Chicken coops and flood irrigation

[Bob Stroup]

Ok, need some input from the field.  I am putting together my first coop and have some concerns regarding flood irrigation.  I'm not currently using it although it is available and I get the overflow from various neighbors.  Do I need added support under each corner of the coop above and beyond 4x4's set in concrete or large blocks for the foundation?  I am not sure which method I will use, who has had success?  What do I need to do differently in the run?  Having the food and water elevated seems obvious, what is not so obvious?  Through trial and error, what have you all learned?  Thanks in advance for all the help.

 

[Bob Stroup]

I am all about ease of operation at a low (financial) cost. If half a dozen hens living in an 8x8 open air coop with a 20x20 run can be clean and happy and easy to clean up after with a dirt floor in the coop (using the deep litter method) and with a nice berm around the perimeter to keep the water out, I'm good.

[Bethany Lobocki]

Berms will be your friend. Definitely the easiest route, although there are irrigation days where the pressure is up really high...on those days there will be more water than normal in your time slot. So, berms might not be enough...unless of course you build really high berms. Our coop is up on blocks, also in a higher section of the yard.

[Debbie Fishell]

I have flood irrigation. I placed 2 layers of cement pavers (just happen to have a bunch!) on the ground to create a solid base for my coop, high enough to stay dry when yard is flooded. I tested it before I put the coop there. I put straw on the floor of the coop so it is easy to clean and is a soft place for hens to lay eggs. I have a feed dish inside the coop and another outside ( I can move it if needed). My hens LOVE the irrigation! They walk around in it and it keeps them cool. It does make a muddy mess though. When I mow the lawn I spread the clippings in their pen, which helps a lot. Unless your pen is very large - you will have nothing but dirt after the chickens eat every living plant/grass they can reach. You can also spread straw to keep it from getting so muddy. I'm not a fan of wire on the ground or floor, but that's just my personal opinion.

[Rachel]

I think your easiest and best solution would be to just berm around the chicken area if/when you decide to get irrigation. Wire on the bottom of a coop floor is not good for the chickens' feet and should be avoided if possible. It can lead to foot injuries including bumblefoot, which isn't fun to treat and can become fatal.
Sounds like you have a lot of projects going on right now. Always seems to happen in the middle of summer doesn't it? :)

[Suze Scott]

I think a lot of how hard wire is or isn't on an their feet depends on the amount of time the chickens spend on the wire, the gauge (thickness) of the wire and how far they may jump down to it. Thicker is better, shorter distance is better. In most cases mine are free to climb up to the wire floor or stay down on the ground. With one exception, I do not have roosts above wire.

[Bob Stroup]

The neighbors do irrigate so there will be flooding, I'm just gonna have to deal with it. I'm adding drainage to the side of the property so I do have extra soil. The berm does seem the easiest (and obvious) choice. Thanks. I tend to OCD, planting a tree becomes a recreation of a scene from Apocalypse Now.

[Suze Scott]

Ideally I would raise the ground where the coop sits so that it is above irrigation level.

One coop is raised on cinder blocks at the corners. Additional ones in the middle would have probably been a good idea.

For 3 of my coops, I built a solid frame of concrete blocks upon which I placed the coop. First one I partially filled with wood chips from the tree trimmer. It was kind of coarse, but the price (free) was right. For the others I have added shavings, sand and rice hull bedding. After each irrigation I add Sweet PDZ and stir up the bedding with a hoe.

The first stays mostly dry, part sometimes gets damp. The others flood, so I provide a raised floor during irrigation. I am thinking I should add caulk between the blocks and fill them in. And as I add bedding I believe that it will eventually stay above water.

[Bob Stroup]

OK, so no 4x4's in the ground. So either a coop with a wire floor (1/2"x1" I believe is what I was told) that sits up on blocks, to keep out of the water, or, raise the ground above flood level and work with a dirt floor. In raising the ground I would guess I would need a perimeter of block to keep the soil in place. Is that workable? What could I do to improve the dirt for inside the coop? It's pretty dense, maybe add something to it to increase drainage? Dig down, add some rock under some weed cloth before refilling with soil? Or is harder and more compact better?

[Pam Rawlins]

I built my coop 2 feet off the ground, with a ramp for the chickens to walk down to graze, etc. I keep a waterer under the coop on a cinder block, and a waterer and food in the coop. This solved 2 problems... 1 the irrigation, and 2, roof rats wouldn't take up residence underneath. Plus it is a protected area, and extra shade - the chickens love it under there.