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Beginning farmers face many challenges when raising livestock and chickens. Difficulties arise not only from caring for animals, but also from building a place to house them.
In chicken coops for breeding poultry, it is very important to create a comfortable temperature regime. All the cold in the room falls to the floor, so it is necessary to build a high-quality floor covering in the room. Warm chicken coop floor protects chickens from diseases and promotes a comfortable course of their life cycle. If floor temperatures are too low, chickens get sick or their egg production drops.
Tips for choosing flooring
One of the most important criteria for flooring is the choice of good materials. There is a huge variety of floor coverings; which type to choose depends on the type of chicken coop and the funds you plan to spend on the work. Most often, the following types of floors are used in buildings for chickens:
- wooden;
- concrete;
- earthen.
All of the above floor coverings differ not only in structure, but also in price, and, most importantly, in labor costs. If a concrete floor will take more than one day, or even weeks, then an earthen floor can be done in one day.Each breeder decides which sex is better, based on cost and requirements.
Dirt floor
Often in poultry houses they leave an ordinary earthen floor covered with hay or wood chips. However, such floors in a chicken coop cool down very quickly, especially during frosts and at stable low temperatures. The main disadvantage of such a floor covering is the creation of an unsanitary environment. Parasites and diseases penetrate the earthen floor very quickly, infecting chickens through worms or the soil itself.
Due to the lack of a hard layer, at the slightest ingress of moisture, the floor of the chicken flock will become covered with dirt. Mud puddles quickly form on the earthen floor covering. Therefore, if you have chosen this particular type of coating, it is better to make the top layer of clay. Among the advantages of an earthen floor in a chicken coop, only high laying speed and low cost can be highlighted. If your region has very harsh winters, it is better to avoid this type of roofing.
Concrete screed
To pour a concrete floor in a chicken coop, you will need special equipment. Arranging such a coating can take from 1 to 5 days, depending on the area of the room and the equipment involved. However, such labor costs are fully justified by the high strength and quality of the screed. Viruses or parasites cannot penetrate through a concrete floor.
The disadvantages of floors of this type include their low temperatures, especially in the winter, and in the chicken coop the floor should always be warm. Therefore, for a comfortable life for chickens and livestock, additional coverage with finishing materials is necessary. Such measures will make the floor in the barn or chicken coop as warm and durable as possible.
Concrete floors are resistant not only to moisture, but also to aggressive environments, including acids.Over time, the screed does not deteriorate or collapse. The average service life of such floors is 15 years or more. And if you seal your floor with penetrating sealants, it will last even longer.
Wooden floor
Wood is considered the optimal material for covering the floor in a chicken coop. You can make a similar floor with your own hands both for a chicken coop and for a flock of livestock. Wooden flooring retains temperature well and always remains warm. It does not require flooring made from waste wood or straw, because the array itself is absolutely safe. However, such a floor must be treated against rot and bacteria. Impregnations of this kind are safe for both people and animals. In addition to the impregnations described above, it is recommended to treat the floor with fire retardants.
Lime is one of the cheapest antibacterial agents for treating wooden floors. As additional insulation measures, it is recommended to install decorative flooring on the joists in the chicken coop.
Many breeders still lay a straw bedding on the wooden floor. Each breeder decides for himself how to make the flooring. This depends not only on the type of floor, but also on the availability of the material. In some regions it is much easier to obtain straw than sawdust or moss.
DIY floor installation
The simplest flooring option that you can make yourself is wooden. To prevent the floor joists from rotting in the first years of operation of the chicken coop, it is necessary to prepare a foundation for them. For small buildings like a chicken coop, a light foundation is sufficient. Most often, the following types of foundations are installed for such purposes:
- columnar;
- pile;
- Shallow tape.
Among the three types of foundation listed above, it is recommended to build a columnar one. Its installation is faster and cheaper than a strip foundation, and its service life is longer than that of a column foundation. A strip foundation is created if it is necessary to reduce the load of the load-bearing structures of the building on the foundation. The chicken coop is lightweight, so the use of such a foundation is unjustified. In addition, the columnar foundation regulates temperature differences, protecting the interior of the coop from cooling. The basis for the pillars is concrete or sheet iron.
Construction materials
After you have decided on the type of foundation, you need to purchase materials for construction. The minimum list of tools and raw materials for the construction of a columnar foundation includes:
- wooden floorboards (material is purchased with a reserve);
- bars;
- fasteners and a hammer (if self-tapping screws are used, a screwdriver will be required);
- cement mortar;
- hammer and bricks.
Assembling the foundation and floor
When the wood has been impregnated and all the tools are ready, you can begin building the floor in the chicken house. Instructions for constructing a floor together with a foundation include the following steps:
- First of all, the foundation pillars are erected. For this, bricks are used, from which pillars-pedestals 25-30 cm high are assembled. The step between each pedestal is 40-50 cm. If the site already has a foundation, they immediately begin laying the logs.
- When the solution of the pedestals has dried, you can install the logs. You can purchase them ready-made or cut them yourself. Remember that the planks are laid on a slope.In the future, such a floor will be easy to clean from dirt.
- Additional insulation for the chicken coop can be provided by laying the space between the logs with insulation. It doesn’t matter what the insulation is made of, the main thing is the high safety and environmental friendliness of the material. This procedure is optional, but if your region has very low temperatures in winter, it is better to lay insulation.
- Next, boards are laid perpendicular to the joists. The optimal length of the board is 2 times less than the length of the lag.
- The boards are attached to the beams with nails or self-tapping screws. The step between fasteners is 30-40 cm.
- It is important that the boards fit tightly both to the joists and to each other. If you are making a sloped floor, make sure that it is uniform across all areas of the floor.
- After installation, cover the floor with lime or other antiseptic. In addition to its antibacterial function, lime protects wood from premature destruction and mechanical damage.
- A bedding made of sawdust or straw serves as additional insulation and a kind of pillow in the chicken coop. The second material is more preferable, since it does not harm the birds’ bodies.
- Some breeders use moss for bedding. If the material is available to you, you can use it. However, keep in mind that the layer needs to be replaced every few weeks.
- The layer of flooring on the boards is made from 8 to 20 cm. Do not lay too much material, otherwise it will quickly dry out.
The installation of such a floor in a chicken coop is available to a larger number of breeders. The design has been tested by many professionals and ordinary farmers. Remember that the floor needs maintenance. Depending on the number of chickens and the size of the chicken coop, the litter is changed every month or two. The period may be shorter if there are a lot of birds in the chicken coop.
Conclusion
A wooden floor is warmer than an earthen floor, and, most importantly, it is more comfortable. In a chicken coop with such a floor, the chickens will remain healthy and produce high-quality eggs and meat.
