Should I replace the roof?

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Margaid

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I recently bought a secondhand coop with run on ebay, and was told by the seller when I collected it that there had been a redmite infestation. The coop was being sold because he had bought a bigger one and constructed a steel enclosure. That may have been partly true, but I reckon he sold it because the infestation was so bad.

We had to stop and dismantle it on the way home so I have been brushing all the sections down to get off the loose dirt prior to scrubbing or steam cleaning and then creosoting it. I now realise that the edges where the sections join together are covered in clumps of dead red mites. At some time the coop has had something stapled to it and I have been removing all the rusty staples plus a few drawing pins. Most of the drawing pins were not flat to the wood, but this afternoon I prised off one that was really tight fitting to find a clump of 'orrible little grey things which ran in all directions. I squished as many as I could.

I'm hoping that two coats of creosote will sort out any that I missed but I'm worried about the roof. This consists of two plywood panels each covered with a single piece of roofing felt which is in very good condition and firmly fixed down. I've read that roofing felt is an ideal hiding place for redmite so I'm wondering whether I should take the roof panels apart, rip it off and cover the roof with Onduline.

The long ramp up to the pophole is also covered with the same felt. I was going to take it off and put strips of timber across it, but now I think I'd be safer scrapping it and starting again. What's the steepest angle hens will walk up?

All advice and opinions gratefully received - I wish I'd never bought the wretched thing!!
 
Hi Margaid. Red mite only go under felt if the infestation is so bad there is nowhere else left to hide so treat the roof but don't replace it. One coat of creosote diluted 50:50 with paraffin is the way to go and will be all you need. Soaks in fast, is just as effective and dries much quicker. I've heard of diesel being used and I have considered 'Citronella' oil and still am. Don't forget to turn weatherboarded panels upside down to get the 'creoffin' into the tongue and groove joint.

Ours have 45 degree steps with a platform at the top (enlarged top step). The lazy ones walk up each step, which are 4" high (funny to watch), the keen ones just fly to the top. The steeper the steps the more run area available is what I thought. All our coops have the same steps except the bantams, which is smaller. They don't like slopes much and certainly not planks covered in felt -we had one and I scrapped it.The only reason for having a sloping plank is because they are so easy and cheap to make, it wouldn't be a chicken's choice.
 
Thanks Chris. The evidence is that the infestation was quite bad but there were still places for them to go I think. it had obviously been sprayed with something, although he couldn't tell me what it was, as there were clumps of dead mites.

The plank takes up a lot of space which was another reason I thought I'd get rid of it. When you say "steps" do you mean a ladder with edges, or a central pole with rungs either side - or a miniature staircase? I'd thought to make a landing platform although it will be about 700mm above ground level.

I need to make a couple of minor repairs tomorrow then I can creosote the main pieces and work out how to replace the floor, the perch(es) and fit a Chickbox. That's provided there are no dramas with the building works!!
 
With the roof, I think you can either convert to Onduline or give two or three coats of creosote to the underside of the roof i.e. the part of the roof that's inside the coop. I use felt and when I've renewed it on many sheds, I find some with mite but most don't.
 
Hi Margaid. Yes, a minature open tread staircase. The latest use decking planking screwed across decking planking. I make a template on hardboard with the cutouts for the steps as 45 degree pieces removed, about half way into the two main planks. Cut the top and bottom at 45 degrees and make the top step across the top with two planks. Add a lip on the coop side below the pop-hole to sit it on. Sounds complicated but it's simple although time consuming. Biggest we have has 7 steps, smallest 5.
 
Thanks Chris, I'll make a template when I've screwed it all back together. Now I know what red mite look like I'm finding clumps of dead ones between most adjoining surfaces. I've just removed the location strips from the inside of the roof panels - more dead ones, and I was about to take the gable pieces off when the power screwdriver was knicked for use on the roof (of the barn/house that is).
 
I'm not entirely happy about the staircases Margaid. Rosie tells me they look 'twee', which in my book is a bit of an insult. I'm aiming for 'well engineered' or 'rustic'.

I know what you mean about finding dead mite. Took good cladding off a coop with the intention of re-using it. So many red mite (alive) I just lit a bonfire and threw it straight on. They were in every conceivable gap in the structure -but the 'creoffin' killed the lot.
 
Yes I've been giving it some thought Chris and sketching some ideas and think I'll just make a ladder, but the info about the angle is very useful. I haven't found any more live mites so I think I'll give a good balst with the airline, do the repairs and then creosote and put it all back together with a Chickbox. There's no way I'm going to use the nestbox or the perches which are too small and were only about 6 inches apart.
 
why not just add a onduline roof its pretty easy with support beams inside the house that they can be screwed to gives extra ventaltion as well as for the ladders or ramps i just use breeze bulks stacked on top of each other to make a step of even old bricks laying around so much better :lol:
 
