What is best to cover over a quail hoop coop?

[carolms4]

Hello y'all!

We're building a hoop coop for our quail. I want to make sure they are protected as possible from the elements. We're in North Texas and in the summer it can get over 100 and in the winter as low as the teens (occasionally single digits). The hot days last way longer than the cold ones. We also need to consider wind, heavy rain and hail. Our backyard can get flooded easily in heavy rain. We don't get snow much, but that's not an impossibility. I've been looking at different tarps and shade cloths. I'm just not sure which would be best. We have some extra greenhouse plastic laying around and I thought that might work for the winter. I'm afraid they'd cook under it in the summer though.

I don't have pictures yet, since we are just finishing up the base, but here's an idea of what it will be like. It's 6' x 12'. For the base we used 2x8 boards with 2x4's for reinforcement. We covered the bottom of the base with weed cloth and 1/4" hardware cloth (both overlap and attach to the 2x8 boards). We'll attach 3 - 16' cattle panels (covered with 1/4" hardware cloth) to the inside of the base. The back of the coop will be wood - currently thinking about using old pallets for this (disassembling them and attaching them). We're putting in a two door system to help with escape artists. The doorways will have 1/4" hardware cloth on them as well. We'll probably put up some corrugated plastic panels around the bottom on the outside. We're also tossing around the idea of putting in some type of pavers (inexpensive ones) for the floor before covering it with top soil and bedding. Maybe some pea gravel first.

I'm probably overthinking it all. I just want it to be as comfortable and predator proof as possible for them. Any suggestions on the best covering would be so appreciated and helpful

Thank you!
Carol

 

[Nabiki]

Your plan sounds pretty good to me. If you can put it near a tree for shade, that would be ideal, but at worst, make sure you can use a tarp to cover 1/2 of it for shade during the summer. As long as they have plenty of water, they can handle a lot of heat. You may need to add bottles of ice during the worst days.

During the winter, as long as they are dry and out of the wind, they will be quite happy in small boxes or other shelters scattered inside their pen.

You probably don't need 1/4" hardware cloth. 1/2" is usually good.

 

[carolms4]

Thank you! Yes, it will be near a tree (the back end of it anyway).

We have some snakes and raccoons in the area so we went with 1/4" hardware cloth. But you're right, we probably could use 1/2" on the top part.

We are going to build a shelter box for them to go along the back wall. It'll be fully enclosed (aside from the floor) with a door for them and a corrugated roof that we will be able to open up. There will be other hide a ways as well. The hens seem to do better when they have somewhere to escape to.

I've also seen some folks cover the entire coop with a tarp or shade cloth. Our thoughts were just doing about 2/3 of it. We're trying to cover all angles of heat, wind, cold, rain, and hail.

Do you have any tarps that you would recommend?

Thanks again!

 

[Nabiki]

I get cheap tarps. They last a year or two, and then need to be replaced.

They will probably be happier with a bunch of hiding places rather than one shelter box. They may or may not use it.