When it comes to building a chicken coop, choosing the right materials is essential. Two popular options for constructing the walls and fencing of a coop are hardware cloth and chicken wire.
While both materials are commonly used in poultry enclosures, they have significant differences in their construction, durability, and overall suitability for keeping chickens safe and secure.
In this article, we will go through the advantages and disadvantages of each, and when you should use each one. While in most areas it’s best to use hardware cloth, there are three key areas that you can use Chicken Wire.
Hardware Cloth: Is it Better than Chicken Wire?
When it comes to building a chicken coop, hardware cloth is the superior choice for protecting chickens from predators. Its strength and durability make it ideal for enclosing the entire coop, including the walls and floor. The smaller openings also make it more difficult for snakes and rats to enter the coop and prey on chickens. However, hardware cloth can be more expensive than chicken wire, which can be a drawback for those on a budget. Hardware cloth is also not nearly as flexible as chicken wire, making it a bit more difficult if you’re needing to adapt it to fit your needs.
Hardware cloth is a wire mesh material that is commonly used for fencing and screening. It is made from galvanized steel wire and is available in a range of gauges, from 19 to 23, with lower numbers indicating a thicker wire. The material is more rigid than chicken wire and has smaller openings, making it ideal for keeping predators out of a chicken coop. It is also stronger and more durable than chicken wire, which can become brittle and break over time.
When Should You Use Hardware Cloth?
Hardware cloth should be used to secure all perimeter fences as well as doors, coop, and roosting areas. If you have predators that love to dig, it’s also very effective in keeping out them out, whether buried outside your fence or inside.
Hardware cloth as mentioned above is the superior choice for protecting your hens from predators. No snakes, mice, or larger predators such as dogs, coyotes, or raccoons are able to break through it. The most vulnerable places of your chicken coop should be completely covered in cloth.
In the image above, you can see the door is completely secured with Hardware Cloth. This image was taken of my parent’s chicken coop. They have problems with three types of animals getting into their coop, can you guess which three? While they protected the door with hardware cloth and the bottom of the fence with tin, the larger fence above the tin allows snakes, rats, and birds to get in quite easily. While snakes and rats are obvious issues, you might be thinking, why am I worried about birds? If you have an automatic feeder set up, birds absolutely love chicken feed and just about anything a chicken does. Also, birds and their droppings can carry up to 60 different diseases, so it’s best to keep them out completely by covering your entire exterior with hardware cloth.
Chicken Wire: Is Chicken Wire Good Enough to Protect Chickens?
Chicken wire, also known as poultry netting, is a woven wire mesh material that is commonly used to enclose chicken runs and gardens. It is made from galvanized steel or PVC-coated wire and has larger openings than hardware cloth. While chicken wire can keep chickens contained within a specific area, it is not suitable for protecting them from predators. The larger openings can allow rats, snakes, and other predators to enter the coop and harm the chickens. Larger predators from raccoons to coyotes and domestic dogs can tear right through chicken wire with ease if they are determined to get to your chickens.
Despite its limitations, chicken wire does have some advantages over hardware cloth. It is less expensive, making it an attractive option for those on a budget. Additionally, it is more flexible than hardware cloth, making it easier to work with when building a chicken run or garden fence.
When Should you use Chicken Wire?
Although Chicken wire should not be used for the walls of your coop, it does have quite a few uses around the farm for your chickens.
Chicken Wire can be used in the following ways:
- To seperate young pullets from grown chickens inside your coop. Chicken wire provides an excellent barrier inside the coop to protect young hens and chicks.
- As a barrier around your garden to keep chickens out. This is great if you’re trying to protect your veggies.
- To bury around the exterior of your coop to prevent predators from digging. While hardware cloth would be superior in this way, chicken wire is cheap and will prevent predators from digging. Be careful not to bury this inside your coop, chickens love to dig and will eventually dig and tear up the chicken wire. Chickens can get caught in the wire, as well as step on it and cut their feet.
Conclusion
When it comes to building a chicken coop, choosing the right materials is crucial for the safety and well-being of the birds. While both hardware cloth and chicken wire have their advantages and disadvantages, hardware cloth is the superior choice for keeping predators out of a chicken coop. Its strength and durability make it an excellent choice for enclosing the entire coop, while its smaller openings provide additional protection from snakes and rats. While chicken wire may be more affordable and easier to work with, it is not suitable for keeping predators at bay and may not provide the protection that chickens need. However, if you use Chicken Wire in the three ways I mentioned above, you can still at least make use of it.
If you enjoyed this article I highly recommend checking out the article I wrote on 25 ways to keep your chickens safe! Check it out if you have time!