It's too high for blocks or bricks Karminski without losing a lot of run space. I need to keep the plywood panels as they are a major structural component as they continue over the run. The more I look at it, the more I wish I hadn't bought it but it may be useful as a day run for one of the new Houdans. She's a bit thick and went missing - when my friend found her, quite by accident, she was sitting in the middle of a neighbour's field and had been there since the previous day. She tends to roost wherever she happens to be at bedtime so when all the others are let out to free range she has to be confined as my friend doesn't want to lose her. The hen is supposed to be show quality - it looks like the brain has been bred out!!
 
thats a shame as i find them so much easier or it may be i cant be bothered with making a ramp :lol: i even brought home a slotted bed post tpye thing that i was going to convert its still waiting to be done .
could you put :) pics on here of the house then maybe we could find another way round the roof if we could see it
 
I'm hopeless with digital cameras and the house is in bits now Karminski, but if it still works, this is the ebay link.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/200796295080?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

The roof panels are about 600mm wide by 2m long and form the roof of the house and the run. I think I might make up some extra weldmesh panels to extend the run as there's space for 3 large fowl in the coop but the run isn't big enough at only 2 square metres. I wouldn't bother to put a solid roof on any extension.

I've taken off all the "extra" bits on the roof and there was only one clump of dead redmite which was under a very loosely fitted wooden strip - an obvious replacement for one of the original locating strips. I can't get the two remainng original strips off so think they must have been glued as well as screwed. All the bits will be well treated with proper creosote before they're put back together and I'll work the creosote in along the edges of the felt.

The coop probably won't be used for several weeks which gives it time to dry out properly, and if the weather holds the fumes should dissipate more quickly - I can leave it dismantled if necessary. What I really want to do is build a "Poultry Palace" but OH's wood working equipment is in use while we're putting the roof on the building so I can't do it yet. That will be creosote on the outside and limewash on the inside as we know the mix for limewashing timber and we already have all the stuff we need to do it.

Now I know what red mite look like - dead or alive but not actually red, it makes it easier to be vigilant and spot them. As the girls are absoloutely clean - no mites or lice, so I'm not going to risk them getting stuff from an infected coop. They are too big to live in this one anyway - it was for an isolation or possible breeding run.
If I get really fed up I could always put it back on ebay!!

Having spent two hours with a kitchen designer it's now back to cleaning and repairing
 
oduline does bend if it was me i would cut the sheets to size and then bend them over the roof length ways then use bungee clips to hold them in place if only i could do a picture to show you ,i use them on a house similar to that but mines completely flat an i just lay a sheet over the whole house and run held down with a railway sleeper to stop the wind blowing it of that way i can get into the top of the house with ease. what about gluing the entire seam :-)05 s of the felt so nothing can get under it .
 
The felt is stuck down very well Karmisnki, I tried stripping it of the ramp as an experiment. I've discovered that the roof isn't solid ply, it's a framework with very thin ply stuck top and bottom. It has come unstuck in one place and I saw red mite running around at that end of the board. OH said that the problem with replacing the roof with Onduline is the hammering to get the fixings into any battens we put up - the basic framework of the house is so flimsy it wouldn't take it. He also thinks the stability of the whole thing would be compromised.

I'm going to strip the thin ply off the underside of at least one panel and see what's underneath. Once I've done that I can creosote inside the roof panel to kill any redmite and then glue a new sheet of ply in place.

I found live redmite on one of the verticla panels so tomorrow I need to get cracking with the first coat of creosote - it was much too hot today to put on all the protective gear.
 
Margaid said:
OH said that the problem with replacing the roof with Onduline is the hammering to get the fixings into any battens we put up - the basic framework of the house is so flimsy it wouldn't take it. He also thinks the stability of the whole thing would be compromised.

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Click to expand...

When we fixed onduline to the roof of our run we used screw in fixings from Wickes according to their instruction sheet. They were a special kind of fixing that didn't squash the corrugations I think. Anyway I'm sure they were screwed and so no hammering required. Last month I had it all removed and totally covered with clear plastic corrugated, which again had special screwed fixings. The old ones came out quite easily from the onduline.
 
Slightly off topic, but from that photo it looks in good nic, pity its not how it is, well redmite makes it obviously less attractive and useful really!
you obviously have to learn from things, but such a shame, and hopefully its usable again soon :)
 
Thanks Marigold, I'll have to look for those - we've used the hammer in type wihc also go on top of the corrugations. As it's cooler I'm just off outside to try and strip off the plywood. Then I have to feed the homing pigeon which has been hanging about for 4 days - trapped it in the cat carrying cage and it should be collected early next week. It was much easier to trap than the tom cat we need to get neutered before we're overun with kittens.
 
Just seen the photo Margaid. I'd be temped to board a new roof in two halves, rather than use ply. Run the boards horizontally and screw battens in the right places to fix it to the original structure and keep the boards together. Fix a wooden edge for the felt and a piece bevelled to hold the two sides together. I would then take that opportunity to increase the overhang because if you keep the rain off the walls of the coop it will last so much longer.
 
shame you wasnt down the road or esle i would happily come and help you :) . but i know you will sort it you dont seem the tpye of person to let this sort of thing beat you :lol:
 
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