trench vs. apron

[Dogfish]

We have a heavy clay type soil that is extremely difficult to dig in, not sand. I guess each coop is different. I am also fastening the fence in the ground with jute cloth staples, and placing a flat section of fence at the bottom of the trench.

 

[Lurch1]

How long will the welded wire last?

 

[Dogfish]

galvalnized, probably 5-10 years

 

[seminolewind]

I have had rat holes that go down 3 feet. I feed the hose into them and it just keepsa going. I've not had a problem with 2-3 foot aprons. The grass grows over it and thats that.

 

[nsanywhere]

I did an apron for one of my small coops (didn't know that was what it was called!) - used chicken wire along the bottom and filled over with 6" of dirt. 3 days later there were rat holes all over the place! Did they chew through the wire? Should I have used galvanized for the apron?

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Did they chew through the wire? Should I have used galvanized for the apron?

It takes wire 1/2 inch or smaller to keep rats from going through it
Mice can go through 1/2 unch without even slowing down

ALL fence wire should be galvanized​

 

[DaveD]

Being a belt-and-suspenders man, I vote - Do both

-David

 

[guesswhatchickenbutt]

My husband spent all afternoon - 3-4 hours - digging a trench around our run the other day. He got down about 4-6-inches all the way around and we've had 100 degree heat indexes lately, so I can't imagine how many more hours it'll take him to dig the trench all the way down for the wire. The idea that he's got to go down another 12 inches is NOT appealing to him. It's a heavily treed area with lots of roots and I felt so guilty watching him swinging the axe for hours and hours. I'm wondering if we could just fill this mini-trench back in and do the apron? He'll be so happy to hear that this hole-digging business is over. I honestly can't imagine that he'll ever dig down to the 18 inches we had planned... This apron idea sounds perfect for us.

 

[Moxiechick]

I really like the idea of an apron. We're going to be building our coop alongside our shed, which is raised about 6 inches off the ground. I was wondering how I was going to be able to dig a trench without undermining the earth supporting the corners of the shed. An apron should work nicely, as I can slide it under!

 

[greathorse]

There is simply no reason that I can think of to do the trench. There are folks that simply believe that if it is harder it is better. I put the apron around my 20x40 run in about an hour. I used large staples to hold it down until the grass grew through it. Now it is not visible in anyway.

I would think that the wire in a trenched hole would rust more quickly and give a digger an option to go on through the wire. If I felt I really needed to dig a trench I would for sure go rent a trencher and do it that way. I have no interest in digging a trench in my clay, rock hard soil. I have much more iteresting things to do with my life than spend hours on end swinging a pick and digging a trench.