Chicken Coops for Sale in Maumee, Ohio
Chicken Coops for Sale in Maumee, Ohio
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 Free Plans in Maumee, Ohio
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Maumee Ohio" 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 Maumee Ohio chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Maumee, Ohio With the huge rise in chicken keeping there has been an equally large rise in the variety of fowl materiel for sale. Poultry real estate is an instance in point. It's additionally a timeless instance of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as different potential poultry housing experts market a range of holiday accommodation asserting to be the perfect remedy to your chicken real estate requirements. Frequently the price looks attractive, the house looks desirable, heck also the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Definitely they recognize a quality chicken house when they see one? There are many cheap as well as awful coops swamping the marketplace. I know this as I've tested a variety of them in the area, and seen a ewe run directly with one when the feed container appeared. The result was nothing but a costly pile of fire wood and also a little group of bemused and also now homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Reviews in Maumee, Ohio
Generally these standardized designs are constructed of quick grown up timber - come the first decline of rain they swell, leaving you either defending a door that will not close, or tearing the doorway furniture off in a vain attempt to release the squawking inhabitants. The very first cozy day indicates the hardwood dries out as well as splits, the felt roofing bubbles and boils, as well as come nightfall the hens refuse to enter. This is not due to their disappointment at the decline of their as soon as appealing residential property however considering that the hovel is now a place for, as well as most likely crawling with, the fowl keeper's bane, red mite. Add on the fact that it claimed on the blurb that it would certainly suit four huge chickens when that stocking density was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as exactly what are you left with? A number of joints as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to 4 birds need to cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run attached. Thinking you are ranging your birds in a huge room as well as the pop hole doorway allows enough for the type you maintain, then the main demands of real estate come down to 3 points which will define the number of birds your home will hold; perches, nest boxes as well as air flow. Many types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch should ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot rests conveniently on it. The perch needs to be more than the nest box entry as chickens will additionally normally seek the highest point to perch. A perch below that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they create one of the most poo) leading to dirtied eggs the list below day. They should not nonetheless be so high off the flooring of the house that leg injuries can take place when the bird gets down in the early morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in small breeds this is clearly much less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in the house they should be more than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Ideally your house must have a least one nest box for every single 3 birds and also these ought to be off the ground and in the darkest location of your house. Your home needs to have adequate ventilation: without it then condensation will build up every night, even in the coldest of climate. Realize, air flow works on the concept of warm air leaving via a high void attracting cooler air in from a lower space - it's not a collection of openings on opposite wall surfaces of the house and also at the very same level, this is what's referred to as a draught. If you have a house with a run connected then the points above are still true, yet you ought to also take into consideration the run dimension. The EU maximum lawful stocking density for a totally free variety bird is (and also allow's encounter it, one of the motivations for maintaining some hens in your home is potentially enhanced or better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m squared. Take a close check out some of the bargain houses - it could well be the house has the appropriate perches, appropriate air flow and also sufficient nest boxes for a sensible variety of birds, but will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the claiming goes, "you obtain what you pay for". You could believe you've grabbed a deal, but you and your flock could rue the day you did. Purchase the appropriate house as well as it will certainly last for a few decades, otherwise longer provided the right treatment. In the long run your fowl and your fowl keeping encounter will be considerably the much better for it.plan coops
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