Run floor flooded, what are our options?

[wander]

The chickens run is still a pond a month after the hurricane. Most of our backyard is still flooded. We need to do something but we're not sure what the best option to fill is...dirt, sand etc??

 

[GoldDogsMom]

I was having issues with drainage so we moved the run, dug down a few inches, filled with 2B gravel, replaced coop and refilled floor with rough sand! It did have pine bedding so the sand is Much better!

 

[wander]

Our entire backyard is flooded, there is nowhere to move it to We haven't been able to cut the grass in that area of the yard for almost a month. It's just beyond disgusting. Fortunately the coop is okay but there is nowhere for the water in the run to go right now. I haven't never seen anything like it and unfortunately most of the area we are in is in the same boat. Our plan now is just to make the ground in the run high but we're not quite sure what to fill it with.

 

[Thespoiledchicken]

Sand is your best friend

I had a water problem also, my run/coop is at the bottom of a slope- all the water would run down the slope and pool. My husband dug several LARGE holes over the area and filled them with sand- water drains pretty quick now. My runs drain quick also because of all the sand.

 

[Kismet]

One of my runs is awfully muddy, too, from Hurricane Irene. I plan to rake out as much mud as I can and fill with pine wood chips. I have a big pile left from some trees I had taken down (thankfully before Irene would have done it for me). I figure that about six inches of wood chips should make it a lot drier.

 

[SteveBaz]

When there is a problem pictures are 1 great way to help. ! picture speaks a 1000 words. Post some pictures and sometimes folks can figure stuff out. You got me riveted

I edited this just for an idea? What if you raise the coop on legs like the do with crutches. Drill 2 holes in each corner and jack up one side at a time even if you have to cut the chicken wire and spice new wire in. or get it off the ground put concrete blocks down and put a piece of plywood on top of the clocks

Steve

 

[calgal98]

Short term you can throw some pallets down for a dry spot for the chickens. Long term I would raise the area or raise the coop. Road base with sand on top, well compacted is what works for me with my horses. You might need to put a screen between the two to prevent them from digging down and mixing the two.

 

[PoultryPedia]

Quote:
Might wood chips in a wet area create a strong opportunity for mold (which is terrible for contributing to chickens' getting respiratory diseases)? Maybe instead you could dig some nearby holes 1-2 ft across & 2-4 feet deep & fill them back up with sand or gravel, and that would provide a channel for water in the area to get drained into a lower level of the ground??? I think that's a method frequently used in areas where drainage is a problem.

 

[yellowirenut]

SAND...

I was having a problem with standing water on one end of the coop and poo on the other side. My soil is more clay like and compacts easily.
I added about 2" of sand (maybe more later) and my problems have gone away. No more standing water no more poo laying out and stinking.

SAND...

 

[kittycooks]

I had a 2" layer of sand on top of loamy dirt. When the heavy snow melt and spring rains developed in Minnesota this year I ended up digging a trench in the coop and adding pea gravel to aid drainage. Currently, the area I didn't add pea gravel with sand on top is solid hard-packed dirt; I would liken it to adobe brick. I'm currently thinking I have to dig the hard pack out, add a layer of pea gravel and the sand on top.

@wander, have you thought about moving your coop? Standing water doesn't sound like a healthy environment for chickens. The pallet idea or stilts may help!