LOCATING AND PLANNING POULTRY HOUSES 



15 



"slab," take enough boards to reach around the outside 

 of the building. Boards one inch thick will do, and as 

 wide as the height of the floor above the surface. Set 

 these boards on edge and stake them in position so that 

 the inside of the boards is the exact size of the house. 



rs^c Floor 

 f\~^~Iarnsd f^stftar 



rotten Sfor> Of Cinders. 



FIG. 11 CORRECT METHOD OP LAYING CONCRETE 



FLOOR 



Concrete floor laid over a few inches of well-tamped 

 broken stone or gravel and a layer of tarred paper, will be 

 dry and comparatively warm. Note method of anchoring; 

 building to foundation by means of bolts. 



Level the top edges, and nail a six-inch board lightly to 

 the top edge so that it will project in over the floor. 

 In this six-inch strip bore holes every 6 to 10 feet to 

 take a 5^-inch bolt. These bolts are for the purpose of 

 holding the sills and should' extend above the finished 

 floor far enough to go through a 2x4 scantling and leave 

 room for a nut. When the heads of these bolts become 

 secured in the concrete, remove the six-inch boards that 

 hold the bo'lts in position so that the straight edge can 

 be used to level the surface of the floor. 



"When the frame is leveled and secured, the stone 

 may be filled in. This could have been dumped on the 

 giound before with less trouble except that it might in- 

 terfere with the leveling of the boards. 

 Stone, brick, plaster or anything of a 

 like nature should be used to fill up to 

 about two inches from the top of the 

 floor. In filling in, there should be sev- 

 eral inches left around the inside of the 

 frame to allow for concrete being placed 

 there to form the outer surface of the 

 wall. Fill in with concrete to the inside 

 of the frame, and to within 1/4 or one 

 inch of the finished floor surface. The 

 finishing coat of cement is then put on, 

 leveled with the straight edge to the 

 top of the frame or retaining boards, 

 and smoothed off with a trowel." * 



Board Floors 



Board floors are used by many and 

 are satisfactory, especially where it is 

 desired to have the floors elevated above 

 the ground level. Board floors should 

 always be elevated above the ground at 

 least enough to allow the air to circu- 

 late underneath, in order to insure dry- 

 ness, also to give cats and dogs access 

 to the enclosed space which, otherwise, 

 is certain to become a rat harbor. 



It is a decided advantage, in damp 



closed on three sides with regular weatherboarding. As 

 be less than three feet high, and preferably five feet, as in 

 the house illustrated on page 52. Where the floor is less 

 the house illustrated on page 52. W T here the floor is less 

 than three feet above ground, it is difficult to clean out 

 underneath, as should always be done at regular inter- 

 vals. It also is quite inconvenient when the hens make 

 their nests under the floor, as they usually insist on 

 doing. For these reasons, if the wooden floor is raised 

 only a short distance from the ground, it is better to 

 enclose the space and keep the hens out. 



Board floors are liable to be cold and drafty .unless 

 carefully laid, and it usually will be found best to double- 

 board them, as shown in Fig. 14, with a layer of water- 

 proofed building paper between the top and the sub- 

 floor. The latter may consist of the cheapest boards, 

 though large knot holes and decayed spots should be cut 

 out or filled in with sound material, or covered with 

 pieces of sheet iron or tin. It will add to the strength 

 of the building if this sub-floor is laid diagonally. The 

 top floor should always consist of tongue-and-groove 

 boards, driven up tight together and well nailed. Port- 

 able houses should always be provided with double board 

 floors, with diagonal sub-floors which brace the building 

 and prevent its being racked in moving. 



Framing the Poultry House 



There are various ways of framing the sills for poul- 

 try houses, the one shown in Fig. 13 being most gener- 

 ally used with board floors. In such cases the inside sill 

 will be notched to engage corresponding notches in the 

 ends of the joists. A simpler plan, and one that calls 

 for less sawing and is just as good for practical pur- 

 poses, is to use one 2x8 sill, spiking a 2x4 on the inside, 

 along the lower edge. Notch the joists so that they will 

 rest on the 2x4, with the top even with the top of the 

 2x8 sill. 



FIG. 12 PROVIDING EXPANSION JOINTS IN CONCRETE FLOOR BY 



LAYING ALTERNATE SECTIONS 

 Photo from Mo. State Poultry Exp. Station 



locations, to have the main floor raised several feet. In houses with solid foundations and concrete floors, 



Where this is done, the foundation of the building usually the sill is of comparatively little importance, and usually 



:onsists of concrete or stone pillars, set about eight feet consists of a single 2x4, or, in some instances, two 2x4s 



apart, and the space underneath the floor is tightly en- sp iked together. Houses with concrete floors should be 



* Extract from Bulletin 87. Canadian Dept. of Agriculture. anchored, so that they cannot be shifted by the wind. 



