should the roosts bars be round?

[Angel16]

Hi everyone, my question is can i use a 1x2 inch piece of lumber for the roosts? I need to get the lumber for the roosts today and i'm not sure what to get!

 

[NYREDS]

A 2x4 laid so the birds roost on the 4" side works best.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

A 2x4 laid so the birds roost on the 4" side works best.

x2 This has been my experience as well.

 

[JackE]

A 2x4 laid so the birds roost on the 4" side works best.

X3

 

[Angel16]

Okay thank you all so much i really didn't know what lunber to get but now i do!

 

[Angel16]

also how high should the roosts be from the ground??

 

[Chick Charm]

How high is up to your chickens and your coop set up. Most birds like to go as high as possible. Any more than 4 feet makes a difficult landing in the morning, especially for old birds.

You can also use a good ol tree branch for a roost. My chickens usually pick the highest perch whether it be a branch or 2 X 3.

 

[JackE]

I have mine at 30" off the floor. Makes it east for the chubbier ones to hop up there. You can go higher, but that's where I have mine. I made the roosts easily removable also, helps at coop cleaning time.
Jack

 

[nova022]

My roosts inside the coop are about 24" but the roosts in the run vary and they seem to prefer the 4 ft one. They try to see how many of them can get on it a once.

 

[Ridgerunner]

The roosts should be higher than any place you do not want them to roost but as low as practical. Chickens normally try to roost on the highest thing they can get to. They poop a lot at night. I really want the roosts higher than the nest boxes. I don’t like poopy eggs.

Many of us have higher roosts and the chickens handle them without a problem, but there are many different reasons they should be as low to the ground as reasonable. My major one is that the higher you go the more clear space they need to fly down without banging into walls, nests, feeders, waterers, or something else. But there are other reasons. Keeping them as low as reasonable is a reasonable precaution, as long as they are higher than anything else.