Locking Bar Eglu Classic

[Kirstie]

I couldnt believe my eyes on friday afternoon - when I saw my cube upside down and my poor girls cowering in the rain in their fenced off area! I live in cornwall and we certainly didnt have the wind like the North has had it but I had covered their run with the winter shade and it had obviously acted like a sail and the result - a flipped over hen house.

So be warned everyone!

 

The roof had come off the house - and doesnt seem as securely on there anymore as its quite wobbly plus the run got bashed and is pretty bent (it does bend quite easily though - just moving it around the garden its been bent).

 

Typically we were going away for the weekend - so I was trying to get organised for that, was also supposed to go to my little boys parent teacher meeting - which I couldnt go to as how could I leave my poor girlys like that. So after cleaning poo, chicken food and broken egg off everywhere - we moved the house and quite stressed girls - we anchored it down with pegs and rocks - and went away - worried about the girls - but thankfully no wind this weekend. I am a little worried as its supposed to be getting windy again this week - and I cant keep them where Ive moved them too.

 

Not sure what Im supposed to do - they need the cover for protection from wind and rain but obviously its causing my cube a problem of flying like a kite! Have been thinking of building them a large run that will hold their house inside and give them a roof so they are sheltered, and cover the sides on really rubbish days - just dont have the money right now.

 

Theres always something x just glad my girls are ok xxx

 

Kirstie

[Gertie]

Poor girls, poor you. Glad they were ok. Thanks for the warning for us with tarps & covers. What about bricks around the base, tent pegs & maybe some kind of guy ropes just incase. I'm going to have to think about how I secure mine too.

 

Hope you get your girls & set up back to normal.

[Patricia W]

If you have the run with it, then weight the skirt down with bricks, or heavy stones. if its on soft grown you could also pin the run down with tent pegs as well.

 

If the cube has no run, out a heavy weight on the roof and peg down the wheel base with more heavy bricks/ rocks.

[Chucky Mama]

Crikey, that is scary. Is the only cover that you have on the Omlet winter cover? If so I have the same set up.

[Kirstie]

Hi

 

I normally have it pegged down with the pegs you can buy from omlet as they are in a field which is uneven - so makes lots of gaps for things to get under. But we had just moved them to a new spot in the field and set up the net enclosure for them - just got it back from the mother in law! so hadnt pegged it yet - was on my list - although I wonder if they would have held it - it had to be a string gust to lift a cube.

 

I have the winter shade on the top and 2 of the smaller shades on 2 of the sides under the house - so air can flow out - I just couldnt believe it. I hope it doesnt happen to anyone else or my girls again - my cube wouldnt take it but imagine if it had happened at night - the girls would have been inside.

 

Not nice

[Luvachicken]

In the storm of 1987 my rabbit cage blew over, along with petrified rabbit that wet her self from shock, so I am always very worried when it gets windy.

Where I live now, we are surrounded by other peoples trees - huge oaks, pines and a massive beech, so I never sleep well and worry about bits of tree falling on my pets ( or our house ).

 

Did someone say there is some more wind coming?

[Kirstie]

I think thats what they said on the 7 day forcast on countryfile - not ness as strong - but wet again!!! Im done with the rain now - just give me some frosty mornings whenI have to deal with frozen glugs!!!

[Luvachicken]

Thanks for the weather update - i missed countryfile today and like you, can't wait for some lovely frosty days.

[Lewis]

Must have been really strong to flip a cube!! - do you know if it went over on the side or over the back.

 

Maybe being in the field will mean its a bit more exposed and somehow flipped ... people with them in gardens have the fences to protect from the wind a bit.

 

Hope the girls (and cube) are ok - you might want to let Omlet know

[Kirstie]

We live out in the country and have recently moved to cornwall - our previous house had a more exposed garden then where it was in the field - but thats because we seem to choose really rural spots that dont have fence panels - we just have post and rail - so we are more exposed.

 

The cube flipped over backwards - so when I saw it it was on its roof but had flipped backwards out of the enclosed area onto the bins I have storing food and chicken bits.

 

Think I may let Omlet know - would really hate for it to happen to others - Im a stay at home mum so I was around to spot it but if Id been out - the girls may not have been so great in the heavy rain and being in a field!

[Aunty e]

Wowzer - we always had our cube pegged down with tent pegs to keep out foxy, so I've never worried about it flying away. That must have been a horrible shock!

 

We recently sold our cube to finance a walk in run - bought the run from ebay second hand for £250, but there seem to be loads of places online that will sell and build you a huge run for not too much more than that. Could you downsize to a classic or a go to finance a run? You wouldn't need the omlet run, so that does make it cheaper.

[Goosey Lucy]

I had a similar problem with my eglu, it's now weighted down with 3 bags of sand. Makes it harder to move but at least it stays put.