post your chicken coop pictures here!

[TerryH]

My only concern is the traffic durability. Roof coatimgs typically stay soft. If you cover it with sand, the sand may embed itself into the coating as you walk on it, eventually causing it to separate.

I tried Thompson water seal and was very disappointed. It is a parafin wax based sealer and not very durable for traffic on my deck. I much prefer a resin sealer like alkyd oil based stain/sealer.

The difference between the roof coatimg and Rhino Liner is that the liner is designed for serious abrasive and impact abuse, roofing is not. Granted, Rhino Liner is serious overkill but at least it's in the right class. Linoleum would be a good choice because it is cheap and replaceable and fairly durable. Personally i prefer concrete for outbuildimg floors for all the reasons you mentioned. You can't hurt it and bugs cant infest it

There is always ceramic tile.....

I had the same concerns about the roof coating but this particular one dries firm. The dried film is not sticky but not hard like bed liner either. In our coop floor application it will be always be covered with several inches of wood shavings as we are doing the deep bedding method so no issue with traffic durability. Deb's application is different so I'm not sure if it would be the best choice or not as it would have foot traffic in that application.

 

[TerryH]

Why not use both, a linoleum bonder (like a tar or roofing mastic) and linoleum? If the linoleum is bonded then nothing can get under it. The bonder can stay soft and still be protected by the denser, hard surface of the linoleum.

I considered putting a layer of linoleum over the roof coating but have decided to just run with the coating. If I were going to use linoleum or vinyl flooring I would glue it down. Seems most people were just stapling it down verses gluing it. Lots of people have used linoleum with good results. I just felt like the roof coating was a better option for our application.

 

[MeepBeep]

every one I talked to about it said NOoooo.....  Especially for hay storage...

Today's consumer grade pressure treated wood is entirely different then what it was prior to 2003 when the industry voluntarily removed arsenic and chromium from consumer grade pressure treated woods, most of the concerns are left overs from a product that no longer exist... I personally store my hay on skids so there is air movement all around and under them, so the floor choice for me makes little difference as the hay is never in direct contact with the floor... My reply was also in regards to it rotting from bellow, not in regards to skipping the sealing stage, I would still seal the floor with something on the exposed side...

All the data sheets talk about not to be used for food storage.  If I used Pressure treated Id still have to cover it with something.  Unless you know of a product that doesnt have that restriction?

I would hesitate to store food in direct contact with the treated wood, as there is a risk of copper leaching from the wood to the food, but I personally would not hesitate storing hay on skids over a pressure treated floor or even a painted pressure treated floor after it dries and cures fully... The copper in current pressure treated wood is not something that goes airborne and thus it won't jump from the wood to the food unless physical contact is made or the wood is ignited/burned...

 

[gpeters3]

I considered putting a layer of linoleum over the roof coating but have decided to just run with the coating. If I were going to use linoleum or vinyl flooring I would glue it down. Seems most people were just stapling it down verses gluing it. Lots of people have used linoleum with good results. I just felt like the roof coating was a better option for our application.

Im a firm believer in gluing things down. I have a bunch of ceramic tile in my home and the hardybacker is bonded to the original sub floor with thinset and the tile is bonded to the hardy backer with thinset resulting in a floor that does not move due to the lamination and i can safely use large tiles with no fear of cracking etc.. I know many who just screw stuff down and throw the tile on top and get away with it but i don't like doing stuff more than once

 

[MeepBeep]

I tried Thompson water seal and was very disappointed.

Thompson water seal is horrible, the only thing it's good for is repeat business when the customer needs to have their deck or fence re-sealed every few months as that is about how long it actually last if it last that long... When I did construction it was a running joke, at how well they sold and continue to sell such a horrible product to homeowners...

 

[ShrekDawg]

In my opinion, yes. I was going to do the linoleum until I discovered the roof coating. There are attributes to both but the roof coating bonding to the floor substrate and sealing it completely seemed a better choice than the linoleum. If moisture or bugs or whatever were to get in between the linoleum and the floor the condition could exist for a long time before it was discovered. No chance of that with the roof coating. The number of people with positive reviews from that thread convinced me that it was the way to go.

