Chicken Coops for Sale in West Medford, Massachusetts
Chicken Coops for Sale in West Medford, Massachusetts
Preparing Your Coop/Flock For Winter – Part 1: Roof Structure
Last week I posted a list of items that you may want to consider doing to make sure you and your flock are ready for the colder winter months. I’m going to try address one or two of these topics every Wednesday so that if you are going to work on them over the weekend you have time to plan.
Again I know it’s hard to even think of winter when the temperatures are in the 90’s in many parts of the country, but the cold weather will be on us before you know. Its much easier to take the time now to button up any issues, then trying to do it in the dead of winter. Many of you will not deal with snow and ice (lucky you!) but many of these topics effect all of us backyard chicken keepers and have a detrimental effect on the overall health of your coop…As I always say if what I post pertains to you and helps, great, if not just forget about it and move on…
Coop Roof Structure:
The roof of your coop is the first line of defense against the elements. A sound roof will not only prevent water penetration but will help in keeping your coop warm during the winter. As we all know heat rises (check our second floor of the house out in the summer!) and a solid roof can help trap some of this heat keeping the inside of the coop warmer. The important thing to remember is that you do not want to trap all of the heat by cutting off ventilation. Heat develops moisture and condensation so it’s important to have a balance. Ventilation is an important aspect of the coop, without it moisture builds, ammonia fumes become overpowering and your birds health will suffer. There is a huge difference between ventilation and a draft, we will be discussing “drafts” in a later post.
Having controllable ventilation at the peak of the roof structure will help to maintain a healthy coop. This can easily be accomplished with some screen covered holes on the side walls of the peak and using a piece of plywood to control how much of an opening you want. There are some much more elaborate systems out there but they all accomplish the same thing, controllable ventilation. If you don’t have ventilation at the peak you may want to consider it. There is a reason why so many homes have ventilation at the eves and peaks, it helps to control moisture in the home during the winter as well keeping the home cooler in the summer months.
Ensuring that your roof is leak free is also very important. That little leak you have been dealing with all summer may become a big issue during the winter when you get the “freeze/thaw effects”. During the day as snow and ice melt, water can leak into the the roof structure. At night this water freezes and expands resulting in a larger and larger leak as the days go by. There are many products out there that can help seal up these leaks but be careful some have toxic fumes that could be harmful to your flock. Sometimes just using a new shingle on asphalt roofs does the trick. Metal roofs typically leak at the seams or nail heads, a good quality sealer should handle these areas. Just remember most of the time the leak you see dripping on the underside of the roof came from a hole or crack above where you see the dripping. When water leaks in, gravity causes the water to run to the lowest point. It may take some investigation to find where the leak is actually coming from but a good starting point is to start above the spot you see the leak dripping.
If the wood on your coop roof is rotted it should be replaced. Rotted wood normally contains a large amount of moisture. The moisture in this wood adds moisture to the coop (remember, it’s a bad thing). “Freeze/Thaw” effects can take place on this rotted wood causing it to deteriorate even quicker. Snow loads can add significant weight to the top of the coop and a unstable structure runs the risk of collapse. I can only imagine how difficult it would be dealing with a roof collapse in the dead of winter! If the snow and ice get to heavy for the roof on your coop, you should remove it. When removing it be careful not to damage the roof shingles or other covering! Stand on a steady surface with both feet firmly planted on the ground or step when attempting to remove snow and ice.
A roof leak also adds unwanted moisture to you coop by letting water in and keeping the litter wet. The interior of a coop has enough moisture from bird droppings and the moisture a chicken itself gives off by breathing, you don’t need or want the added moisture from a leak. If the litter in the coop becomes wet from any source during the winter you should remove it and replace it with fresh as quickly as possible. Placing a bucket under the leak to catch the drip is not a good fix. When water drips into the bucket it can splash a fine mist a considerable distance. This mist keeps the litter wet and the air inside the coop too moist.
