Predator Proofing PVC Run?

[mrsmistoffelees02]

Happy Monday! Our weekend project was building a run for my chickens.
It’s still a work in progress. The top part will be wrapped with chicken wire to prevent hawks. It’s not perfect; I would have preferred to do the whole thing in hardware cloth, but it’s too expensive so I’m working with what I have.
I could wrap the bottom few feet with hardware cloth, but wouldn’t a raccoon just climb up to the chicken wire?
Would securing chicken wire to the floor help prevent digging predators, or is an apron more efficient?
Not sure what to do about fixing the gaps in the door. I’ve heard people use wood to frame it in but I haven’t seen a picture to know how to do that.
Any more suggestions would be HIGHLY appreciated! Thank you in advance!

 

[mowin]

Looking good. Yes, all HC would be best, but do what you can afford. I'd do a apron as they are very effective, and easier than digging down 12-16", which is about impossible in my area without equipment. For the door, I'd overlap HC on the frame and door in self.
Will it be fort Knox, no, but for day time use it will give decent protection. I'd also get in the habit of locking the chickens up in the coop during the night, and do whatever you can to make that fort Knox.

 

[mrsmistoffelees02]

Looking good. Yes, all HC would be best, but do what you can afford. I'd do a apron as they are very effective, and easier than digging down 12-16", which is about impossible in my area without equipment. For the door, I'd overlap HC on the frame and door in self.
Will it be fort Knox, no, but for day time use it will give decent protection. I'd also get in the habit of locking the chickens up in the coop during the night, and do whatever you can to make that fort Knox.

Thank you! Should I line the bottom with chicken wire in case something tries to dig under and in, or will the apron likely keep things out well enough?

They will definitely be locked in the coop at night! Anything else I should do?

 

[mowin]

Thank you! Should I line the bottom with chicken wire in case something tries to dig under and in, or will the apron likely keep things out well enough?

They will definitely be locked in the coop at night! Anything else I should do?

Chickens love to scratch and believe it or not are rather good at digging. Most people don't put anything on the bottom of the run as your running a risk of the gals injuring their toes/feet on the fencing as they scratch around.
The apron is effective because predators tend to dig at the base of the run and don't know to back up 18" to the edge of the apron.
As far as what else do do... Definitely change the chicken wire on the coop with HC. Don't just staple it. Fasten it with fender washers with screws. Or better yet, sandwich the HC between the coop with trim boards fastened with screws.
Unfortunately, chicken wire is only good for one thing, keeping chickens where you want them, but not effective at keeping predators from a chicken dinner.

 

[mowin]

Also, where in general are you located? Coop designs can vary greatly depending on climate.

 

[mrsmistoffelees02]

Also, where in general are you located? Coop designs can vary greatly depending on climate.

Thank you! Located in SC.

Will skip the wire on the bottom. Don’t want any bumble foot cases if I can help it!

I unfortunately don’t have the option of replacing the whole thing with HC as it’s just too expensive, but I could wrap the bottom half with it since I have some from a previous project. Would that even be worthwhile?

I’m also planning to put some things in the run for cover, like a little hutch I’m making with scrap wood and whatever else I can find.

 

[TooCheep]

I understand watching the budget. Placing a wire skirt around the run/coop, hardware cloth around the lower half of the run and under the coop and making sure the run is well-anchored to the ground should be priorities.

Not Fort Knox, but at least medium security protection...

Looks like you have plenty of ventilation . Which way is the prevailing wind coming from? You might want to have a fold-down panel to shut out rain when it is expected.

 

[mrsmistoffelees02]

I understand watching the budget. Placing a wire skirt around the run/coop, hardware cloth around the lower half of the run and under the coop and making sure the run is well-anchored to the ground should be priorities.

Not Fort Knox, but at least medium security protection...

Looks like you have plenty of ventilation . Which way is the prevailing wind coming from? You might want to have a fold-down panel to shut out rain when it is expected.

That’s a great idea to include a fold down panel. We are by a lake so it can get pretty windy. I have been trying to think of a solution for when it rains and was going to try to make a tarp curtain or something, but I like this idea much better. Thanks for your input!
We are going to stake it down with landscaping stakes to make sure it’s well anchored.

Does the wire skirt need to be hardware cloth, or will chicken wire work for the apron? Would like to use the remaining HC on the run itself. Hopefully chicken wire could prevent digging…

 

[mowin]

That’s a great idea to include a fold down panel. We are by a lake so it can get pretty windy. I have been trying to think of a solution for when it rains and was going to try to make a tarp curtain or something, but I like this idea much better. Thanks for your input!
We are going to stake it down with landscaping stakes to make sure it’s well anchored.

Does the wire skirt need to be hardware cloth, or will chicken wire work for the apron? Would like to use the remaining HC on the run itself. Hopefully chicken wire could prevent digging…

The best stuff to use for the apron is HC, but 1x1" or 1x2" fencing works well also, and is less expensive than HC, but smaller predators like rats can breach the apron as they will fit through the fencing.
I highly recommend changing out the chicken wire on the coop windows with HC. Making the run secure isn't going to help when a weasel, coon, even a fox could get into the coop, day or night.
Make the coop predator proof especially for the night time. At least when locked up at night they will be safe.

 

[perkolator]

I just put some chicken wire up on my run and tried to break through it while pulling it tight with wire -- while it CAN break, IMO it's pretty damn tough until you get into large predator territory. Due to hole size, I would add the HC at the bottom perimeter, with a skirt - to prevent raccoon hands reaching through and to prevent diggers. A roll of 3ft HC would be good size for this to do both horizontal and vertical.

As for the question about installing wood on PVC for the door - a simple wood frame is easily added either by drilling some holes through the PVC so you can screw it to the wood, or use pipe hanger strap, a piece of plumber's tape/hanger strap, etc. Or simply overlap the HC - when I do this I like to fold it over so it's more rigid.