“ I ’m remake the Ameraucana coop roof , ” my hubby , Jae , announced to me last week .
It was an perceivable comment . A life-threatening storm left grand without power and caused important damage around our county . Our Old chicken coop was amongst the casualty .
Or rather , just the cap , which had suffered a distich of cracks . While I made irregular reparation , Jae begin plat out a newskillioncoop roof .
A skillion is a exclusive sloping roof , usually envision on thin - tos and porches . It took us almost 15 years to determine that this case of cap work the best for our coops .
If you are building or reforge your henhouse , view these three reason why a skillion would play for you .
Check out these tips for finding the good chicken henhouse theoretical account !
Water Mitigation
Into all lives a niggling rain must fall , and the eccentric of roof on your coop can determine how that rain gets address .
Our flat roofs caused pee to puddle on top of our cage , requiring us to squeegee it off after every violent storm … and preferably not in the volaille ’ direction .
Our unwell roof , featuring a duo of slanted side resembling an invert 5 , sent water downward in two directions . It flowed into our flock ’s tally and properly behind their coop , where our access door was . This made rainy days unpleasant for both our birds and for us .
Our skillion roofs , however , are simple , efficient , and easy to customize . Jae built a test skillion for our Silkie cage and we loved it so much we substitute all but one of the rest period of our roofs ( the one on the aforementioned Ameraucana coop ) .
With a skillion , we can choose in which way and at what slant the roof slants . We can decide to let the water flow to the ground or we can add a gutter , downspout and rain gun barrel to collect the rain for usage in our garden .
We can add these to a ailing roof as well , but at double the cost to cover both side of the roof .
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Don’t Perch on Me
Our chickens absolutely adore our flat roofs .
The girl would hang out on top of them , sunning themselves and lazing the day away . The roosters would skip up there to serenade us with their mighty crows .
Jae — and from time to time my kidskin and I — would leave tools , provender buckets , even fresh eggs on top of them , then take the air off , forgetting about them . Fortunately , tidying up our disarray was lots easier than continually strip up droppings the chickens would leave behind .
Our peaked roof also had issue . While we could n’t plunk anything on top of it , our shuttlecock chance upon they could comfortably rest up on the roof ridge . Naturally , they did this at sunset , instinctively seeking high background .
I ’ve lost count of the identification number of times I ’ve had to get out our ladder to climb up up and win over a duad of chooks it was in their best interest to sleep inside , not on , their cage .
That cozy roof rooftree also received the seal of blessing from a distich of Cooper ’s hawks , which ultimately motivated us to swop the peaked roof for a skillion . Without a savorless surface or a rooftree to rest upon , a skillion forestall razz — both domesticated and wild — from perching … and us from being faineant .
Options, Options, Options
While traditional roofing materials — asphalt and slate shingles — can be used for skillion roof , an alternative for smaller coops is to use sheets of translucent corrugated PVC . These polycarbonate panel resist the harsh Michigan winters and most blazing Midwest summer .
The line make by the corrugation help channel the rainfall down the roof ’s incline . And their translucent prop lets in tidy sum of dull natural daylight , help layers order their egg product .
I had my incertitude when Jae brought the corrugated sheet home , but they ’ve proven their strong suit and durability over the years . Most of our skillions are constructed from the translucent corrugate PVC … but not all .
Our primary Orpington cage has a traditionally frame in , shingled roof , hardy enough to tolerate the next phase of skillion customization : solar instrument panel .
By orienting our skillions in a southerly direction for the best sun , Jae hope that rooftop solar panel will allow for the mogul need to automate the electronic pop doors I keep bespeak .
Since our main Orpington coop is rather declamatory , however , I ’m assume that his Modern Ameraucana cap design will feature a southerly tailor , shingled skillion outfitted with a set of solar panels .
