This is probably the easiest least expensive option when it comes to a roof for your chicken run.
Roof over chicken run.
While a designated roof is seen as optional some form of covering is not.
Coop and run when diying your chicken coop a crucial step is to get the correct angle for the slope of your chicken coop roof.
Traditional shed roofs often call for a one in four slope.
Plywood covered in a weatherproof material such as metal plastic or shingles is the best option for chicken coop roofing as it offers protection both from predators and the elements.
So that means if you have ten chickens you should plan on a pen that s at least 10x10 or 100 square feet.
I have had good luck with metal roofing.
A good rule of thumb is to provide ten square feet of run space per chicken.
How big should a chicken run be.
You can cut all of your wood in one go with many pieces being the same size.
So a 5 x6 run will accommodate three chickens 6 x10 for six birds etc.
The size of the run you will need to build depends on the size of your flock.
A secure gate to a chicken run with an electic wire running over the top another method of building a large chicken run is to build some chicken run panels.
Shingles are the most durable weatherproof material but are more expensive than metal and plastic and harder to install.
Type of materials for a chicken run roof chicken wire.
Even if the run is 4 foot high this is even low enough for them to get over.
You need to consider that chickens can escape and get up over top.
The rule of thumb is to allow a minimum of ten square feet of outdoor pen space per chicken.
I haven t yet done any experiments to discover the critical angle where the chickens slide off.
Corrugated metal roofing sheets.
Perhaps with a seven foot height in front and a five foot height in back.
Should a chicken run be covered.
Good fencing is crucial.
Yes a chicken run should be covered.
They can easily get lost if this was to occur.
Although one might assume chicken wire is a good choice it doesn t take much for an aggressive predator to rip through the flimsy fencing.
In the case of chicken runs bigger is always better.
At our last house we were left with several.