Pro - Does anyone else's nest boxes get soaked in rain?

[cluckfest]

This is our first winter with the chooks and after the latest downpour we are finally going to have to take the off the lawn and onto bark on top of block paving until spring. OH is worried either the bark will stain the paving or the ammonia will be impossible to get rid of. The alternative is to sacrifice an area of lawn but as we are on clay I think it will get too soggy. Has anyone had any experience of putting their on block paving?

[jennydavies]

Hello, Our henhouse and covered run is on paving slabs so that rats etc cannot burrow underneath. I have no problem keeping the slabs clean, it is so easy to sweep and disinfect each day and it doesn't matter how hard it rains, it doesn't get waterlogged in there, unlike the outside run which can get like a quagmire in winter.

[cluckfest]

Thank you for replying, do you cover the slabs with anything for them to scratch around in?

[jennydavies]

No, we just leave it as slabs. The covered walk-in run is 12 sq metres all paving slabs and the girls have an outside fenced run of 70 sq metres which used to be lovely and green but is now just bare dirt (a quagmire in mid winter) they are also allowed to free range in our big garden every day. We are very lucky because we have ever such a lot of space for the girls to roam in. I have seen on the forum lots of people put bark or wood chips down on the paving to help keep the slabs clean, maybe you could look into it for what's best. For me, I find it really easy to disinfect and the girls have a warm dry area when it's raining in the winter. Hope this helps.

[jennydavies]

If you did put your henhouse on paving, maybe you could jetwash it every so often to save staining.