POULTRY HOUSE CONSTRUCTION. 17 



said to be satisfactory. Sometimes drain tiies are used in or- 

 dinary cement walls making air spaces which help keep out 

 dampness. This method, however, is not used very extensively. 

 Metal covered walls are becoming more common and give fair 

 service. They must be kept constantly painted in order to be 

 durable. Most poultry houses are built with wooden walls. 

 It is usual to use 2 x4's about two feet apart for studding and 

 either matched lumber or rough lumber with roofing paper or 

 battens to make the wall windproof. Matched lumber, such as 

 drop siding, is usually placed on horizontally and is used quite 

 extensively as a house presents a good appearance and can be 

 built rapidly. Where siding of this kind is used it should 

 always be painted before being placed on the house, care being 

 taken to have the tongues, grooves, and edges carefully painted. 

 The boards should be placed on the house before the paint be- 

 comes too dry. Matched siding of any kind should be dry, well 

 driven together and well nailed so as to be wind proof. Care 

 should be taken that all matched lumber used in this way is of 

 good grade and free from loose knots or other such defects. To 

 add warmth, tar building paper or one-ply roofing paper are 

 often placed between the siding and studding, thus insuring a 

 wind-proof wall. 



Many old poultry houses are built with rough boards run- 

 ning up and down and the cracks covered with battens. As 

 a rule, this method of construction is not satisfactory as the 

 battens become loose leaving cracks which are very undesirable. 

 Rough boarding, either perpendicular or horizontal, is also be- 

 ing used quite extensively. When using roofing paper to cover 

 rough boards it is advisable to cement the joints thoroughly and 

 then batten with thin strips, at least every two feet, and then 

 paint the entire outer surface with two coats of good paint. 

 Other walls are constructed by nailing rough boarding to the 

 outside of the studding, covering with tar building paper, and 

 then with ordinary siding such as is usually used on houses. 

 Just which form of wall is best to use will depend very largely 

 upon the locality. With any of these, or with their modifica- 

 tions, which are many, a tight wall can be constructed so that 

 which is advisable depends to a large extent upon the necessity 

 of presenting a good appearance or the necessity of keeping the 

 construction at a low figure. Where the boarding runs up and 

 down, less studding are used and in this way this type of con- 

 struction becomes advantageous. In the poultry house, however, 



