And, besides fixing entry points and nesting areas in the coop, poison is often the only real solution, because the rats are so very smart. Most dying rodents do go back into their burrows to die, and careful use of bait stations in the coop only makes it as safe as possible.
I've been there myself, and there's a difference between what's best and nicest, and what sometimes needs to be done.
Mary

 

[bayareapilot]

The only reason I mention about the mouse or rat droppings is I remember trying using the bait stations for mice and that's exactly what happens and that's part of the warnings with a produc


I can tell you from experience that the rodents do meander for a little while before they die and I found things like little pellets with some of the Green rodentcide mixed in left around the areas of the coop which obviously it's no good thankfully I didn't have anything bad happen but I I caught it pretty early. I had a family friend have their small dog dry when it accidentally got hold of a rat that they had left poison for. The poison was out of reach of the dog but apparently it got enough of the droppings and the rat to have an issue. It killed his dog as well as creating a lot of discontent in his family understandably

 

[Folly's place]

Yes, poison can cause disasters, and managing pets to keep them safe matters a lot. However, rats especially, and mice, are disease carriers, in addition to the chickens that are killed by rats. Eliminating them is important, and traps won't clear a colony.
Mary

 

[K0k0shka]

Poison kills wild animals, too, not just pets. It’s faster and easier but irresponsible. Is there really a threat to human health and life here, from rat-carried disease, or is it just a matter of convenience? Because “rats could kill a small chicken” is not enough of a justification to introduce poison into the ecosystem (because everything is connected and it will affect the local ecosystem, not just that one rat). Lots of wild animals can kill chickens. Doesn’t mean we should throw poison around.