Roofless run

[woodworm]

I wouldn't put a tarp due to the weight (snow can be heavy) - from your pic it looks fine to me.

@DobieLover - I wish we got snow like that - love your garden (couldn't find a jealous smiley!)

 

[21hens-incharge]

Well if I pull it off halfway through the snowstorm so it just doesn’t collapse and then not use the tarp for the rest of the time is that ok? Then the rest of the snow will form a roof over the run and it won’t be 14 inches high is what I’m going for

It depends on how strong you are and how big your run is.
I had 10" of heavy snow bow my wire roof down from 7' up to 5' up. That means it sagged 2' down between my supports that were 3' apart. No way on earth could I have pulled that snow load Even an inch on a tarp. That wire was 2x4" welded wire with chicken wire over it. Chicken wire alone without the welded wire would have been even worse.
I ended up bouncing the wire from underneath with a push broom to get it to drop through before it took my entire structure down. Yes that was both physically difficult and extremely wet.

 

[britinpa]

Ours is only partially covered. We're supposed to be getting anything from a 12 to 26 inches between now and tomorrow. Don't know as yet how our wire is going to hold up. I'll probably be shoveling some of the snow out of the run tomorrow.

 

[Sally PB]

I advise most (all) people in snow country NOT to put a tarp over the wire run roof. Any snow that could have fallen through won't and once it melts at all it will pool in the low spots....which will be directly above wire.

Think of it like a bowl.

GOOD POINT!!!

@21hens-incharge, the slope on the roof of my run is probably 25-30 degrees, so snow melt will run off pretty well, I think. There are also 1 1/2" dia metal pipes at four foot intervals supporting the chicken wire. I plan to broom off the snow; I can reach the peak from both sides with a push broom. But you're right, I was thinking of a steep slope, and it looks from OPs picture that her roof is much more flat.

Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[aart]

My run roof is 14ga 2x4 welded wire.
It darn near collapsed the first year.
Now I keep it clear of any sticking snow by banging on it from below with a snow shovel.
How ever you keep the snow cleared off, do so.