Hoop houses...

[The Chicken People]

Okay so I can use hoop houses because I have access to the skid steer and fields galore to dump manure in...I think its settled because hoop houses will be easier and cheaper to build..I have extra wood and a friend has extra chicken wire..I will have to predator proof them! Thanks for the advice! I am already getting excited! We have a team of four ready to do the processing! And I will make the hoop houses easy to move!

 

[CARS]

I was going to try one of these http://www.pvcplans.com/pvc-greenhouse.htm next year for my meaties. Should be cheap enough to try for a couple years.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Quote:
I thought you said you where done raising them in a fixed pen Brunty. LOL Hope you have a lot of bedding. I doubt the manure would break down enough to start plants in this Spring already. It could potentially burn the plants w/out any composting first. I think doing broilers in a HH are going to be just as bad as in a pen in the barn.

You need to find a Winter hobby Jeff. LOL Try bowling.

Bahahah... winter hobby? LOL....

I'm really trying! I'm thinking if I have a really big hoop house I can give them lots of room and hopefully maybe keep it drier in there. Composting shouldn't be to big of a problem, though I may have to add some lime to it. Those pine shavings really break down quick.

Ok so my winter hobby, I'm picking up pigs today or tomorrow... I have never raised them before but I need something to do. If I don't have something to do... I'm on this stinkin computer all day talking to you guys! Then I get nothing done! I'm allowed to be on the computer right now as my feed isn't going to be ready for pickup until noon..... so I have some time to burn.

Ha... a winter hobby... LOL.

 

[blueskylen]

we built a hoop house using cattle panels held in place by landscape timbers at the bottom - just don't forget to put supports in the middle, as last year we had a big snow and it partially collapsed the middle, but when we shovelled the snow off they popped back up.

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Lazy J Farms Feed & Hay :

Make sure you have adequate ventilation when you use a hoop house, especially in winter. If there is not adequate air exchange you could end up with an indoor rain forest which will not be good for the birds.

We are considering a couple of hoop houses for hay storage but have not yet pulled the trigger on them. We will be talking with suppliers at the winter farm shows.

Jim

That's the problem I'm having now.... It's raining in the barn I have. I have a metal roof which doesn't seem to help.

It seems to me that without proper ventilation that the hoop house would be worse.

If I ventilate too much the birds get cold... not enough and it's a monsoon in the coop.. LOL. I can't win.​

 

[Brunty_Farms]

Quote:
I really like the tractors better, but I can't use them in the winter time as we get way too much snow. The lake just dumped about 6 inches on us last night so if I had birds in a tractor they would be really in trouble.

I like the moveable hoop houses but I need something bigger for winter as it will be stationary. The key to good broilers in the winter is lots of room for them. Which I would have to build a bunch of those to fit 300 of them.

I'm working on it... however I may just take up bowling instead!

 

[Bossroo]

Jeff, I don't think that the Porkys will be your gainful winter entertainment as they will root out your flooring if it isn't concrete. And the smell ... wow. We will then hear !!!@^&**+++###@!!! Try Dorpers instead.

 

[Soccer Mom]

Quote:
Your broilers are going to need heat and protection from drafts until they are feathered out, which will be at least 4 weeks or so. We raised broilers for the stock show last year and it was crazy weather, freezing one week, warm the next.

Oh yeah, stock show weather is crazy. Our broilers are for the county fair. We show dairy goats at the Fort Worth stock show.

I start my broilers in the house for a week and then to the garage and then move them out after a few weeks with a heat lamp. I just tarp everything to minimize drafts.

 

[elrod]

we have used HOOP BUILDINGS for years, but we use 2" black poly pipe and actually screw corragited sheet metal to the poly. They are very tough, we even kept my son's show steers in them.

 

[jaku]

I haven't used them, but there are a lot of good plans online for them. I think there might even be one at pvcplans.com