Sand!?!

[ChocolateMouse]

Incidentally I use deep wood chips in my chicken pen. My lawn gets 6" of standing water each spring despite my best efforts. The chicken pen, however stays solid and unflooded.

Bonus effect, on really hot summer days, the absorbent quality of the decaying wood chips allows you to hose them down for a couple minutes and create a cooler environment quickly with water evaporation and it will last longer than an nonabsorbent material.

 

[Chick Chick McGee]

My run is on semi low land and water pools up in it when it rains there is lots of wood shavings in it from them kicking them out of the coop and that helps absorb water. After it rains I usually keep them locked up until it dries. I have Brahmas so when you let them out in the mud they get really dirty

 

[Farmgirl1878]

Our run is directly over one of the lines of the leach field, so gets wet behind and to the side. We used 2x12 inch boards to outline the run and then filled in with natural river sand. No problems at all with wet and the girls can dig nice, deep holes for dust bathing!

 

[SurferchickinSB]

figure out a way to fix the drainage issue first because if it’s low lying, even sand won’t solve your problem.

After that, I can tell you
You DO NOT want “play sand”

You want river sand or contractor sand because you do not want the particles to be
a. Dusty (bad for chickens)
b. of uniform size (lock tightly together and won’t allow water to run through)

Maybe

My run is on semi low land and water pools up in it when it rains there is lots of wood shavings in it from them kicking them out of the coop and that helps absorb water. After it rains I usually keep them locked up until it dries. I have Brahmas so when you let them out in the mud they get really dirty

Just put in a French drain and that will take care of the flooding.