A well ventilated, leak free, structurally sound roof on your coop is a extremely important part in maintaining the overall health of your coop. This is not an area that you want to just “make do” and cut corners. There are many materials that you can use for a roof. Some, like scrap metal roofing or end cut pieces of tar paper and shingles can be found at a local building site (ask first, you don’t want the end up in jail!) or a recycling center. I would avoid using a tarp, although these are good in an emergency should you find a leak. And never use pressure treated wood which can give off toxic fumes in a enclosed area like a coop. If your roof membrane is water tight there is no need for pressure treated plywood or lumber as a deck surface.
By addressing the coops roof now you can prevent dealing with the effects of a wet environment in the dead cold of the winter months…Hope this helps….
FrankThe Chicken Fountain™
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Chicken Coop On Trailer in West Medford, Massachusetts
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in West Medford Massachusetts" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding West Medford Massachusetts chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in West Medford, Massachusetts With the significant boost in poultry maintaining there has actually been an equally big surge in the range of poultry paraphernalia for sale. Fowl real estate is a case in point. It's likewise a traditional example of the good old bandwagon being got on as various would-be chicken real estate professionals peddle a range of accommodation asserting to be the suitable solution to your chicken real estate needs. Often the price looks desirable, your house looks eye-catching, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Undoubtedly they know a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are several inexpensive and nasty cages swamping the market. I know this as I've examined a variety of them in the area, and seen a ewe run straight via one when the feed pail appeared. The outcome was just a costly heap of fire wood and a small flock of bemused and also currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Easy To Clean in West Medford, Massachusetts
Usually these mass produced versions are created of quick grown up lumber - come the initial decrease of rainfall they swell, leaving you either blockading a door that will not close, or tearing the door furniture off in a vain effort to release the squawking occupants. The very first warm and comfortable day implies the lumber dries and also splits, the felt roofing system bubbles as well as boils, and also come nightfall the chickens choose not to go in. This is not due to their frustration at the decrease of their as soon as eye-catching building but considering that the hovel is now a sanctuary for, and probably crawling with, the chicken caretaker's bane, red mite. Add the fact that it stated on the blurb that it would certainly fit four huge hens when that equipping density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and also what are you entrusted? A few joints and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds should cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you choose for a free standing house or one with a run connected. Thinking you are ranging your birds in a large area and also the pop opening doorway allows enough for the breed you maintain, after that the main requirements of housing boil down to three factors which will specify the number of birds your house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. The majority of types of chicken will certainly perch when they go to roost during the night, this perch ought to preferably be 5-8cm wide with smoothed off edges so the foot rests easily on it. The perch should be above the nest box entrance as chickens will additionally naturally search for the acme to perch. A perch below that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they produce one of the most poo) causing soiled eggs the following day. They shouldn't nevertheless be so high off the flooring of your house that leg injuries could happen when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens require about 20cm of perch each (in little breeds this is obviously much less), plus if more than one perch is installed in the house they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally the house must have a the very least one nest box for every single three birds and these need to be off the ground and in the darkest location of the house. The house ought to have ample ventilation: without it after that condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the coldest of weather. Know, air flow works with the concept of warm air leaving via a high gap drawing cooler air in from a lower space - it's not a set of holes on contrary walls of your house as well as at the exact same level, this is what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run connected after that the points above are still true, however you need to additionally think about the run size. The EU optimum lawful stocking density for a totally free array bird is (as well as let's face it, one of the motivations for maintaining some chickens in the house is possibly enhanced or far better welfare) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird each 4m settled. Take a close consider some of the bargain houses - it could well be your house has the best perches, right air flow as well as ample nest boxes for a reasonable number of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? And so as the saying goes, "you obtain just what you pay for". You could assume you've grabbed a bargain, but you and also your flock can rue the day you did. Purchase the ideal house as well as it will last for a few decades, otherwise longer offered the appropriate therapy. In the end your fowl and your fowl maintaining encounter will certainly be much the better for it.for sale chicken
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