take a look-advice? flooded run-help!

[MIchickenlady]

HELP!
If you would take a look at my pics and offer advice about what to do with my very soggy run, I would VERY much appreciate it. I know lots of West Michiganders have this issue right now-fast spring thaw and rain. But I wasnt prepared for this sight today...
I'm limited where I can have my run due to village zoning. The run pretty much hasto be where it is...a lil bit in a low spot, with permission on neighbors property thats zoned agricultural.
Its a nasty mess. I threw bark, pine needles and grass clippings in there a couple weeks ago, but its worse. how to build it up? What a mess. Any ideas? our garage was flooding too, so hubs tarped the doors and that runoff is contributing to the flooded run.
Thank you so much in advance

 

[PirateGirl]

This was recently a topic of the week. Hopefully someone can give you a link or you can find the discussion.

 

[lazy gardener]

Looks like at least part of your run/yard is in a low spot. Can you trench to drain those areas? Can you drain the excess water to a ditch? If you have such an option, I'd trench around the entire run, placing the removed soil into the run. Put plastic drainage tile into the trench, and back fill it with pea stone. Run the drainage tile to a ditch. Then convert the run to deep litter.

 

[MIchickenlady]

I'm adding this pic to show the constraints were dealing with. Our actual property ends a foot off that cement driveway. The farmer neighbor put up that wire fence and said we can use that property, its zoned ag, but its not ours. We're right in town, I want to keep the run as nice as possible to minimize complaints about smell or flies...I'm worried. Thanks again for any advice!!

 

[MIchickenlady]

Looks like at least part of your run/yard is in a low spot. Can you trench to drain those areas? Can you drain the excess water to a ditch? If you have such an option, I'd trench around the entire run, placing the removed soil into the run. Put plastic drainage tile into the trench, and back fill it with pea stone. Run the drainage tile to a ditch. Then convert the run to deep litter.

I'm good with doing deep liter-maybe build some kind of something around the bottom edge to keep the liter in the run...but the water? i dont think we can get as involved as tileing/trenching...i dont know?

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

I think you should make a raised garden bed about 8-12 inches tall out of cinder blocks, then fill the area in with topsoil and secure the run fencing on top of the cinder blocks. Also adding a roof to your run would be beneficial in preventing water from sitting in the run. Best of luck and I hope you resolve this problem quickly

 

[lazy gardener]

I put 2 x 6 boards around the perimeter of my run. That works well to hold the litter in.

 

[Lazy Farmer]

HELP!
If you would take a look at my pics and offer advice about what to do with my very soggy run, I would VERY much appreciate it. I know lots of West Michiganders have this issue right now-fast spring thaw and rain. But I wasnt prepared for this sight today...
I'm limited where I can have my run due to village zoning. The run pretty much hasto be where it is...a lil bit in a low spot, with permission on neighbors property thats zoned agricultural.
Its a nasty mess. I threw bark, pine needles and grass clippings in there a couple weeks ago, but its worse. how to build it up? What a mess. Any ideas? our garage was flooding too, so hubs tarped the doors and that runoff is contributing to the flooded run.
Thank you so much in advance

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An option would to build a deck within the run. Sq footage isn't that much of a financial burden. The deck can be hosed off periodically.

 

[MIchickenlady]

This was recently a topic of the week. Hopefully someone can give you a link or you can find the discussion.

yes! I'd love to read it....ill go search, thanks!

 

[Kusanar]

Honestly, I would deep litter it, and as swampy as it is now, you need stuff that will raise the level FAST. Any chance you can get a load of wood chips (NOT shavings, actually chunks of wood) or mulch in there? Then you can put the "nicer" bedding on top of that, but the wood will give it some bulk right off and raise them out of the muck, plus it will break down, but slowly, and pure mulch or wood chips doesn't really do anything gross when waterlogged, so it shouldn't get stinky or anything like that.
I would suggest 1/2 inch hardware cloth, or even landscaping fabric to hold the litter in without holding the water in.
It might also help to put some of those black plastic drainspout pipes (the ones with the holes in them every few inches) under the wood chips, so once the water works it's way to the lower levels of the litter it will go into the pipes and run out to the sides of the run and dump out on the grass (and the water will have some chicken poo in it, so your grass will grow like crazy after it rains)