Best flooring for cold weather?

[cricketmt]

I'm in Montana and we have pretty ferocious winters normally. I plan to have heat in the coop, but am looking for a recommendation for the best flooring for cold weather. I've seen some use linoleum, would that work?

Anyone have other recommendations?

 

[chickyfarm]

Following! I'm in Mn and winters are brutal.

 

[cricketmt]

We're just finishing our coop/run planning. I've just moved away from the idea of an elevated coop to one much closer to the ground. It'll be on the south side of our garage, but will have some southern side shade to protect in the hot days. I want part of the run covered from the weather too.

I remember as a kid we always had the coop doors open in the daytime, even with temps in the -20F range or colder. It was a large-ish structure, cement floor and was not heated....were we just cruel? I don't remember losing any chickens to the cold, we had RIR and Bantams.

 

[chickyfarm]

Are plain dirt floors ok or do I need a flooring?

 

[Mahlzeit]

The floor of my coop has a sheet of vinyl on and then I put pine shavings down on top of that. I don't have any issues with it here in NY and we get pretty cold winters too.

 

[Bradfordj]

Dirt or wood floors are fine. Use lots of straw, or other bedding for insulation and to absorb moisture. Linoleum is typically used for ease of cleaning.

 

[chickyfarm]

Dirt or wood floors are fine. Use lots of straw, or other bedding for insulation and to absorb moisture. Linoleum is typically used for ease of cleaning.  

thank you! I might go with some vinyl flooring for cleaning. Whatever helps with that is alright with me!

 

[sierranomad]

I am brand new to chickens, so my following comment is not based on experience, but on what I read in a book"The joy of raising Chickens".

I made a floor of concrete because the book said that wood will eventually rot. Concrete goes up 3" along the walls so cleaning should be done easily by spraying.

Jon

 

[Bradfordj]

I am brand new to chickens, so my following comment is not based on experience, but on what I read in a book"The joy of raising Chickens".

I made a floor of concrete because the book said that wood will eventually rot. Concrete goes up 3" along the walls so cleaning should be done easily by spraying.

Jon

If you can afford concrete, that is a good way to go! Cleaning is easy, you can pressure wash or hose it down. Depending on your size it can either get costly or unnecessary. My coop is a remodelled wood grain bin, which is probably 40 years old and the floor is very solid. As long as you keep it dry, clean, and good bedding, wood is fine.

 

[Blooie]

I'm just south of you in northern Wyoming. I don't provide any supplemental heat for my chickens, nor is my coop insulated. The floor of both my coop and my run is good old deep litter on top of the dirt that was there when we built. I don't have to clean it regularly (once a year if necessary) and have no odor problems whatsoever. The chickens love to dig through it for tidbits they might have missed or for little bugs, and dust bathing in it was also a favorite pastime. It kept them well occupied during the long winter. In the summer they dig holes in it, lay down and spread their wings out over the edges of the holes they dug to cool off. In the winter they also dig holes in it, then they snuggle deep into it for additional warmth.

For my DL I started out just using pine shavings, but I learned that they don't break down very well on their own. So I took a very wise woman's advice and started adding some grass clippings, weeds we'd pulled out of the flower beds, garden trimmings, raked up leaves (complete with small twigs to help with lessening compaction) and the good old chicken manure the girls (and Scout) provide. I absolutely love this method. My chickens are healthy, happy, well occupied, and I don't mind working in the coop one little bit.