What would you do with this coop?

[aart]

This is what the top currently looks like. It's water weighing it down, not leaves. I wonder if the same thing will happen if I put a new tarp across the top.

Yes it would....not sure how to change that without spending money by buying better roofing material.

 

[AriLovesChickens]

They attached it to some boards underneath, I think. I have some big zipties and was going to try it that way.

 

[AriLovesChickens]

Or maybe my best bet is just to put new bedding often. :/

 

[aart]

Spend money on plywood or spend money on frequently changed bedding...your choice.

 

[Free Feather]

Could you add another board a foot higher or so on top of the existing one in the middle? Like a gable?

 

[AriLovesChickens]

Inside. :/

 

[alscatS]

I would rake the run down to bare dirt (removing all previous accumulation of crap)- - then add some leaf litter/straw/bedding material - for the chicken wire top -the cheapest would be a new tarp - or the sheet metal or plastic sheets - they can lay on top with a brick - or get put down with a hammer & nails.

 

[Luvmy9hens]

Check out Craig's list and look under "materials". You would be surprised to see how much used lumber/plywood is available at no cost. A tarp alone will sag with the weight of water and or snow and could possibly cave in and kill your hens. You need a solid support on top before adding the tarp. It could be an old door, garage door panels, plywood, etc. I agree that it would be best to clean the coop thoroughly as you do not know if the chickens previously housed in the coop/run were diseased. Put down a fresh layer of straw/pine needles or other natural decomposable bedding that the hens could scratch and dig through. You want to keep the hens dry and their bedding/coop dry as well. Dryness = NO frostbite.

 

[Kikiriki]

I had a tarp and it acted like a bathtub, so I had to put plywood under it. I would raise the level of the ground, which will help with holding water in the area. You could dig a trench to help water drain away, too, and use that dirt in the run. I would move the coop to the outer edge of the run and make the roof slope outward so water runs out of the area. You could investigate how much it would cost to put up a rain gutter in that area, but then you will be having to clean out leaves or it is not worth the money or time of putting it up.

Last idea, move just the coop to a drier area, and use some temporary fencing as a run.
This would be the healthiest option for your chickens, too...no telling what they are being exposed to from the past residents....

 

[21hens-incharge]

I would rake the run down to bare dirt (removing all previous accumulation of crap)- - then add some leaf litter/straw/bedding material - for the chicken wire top -the cheapest would be a new tarp - or the sheet metal or plastic sheets - they can lay on top with a brick - or get put down with a hammer & nails.

Best solution I have seen so far. If you were closer I would give you metal for the roofing. I have tons of the stuff laying about.