our coop got finished yesterday!

[Nsampsel]

Oh sands sounding better by the minute! Lol can it be any kind my husbands in construction so I have plenty of builders sand but my neighbour said that's not good for them, he suggested kids play sand but that's quite a bit more money! He has cockiteils btw so not a chicken expert just an opinion so if he is wrong please let me know.
Corrugated plastics a good idea too I will mention that to hubby when he gets home!

Regular old coarse builder's sand is perfect. They can also use this for grit so that will save in an expense there (hubby will be happy...lol)

I personally wouldn't use the play sand because it's much finer & tends to have an extremely high silica content which can cut just like glass.

 

[Cargo]

The tarp over the top will be very short lived.
You cane make a tarp work if you add angle so water runs off, support so it does not sag and secure all of the edges with strips of wood screwed into the frame.
Grommets will tear out with a bit of wind and rain gets heavy quick.

 

[shell3]

Oh great I've got some of that so think I'll get to it when the rain stops. I'm thinking tonight might be their first night left outside too but I am a bit of a softy so I'll see how brave I feel when it gets dark! Lol

 

[shell3]

Yes your right I'm finding that out the hard way! Already I've got water pooling on top and been up the ladder brushing it of with a broom! Can't keep that up for ever thinking of changing the roof. There is cross beams and galvanised wire mesh on the roof under the tarp but got a couple of ideas so might fill run with sand to absorb water and cover half the run with a wooden roof.

 

[Nsampsel]

The tarp over the top will be very short lived.
You cane make a tarp work if you add angle so water runs off, support so it does not sag and secure all of the edges with strips of wood screwed into the frame.
Grommets will tear out with a bit of wind and rain gets heavy quick.

I've got tarp over mine but I'm not talking cheap plastic tarp from Wal-Mart. I'm talking heavy tent or landscaping style tarp. And it doesn't sag because I make a wood roof 1st & then cover it with the tarp tacking it firmly over the edges with roofing nails into the wood. Yes, the roofs are slanted for the water/snow melt to drain off. I'm using tarp in pace of shingles, etc. Works great!!!

 

[shell3]

Yes slanted roof would have been better but I can't face taking it appart now so will work with what I've got and pray for sunny days! Lol

 

[shell3]

Well seemed quite mild last night so chicks spent first night outside, but by the time I made a decision it was pitch black out and I have yet to install electrics for the light! So as I couldn't find a working torch! I headed down there with a candle and thought they would all be in the coop ready for me to just push closed the door, no! Not in there so wandered the outside run searching for them and clucking for a response! Luckily they were in a chatty mood but I was surprised to find two asleep against the mesh one side and the other the same but alone at the other side of the coop! I expected them to all stay together! Anyway they seemed to be quite happy this morning so a success I think

 

[Nsampsel]

You may need to put them in the coop the first few nights until they get used to going in. Once they realized that's where their "sleepy spot" is they will go in on their own as it starts to get dark.

As for the slanted roof (if need be), you can go back later & put a 1x6 board across each end on the outside with one end having the top of the board even with the top of the wall & the other end having the bottom of the board even with the top of the wall. Another 1x6 across front (high side so water drains away from your door & walk area) to cover the gap between the old top of the pen & the new top of the pen. Put a couple braces (these can be 2x4 or even 2x2's) slanted the same way from front to back spaced across the pen & anchor roofing of choice to top all the way around.

 

[shell3]

Thanks I like the idea of adding more to the roof rather than dismantling it!
Btw I just can't get on with these feeders! They just get crap kicked/blown it to them constantly , I've taken them out and attached large parrot bowls with the wire hooks on to the mesh inside the run they seem a better height for them to feed from too. But do you guys put food and water in the coop when you lock them in for the night? I did last night but do they need it when they are mostly asleep? Do they tend to eat and drink through the night?

 

[Nsampsel]

They need water but not food thru the night. If something were to happen & you weren't able to let them out in the morning they would definitely need the water but could survive a day without food if there was an emergency that kept you from getting someone there to let them out in your place.

I was having similar issues with my food bowls once my birds went out in the run & here is what I did to solve it (mostly). I bought 1 of those big round horse feeder bowls (I have a lot more chickens than you) and just dump the food into it. It's heavy rubber so they can no longer tip it over & has a higher lip (about 3-4 inches deep) so they don't kick much into it. It's over a foot across, so plenty of space around for several birds to eat at once. The only (minor) problem I still have is that they can now stand in the food easier & track a bit of sand or poo in occasionally. I solve this by only putting in close to what they can eat in 24 hrs at a time. If they leave a good bit 1 day I simply add less food the next day so it is down to crumbs & sand by the next feeding so I can flip the bowl & start over fresh. They will scratch for any remaining crumbs that are big enuf for them & the bowl stays much fresher.

For the water, I quit using waterers except for my smallest birds & started using buckets or bowls that they can easily reach into to drink but not low enuf for them to kick dirt into. My biggest birds have 1 gallon buckets. For the smaller birds I just moved to this pen I set a brick on each side of the bucket to give them a "step stool" so they could reach easier. For my smaller birds I have a 1 gallon bucket with the step & a 1 gallon waterer sitting on a thin piece of wood to raise it a bit & keep most of the dirt out of kicking range around it. My babies in the brooder of course all still use the baby waterer & I have to clean it several times a day.

They get easier as they get bigger...LOL