4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[po]

hi

i have a eglu with the standard run attached.

at the moment i have both the winter and summer covers on, but the rain is still getting in and soaking the easibed.

i was thinking of buying some timber and corrugated plastic roofing to make a shelter that could be attached to the back of the wall in the picture below.

 

but after looking at the cost it was working out around the £100 mark.

then i stumbled upon this awning

 

 

£90 clearance on the B&Q site

 

what are you thoughts, do you think it would survive the winter or could i possibly change the fabric in it to something more hardwearing?

[moomin]

The cover looks very posh. But as it's so high above the eglu run would the rain not blow in underneath?

 

You may be better off getting a shower curtain for now, it will let the light in but stop the rain from getting in, especially if you have it draping over the kick boards across the bottom of the run

[Hen Watch]

I second that. A cheap clear shower curtain from Woolies or Ikea. Plus some cheap elasticated bungee cords (I got mine from poundland) to stop it blowing away.

 

Works a treat and I have same as you with both Winter and Summer shades. But I only use the shower curtain in Winter or on really, really wet days and at the moment I tend to remove it so I don't come home to oven-ready cooked chickens.

[bokbokbok]

If you re-consider the timber and corrugated then I would recommend something called Coroline rather than plastic stuff as *I* think the plastic will look grotty in a wee while.

 

Chooklady posted a photo of it over on her thread about her new run - the photo is here: (I hope she doesn't mind me re-posting it)

 

and

 

 

I have just bought enough of this from B&Q to cover my full run. It seems very flexible. Now I know what to look out for I have seen it being used by professional run builders too.

 

We just screwed in the supports for it this evening - hope to put the roof on tomorrow

[podstable]

Crows and magpies destroyed run covers in a couple of days! I invested £6 in a large tarpaulin from the builders merchants and cut covers which I have fixed on with garden wire. The birds have not touched this.If they do there is plenty left for about another 12 good size covers!. I am sure these are tougher than shower curtains as well as cheaper, you can also make any size you want.

[po]

i was thinking the awning would look a lot better.

 

if i was to attach it to the wall about 2 feet higher than the run, it would then easily cover the full run when extended. and also look neat when it was folded away against the wall.

 

my only concern is how long the fabric would last, and what i could use to recover it when the original fabric rotted.

[chooklady]

The awning seems like a pretty good idea to me; a least you can push it back out of the way when cleaning. Maybe it would be a good idea to put some sort of support in the front 2 corners if it's windy, just an idea.

[debbie26pet]

we have one of them awnings in the garden and i wouldnt advise it, when it rains it weighs it down providing a buldge in middle and then can bend all the fittings, it was adised only for sun, if windy it can make a banging noise , and after a while th ewater does start to seep through,

id go for the green corragated item we use that on my run partually to stop rain and shade, the rest of run is the clear one.

[Yolky]

po take a look at this thread....

 

http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/viewtopic.php?t=21551

 

 

there is a really good idea on there. I was going to do it myself but after working out costs it seems that it wouldn't be too much more to make a walk in run (I have a 4m run on my eglu) and a walk in run would be easier for me to clean.

[Guest]

ANH uses plastic corrugated sheeting, bent over the run and secured with bungees- Vicki, can you post a pic?

[Guest]

found it!

 

[po]

yolky.. that idea is very similar to the one i had, it was working out about£100.

so i was thinking pay £90 for the awning, use the original cover until it was on its last lags then replace it with either polythene or tarpolin.

the idea of being able to roll it away on a nice day makes it a lot more desireable also.

 

poet.. that corrugated plastic looks pretty good, the only thing is the rain would still drip in off the edges..

 

think i will order the awning and give it a whirl.

 

will post some pictures as soon as its up!

[po]

well i finaly put the awning up today, and think it looks great and should do the job.

 

 

shoul get at least this winter out of the cover, and then i will replace it with that plastic type material you see deck chairs made from sometimes.

 

[Chickvic]

That looks really good po! You must be pleased!

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Just came across this thread and am glad to see someone else has posted my corrugated plastic photo (saves me getting teased about it again!). Thanks Poet!

 

I like it because it still lets in the daylight. Not much water actually does get in at the sides because the run sides are vertical where the plastic stops. I find the door end gets damp if it's really wet though which is a pest.

 

It's not been off more than a day or two this "summer" so has been well worth the £12 it cost me!