Screen for Run

[Bosque]

What is the best covering and least expensive for a run? I am making a 4x8 run for my three chickens. I live in a city so the only preditors would be house cats. Could I use fiberglass screen or is it better to use 2x4 welded wire or hardware cloth? Which is the lease expensive? Do they make 2x2 welded wire? Lastly, if using the welded wire, is it best to use staples or screws with washers to attach the welded wire to the frame.
Thanks,
bosque.

 

[lleighmay]

Please go with the hardware cloth- it's more expensive initially but you won't be sorry. Screw it on with long screws and washers for more stability. I've been a cop most of my life (working shift work) and you would be surprised what's running around town in the middle of the night (and even during the day) that will eat a chicken... even in the most urban areas I've seen coyotes, bobcats, skunks, possums, dogs, cats, etc.

 

[patandchickens]

Not too many cities without raccoons. Or rats. Loose dogs, too, although if you have tall privacy fence on top of (undiggable) concrete you might take a gamble on nobody ever leaving the gate open. Still leaves the raccoons and rats though, plus a variety of other predators in most cities, varying with region.

Really, it doesn't cost much mroe to use something with some ooomph to it. 2x4 wire mesh is fine if you aren't worried about rats (do put something finer-meshed along the bottom 2-3', but it doesn't have to be real strong, doesn't have to be hardwarecloth). If rats are a possibility -- and in a city, they generally ARE -- then hardwarecloth is a real good investment.

Saves you the unpleasantness of coming out one day to a pile of blood and feathers. Really truly. Browse the "predators and pests" section of BYC for threads with titles like "something ate all my chickens last night" if you want proof that this even applies to people in cities who are convinced there are few or no predators. Learn from others' experiences, build STRONG in the first place so that YOU are never posting one of those threads.

Screws with fender washers, or screwing through a batten, are the most secure way of attaching wire mesh to the run; but hammered in poultry staples (galvanized only!) will realistically be fine as long as the chickens are locked into the house part of the coop at night, as they ought to be for safety *anyhow*.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Bosque]

Does anyone have any experience with the PVC poultry fencing? Does it stand up to the sun? Seems to be a little less costly.

 

[switters]

I just came to post almost the same question, but just noticed this thread. We're trying to decide whether to use standard chicken wire or 1/4" hardware cloth, which is significantly more expensive. The hardware cloth would keep rats out of the run, which chicken wire would not do. We're leaning towards hardware cloth for that reason, but we were hoping we might find a cheaper alternative. Any ideas?

 

[fargosmom]

As much as I know money's tight all over, if there's any way you can go with the hardware cloth you should do it, and you won't regret it. All over this forum you'll read of people who lose hens to predators, and chicken wire and lesser materials are very often the reason the hens weren't totally safe. And I can vouch for the variety of predators I've seen in the city here - coyote, skunk, possum, raccoon, hawks. If you do this right from the start you'll never have to redo it, or have any regrets. And as for PVC netting - I think even I could chew through that!

 

[GardeNerd]

I like my hardware cloth (welded wire), but I also added aluminum screen over it. For a small city coop it doesn't add too much to the cost of the over all coop, but it does add peace of mind. I recycled a lot of materials on my coop, but the wire was one area I splurged. I only added my screen over the welded wire to help keep down the flies and mosquitoes, not safety.

I live in a large urban city, but we apparently have just about everything but bears. We actually had a neighborhood duck killed by a coyote on our front lawn two weeks ago! It was awful. Boy was I happy that I spent the extra dollars for the hardware cloth instead of the poultry wire. I don't worry about the chickens' safety in the coop and run.

 

[patandchickens]

The pvc stuff will, at best, keep chickens in. It won't keep predators out. Windowscreen either, of course, and I wouldn't even count on windowscreen keeping all chickens in.

If you are going to try to keep rats out, you NEED 1/4" hardware cloth, and preferably a good cement slab as well. You may or may not succeed, though, b/c rats are very squish-down-able and very persistant and only need to find or make *one* little gap and they're in.

If rats are not an issue but budget is, and if your chickens will be locked up every day from dusk to dawn without fail, then a reasonable compromise is either a) use heavy gauge 1x1 wire mesh, or b) use heavy gauge 2x4 mesh or chainlink and run some smaller mesh, ideally hardwarecloth but could substitute 1/2" chickenwire if you can find it, or even 1/2" plastic netting if you feel brave, inside the bottom 2-3' of the run walls to prevent reach-through.

Using something not very predator-resistant is IMHO false economy, because not only will you have to replace it once predators do eventually eat your chickens (which is not guaranteed but pretty likely at least in the long run, and in fact happens to all too many people in the *short* run), and replace the chickens too, but you will also have a much TOUGHER task thereafter, because there will be predators around who KNOW it's worth extra effort to try to get into the coop/run because there's some tasty snacks in there.

Good luck, have fun, go browse the Predators and Pests section of BYC, I am not kidding,

Pat

 

[kipper]

I vote for harware cloth, too. I used to live in Phoenix and worked odd hours, and I have seen a variety of animals there. One morning at about 6am, I saw a coyote wait for a signal light at a busy interesction to change and then crossed when it was safe!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Window screen will keep chickens in as long as you don't rely on using spline to hold it in place. Screw, nail or staple it in place. IMO, keeping mosquitos out makes it worthwhile.