HELP aggressive chicken

[CharLeila]

Hi, Im planning a WIR and was wondering if anyone has any experience of using lino as flooring. My WIR will effectively be a shed with weld mesh sides so will have a solid floor. I plan to cover the floor with aubiose (or similar) but thought about putting lino under the aubiose incase it gets a little wet.

 

Any thoughts appreciated.

[The Dogmother]

I wouldn't; it will trap wet and faeces, and also act as a refuge for red mites.

[Bramble]

Wouldn't lino also make it quite slippery (for you, if not for the chickens)?

[The Dogmother]

Wouldn't lino also make it quite slippery (for you, if not for the chickens)?

 

That too.

[Egluntyne]

Ditto to all of the above.

[CharLeila]

I was thinking i'd properly bond the lino to the wood base to avoid anything geting under it like mites. Also, I would have a decant layer of aubiose on top. I can't think how it would be slippy? I have lino in my kitchen and bathroom and its not that slippy.

 

Im just trying to think of the best/most comfortable/cleanest way I can keep my chickens.

 

Any ideas welcome.

[The Dogmother]

It will be slippy to chickens and they might end up with splayed legs or worse; they just don't have the grippy soles which we do.

 

It seems that you're determined to go ahead - despite asking for advice - so try it out and see how you get on. Our joint wealth of experience says that it won't work... we've all been there, or similar in past years. Our advice would be to avoid the expense and mess.

[Egluntyne]

Red mite will get under it, as they are determined little blighters.

[C&T]

Guessing will also get scratched/cuts in it as time goes on. Making it more difficult to clean and keep mite clear. And if you bond it to the floor underneath, s"Ooops, word censored!"ing it off in the future I would imagine would be tricky at best. What is the base of your shed now? Why are you so keen to cover it?

 

We dithered a lot about flooring in our WIR. Didn't bother in the end, bare earth and auboise does the trick very nicely.

[Redwing]

There are a couple of options that I have tried with success

 

The first is cheap thin hardboard, you buy it in small sheets. I have used this shiny side down so the textured underneath is actually uppermost. This is non slippy. It can be easily removed to check for mites and also s"Ooops, word censored!"ed clean if neccessary. The sheets are cheap and I replace mine about twice a year

 

The other option is thin rubber matting, I got this from Ebay. its very good and can be hosed off

 

Whatever you choose I would coat the wooden shed floor with a couple of coats of creosote (if you can get it) or a creosote replacement. This will cut the chances of red mite between the shed floor and the covering

 

I personally wouldnt use lino where there are other much more suitable options. You could maybe get away with using lino upside down or maybe rubber bathroom flooring

 

Whatever you use do NOT bond it to the shed floor, make it fully removeable, thats so important for cleanliness and checking for bugs.

 

I actually think a covering is a good thing, shed floors rot so easily if used as a permenant run and if you use a floor covering then you can get away with thinner bedding or even no bedding around feeders.

[CharLeila]

Thanks for all the advice. I wanted to build a run with a solid floor as the ground where we live gets very wet in the lightest of showers. I thought about lino as a covering to avoid the wooden base getting wet, also thought it would be really easy to clean out and dissinfect. I like the rubber matting idea Redwing, will have a look online for some.

[CharLeila]

oh no. you know when you get an idea in your head and you cant stop thinking/reading about it? well thats me now!

 

I've been reading on here about WIR floors and it seems a lot of people prefer a slabbed floor. How easy is it to clean a slabbed floor and will it stay dry enough to have a layer of aubiose (or similar) on top?

 

Do I build my weld mesh side pannels and just sit it on the slabs or stay with the original idea and have a wooden base (like a shed floor) covered with a rubber mat?

 

I you vote for the slabs, would I need to secure the run to them or just sit it on top?

 

TIA

 

Paul

[Mrs_B]

Maybe if you have a problem with a wet floor, this might be something to consider?

 

http://www.newlandgrange.com/CHICKEN-RUN-MUD-MANAGEMENT(1720020).htm

 

I did this because of all of the rain we had, and didn't want concrete, so this was great for me as the water goes through the mesh sheets and keeps the chickens away from all the saturated mud (and it isn't slippy). It's quite easy to do and look after as well.

 

x

[CharLeila]

Thanks Mrs B, I've seen this on another thread too. http://www.mud-management.co.uk/index.php. They both work out about the same price for my planned WIR. Think I might try aubiose on slabs and see how I get on with it, if it doesn't work out and gets too wet then I'll have to decided weather I go for the woodchip option or the rubber chip option. I hate decisions like this, I wish I could potty train my girls!

[Egluntyne]

Don't go for the rubber chippings whatever you do! A friend of mine did, at great expense and it was a disaster. They don't absorb the moisture and you will end up with a stinking mass, which will weigh a ton and be a nightmare to shift. The hosing the poo away notion only works if you have soil with excellent drainage underneath the chippings.

 

Aubiose on slabs is your best bet. There is no magic way of dealing with this issue I'm afraid.

 

Hens = poo + hard work.

[The Dogmother]

I'd second Aubiose on slabs, mine have this and are fine, even in the wettest weather. It is easy to clean and disinfect too.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Guest

[Egluntyne]

Heathrow? You using predictive texting DM?

[Olly]

 

Hens = poo + hard work.

You left off the end of the equation though: hens + poo = hard work but fabulous garden compost!

[The Dogmother]

Heathrow? You using predictive texting DM?

 

 

How weird, not at all; I was typing on the usual pooter... must have gremlins. Thanks for pointing it out.

[CharLeila]

Right, that's the decision made. Thank you all very much.

 

Looks like I'll save a bit of money too by not having a solid wood base I was originally planning. Just slabs, aubiose, 4 panels that screw together and corrugated plastic roof. Im serving in Cyprus until March but will be building as soon as I return. I promise to upload some pictures.

 

Do you think I could use the WIR as an excuse to get another couple of girls? If I let the wife name them too?

[Grandmashazzie]

You could look at thread mud management which then links to newland poultry who have good ideas for keeping run dry though looks as if it will be expensive but if this wet weather continues like last year all summerit will be worth it I imagine.

[The Dogmother]

If you have a run on wettish ground, I'd suggest digging down, laying a soakaway of gravel, then slabs on top.