Why not use both, a linoleum bonder (like a tar or roofing mastic) and linoleum? If the linoleum is bonded then nothing can get under it. The bonder can stay soft and still be protected by the denser, hard surface of the linoleum.

I had the same concerns about the roof coating but this particular one dries firm. The dried film is not sticky but not hard like bed liner either. In our coop floor application it will be always be covered with several inches of wood shavings as we are doing the deep bedding method so no issue with traffic durability. Deb's application is different so I'm not sure if it would be the best choice or not as it would have foot traffic in that application.

I considered putting a layer of linoleum over the roof coating but have decided to just run with the coating. If I were going to use linoleum or vinyl flooring I would glue it down. Seems most people were just stapling it down verses gluing it. Lots of people have used linoleum with good results. I just felt like the roof coating was a better option for our application.

Interesting conversation. That is a good point that you might not discover a problem under the floor until much later but still seems like it might be good. Perhaps i will do what gpeters3 said and try putting both on. Would certainly make for easy sweeping of the floor. Or perhaps I could use the linoleum on just the droppings board. We have a discount place we can get it pretty cheap or may try the Lowe's scraps and stuff maybe. I do like the idea of this roof stuff though. Ours is only 4x8 and even though it's ground level and high enough ceilings, we likely won't really be walking in it, so no real concerns with traffic durability here either. I may go i to reach stuff I couldn't otherwise and actually I'd probably have to go in to scrape the droppings board but besides that, probably not really. And actually, speaking of the droppings board, do you think having that will protect the floor some since most of the moisture and poop will be on the board and the floor will be mostly clean shavings? Also we used pressure treated wood on the floor so maybe moisture is less of a concern? What are you guys going to use for the nest boxes? Ours are at floor level so want them to stay clean and be easy to clean and prevent bugs. Right now it's a wood floor and pine shavings but new coop I might want to try something different. Maybe linoleum on the nest box floors too? With shavings, straw, or hay, or something on top of course. Or is that too slippery? They tend to kick shavings around and make a nest lol

 

[ShrekDawg]

Im a firm believer in gluing things down. I have a bunch of ceramic tile in my home and the hardybacker is bonded to the original sub floor with thinset and the tile is bonded to the hardy backer with thinset resulting in a floor that does not move due to the lamination and i can safely use large tiles with no fear of cracking etc.. I know many who just screw stuff down and throw the tile on top and get away with it but i don't like doing stuff more than once

I was thinking of stapling but maybe will glue now

Thompson water seal is horrible, the only thing it's good for is repeat business when the customer needs to have their deck or fence re-sealed every few months as that is about how long it actually last if it last that long... When I did construction it was a running joke, at how well they sold and continue to sell such a horrible product to homeowners...

Glad this was mentioned because a while back, before i saw this roof stuff mentioned, i had seen Thompsons water seal mentioned and thought i would use it. Of course i forgot about it until now but i am so glad i didnt use it if what you two are saying is true. That's unfortunate

 

[MeepBeep]

What are you guys going to use for the nest boxes? Ours are at floor level so want them to stay clean and be easy to clean and prevent bugs.

Not exactly the cheapest option but beyond easy to clean and maintain... http://www.walmart.com/ip/Large-Enclosed-Cat-Pan-Colors-May-Vary-Cats/10811473

 

[gpeters3]

I considered putting a layer of linoleum over the roof coating but have decided to just run with the coating. If I were going to use linoleum or vinyl flooring I would glue it down. Seems most people were just stapling it down verses gluing it. Lots of people have used linoleum with good results. I just felt like the roof coating was a better option for our application.

Problem with using roof coating as a bonder is that is designed to film over very quickly so is no longer tacky enough to act as a glue. You would have to work very fast to make it work that way. There are good, waterproof underlayment adhesives that would work to seal the wood and hold down the linoleum.

 

[gpeters3]

Not exactly the cheapest option but beyond easy to clean and maintain... http://www.walmart.com/ip/Large-Enclosed-Cat-Pan-Colors-May-Vary-Cats/10811473

To each his own I guess but I like standing up to collect eggs. At least, floor level nests will ensure they dont roost in them