Question about plastic coated hardware cloth

[ArizonaNessa]

What is your opinions on the green plastic coated hardware cloth? I was thinking of using it instead of the regular hardware cloth on my next coop build. If you have any experience in using it I would like to know if it holds up well to weather. Does it tend to become brittle and flake off? If it does then I don't want to use it because the chickens might eat it. Plastic/Vinyl flakes can't be good for any critter. I really like the looks of it but I don't want to create myself or anyone else a problem in the future.

Thanks in advance for any info you may have.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

anyone?

 

[dykeswa]

I don't have any experience in using it, but it seems to me that after a while in the sun it would get brittle but before that I think that the chicks would peck at it enough to cause it to peel off, don't know for sure just a thought....

WAD

 

[rufus]

I would avoid it. Anything plastic dies in our heat. I like the look of it, but I know in a year or two it will look terrible, and the vinyl residue will be the first thing those darn chickens will peck at.

Rufus

 

[gaberdeen]

I had it once on a rabbit hutch. Peeled after one winter. Not worth it in my opinion.

 

[patandchickens]

Coated chainlink and coated garden fence have not lasted terribly well IME so I would not have high hopes for coated hardware cloth. And once it starts to chip and peel, the whole thing is doomed, there is really no good way I've ever found to stop it from proceeding.

Get a good grade of galvanized stuff instead. And then if you want it dark colored, paint it black (with or without etching or applying galvanized-metal primer first, as per your choice) using a paint roller to minimize waste. Yeah, the paint will eventually start to flake off but it's so easy to repaint that it's not a big deal, and you get the 'invisible wire' look like the coated stuff.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[ArizonaNessa]

Thank you all for your responses. Not the answer I was hoping for but it is the one I expected. In the past I have always used regular hardware cloth but then when I went with hubby to Home Depot to get some fencing posts I saw it and kinda got excited. He told me to inquire about it here because who else but you guys would have such advice? LOL

Thanks again and I will just continue on with the non-coated variety.