Roofing

[Country Squire]

What is the cheapest way around covering a run. I have ouduline for the coops, but it's going to be very expensive to cover an area of 17 x 11 feet.

What is out there, and any websites I can view?

Cheers.

 

[bantiekeeper]

Hi there,
My run is only 8' square but I made up a light wooden frame which I covered in 2" chicken wire to start with, followed by some of the green shading material used for greenhouses. Finally sheets of 3" profile clear pvc sheets to complete. This works very well and is angled to collect the rainwater in a gutter and on to a water butt. The pvc sheets were purchased from Wickes. As the run is 2 metres high access is easy.
As you say yours is a big area. Is it possible to perhaps just cover some of it.

 

[Country Squire]

Hi there,
My run is only 8' square but I made up a light wooden frame which I covered in 2" chicken wire to start with, followed by some of the green shading material used for greenhouses. Finally sheets of 3" profile clear pvc sheets to complete. This works very well and is angled to collect the rainwater in a gutter and on to a water butt. The pvc sheets were purchased from Wickes. As the run is 2 metres high access is easy.
As you say yours is a big area. Is it possible to perhaps just cover some of it.

Hello Bantiekeeper, at the minute I have pheasant netting on the roof. Does the job to keep hawks away ect, and looks tidy, however each year I'm having to replace the floor with a ton of 20m shingle because the floor just become a mud bath come winter. (Perfect in the summer, and the stones soak away the water).

I think it's time to cover the roof with something. That's what I want to acheive too, catching running water into a butt.

 

[bantiekeeper]

Hi again, My banties are kept on the allotment where we get fairly regular deliveries of woodchip. This is great for the floor of the run. With the roof described before the run stays really dry. A depth of 3-4" lasts for 8-10 weeks before I put it all on the compost heap and relace it with fresh. I do poo pick every day though. To combat the wind and rain I have made panels also from the pvc sheets which clip on to the sides of the run. These can be put on one or all sides depending on the wind direction or in the case of the recent fine weather removed altogether to keep the run well aired.