Rubber mat coop flooring?

[Layira]

So I've read things here about putting something like linoleum or vinyl flooring in the coop to help with clean up, which makes sense. My (soon to be) coop has a solid wood floor right now, and I was wondering if putting in rubber mats (sometimes used for horse stalls and such) would work the same way as vinyl or linoleum. Anyone do something like this?

 

[patandchickens]

Well, you CAN, but IMO it is really pretty pointless unless you are padding/insulating a concrete floor (which is not your situation). Big ol' waste of money, when just priming and painting the wood would work about as well, or putting scrap vinyl flooring if for some reason you REALLY want something atop the wood.

If you are just itching to buy stall mats, or have some lying around you are not using, I can PM you my mailing address...

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Skippin' Sammi]

Quote:
I was thinking of doing the same thing. Maybe something lighter than a stall mat though. I was going to check out Tractor Supply today and see what was available. Mine would only be 4x4' and I wanted to be able to just pick it up and dump it on the compost pile when I cleaned.

 

[Lucindahart]

I cover the floor and under roosting bars with old newspapers - then as i clean them out I roll the paper up, cathing all the mess, and put the whole lot on the compost and fresh paper down.

Works really well and is free!

 

[eponagirl]

I put horse mats down (we did have a few extra here), though not necessary, it does add slight cushion for them along with the bedding when they jump off roosts...I have a heavy breed though. Again, not necessary, but will be easy to clean and perhaps even slightly insulating from cold if coop is elevated. Works for me!

 

[littlelemon]

That is what I do. My coop is inside of a barn, so it is basically a big 5X8 cage that sits on concrete blocks to keep it up off of the dirt floor. The "floor" of the coop is just 2X4 beams with hardware cloth. I bought several horse stall mats and cut them into 3 large strips and laid them over the floor. I deep clean the coop twice a year and it is a snap. I take out all of the straw, then I lug out the mats, take them outside and hose them down. It is so easy and not very messy. Since my coop is a cage is is so easy to clean, a wire scrubbing brush and a hose is pretty much all I need. I love those mats, they were a great investment.

Oh, when I cut the mats and laid them in the coop there were some small gaps where the mats met. I just put duct tape over the crack where the mats met, and that prevents any straw or dirt from falling through the crack onto the dirt floor below.

 

[EweSheep]

Yep I've used rubber mats in my coop and it is a snap to clean up! Been going strong for six years now!

 

[Layira]

Thanks for all the replies everyone!

I own horses and have experienced how easy the stall mats are to clean, which is why I thought something like them (like the lighter interlocking mats, for instance) would be good in a coop where cleaning can be tedious. Sounds like I was on the right track, as they've been tried and true by you guys.

patandchickens :

when just priming and painting the wood would work about as well

I guess the only reason I didn't want to do that is because I'm worried about the wood rotting through. That would solve the problem, but I thought it would be hard to clean off the wood inside, which is why I considered the mats. Thanks for the input though!​

 

[Eddybock]

We are new to backyard chickens and chickens in general and are utilizing our old dog kennel got the chicken run. We had a couple of rubber stall mats around and put them over the concrete blocks. We have also made a 4' X 4' dusting box for them. Oh I forgot to mention that we will have 6 chickens soon but no roosters. My questions are....

1. What type of material is best for the dusting box?
2. What type of material should I put over the rubber mats?
3. What type of material on wooden coop floor?
4. What type of material goes in the nesting boxes?

Desperate for help, there are just too much info out there to absorb.

Thanks

 

[Gundawg]

What do you use to cut the stall mats?