chicken wire | HomeDabbler.com

One of the first things you realize when you start gardening or raising chickens is there are tons of wire fencing options.

One of the most common and versatile is 2″x 4″ welded wire fencing (sometimes called hardware cloth).

I love the stuff. But over the years, I’ve learned what it is good for and what it’s not. Here’s the rundown.

What It’s Good For

Low Security Fencing

Want to keep rabbits, dogs, and chickens out of your garden? Use 2 x 4 welded wire.

I say low security because this is for situations where an animal will encounter the fence and not try to actively dismantle, destroy, or jump over it. They’ll hit the barrier and walk away.

That is not true of all animals (see below).

Trellises

I LOVE 2 x 4 for trellises of all kinds. I’ve used it for decorative vine-covered dividers and for cucumbers to climb on. Nothing like a roll of 2 x 4 for a trellis.

Tip: If you’re making a trellis in an outdoor living space like a courtyard, I recommend the vinyl-coated type. It’s fancier.

My courtyard trellis with 2×4 wire before I planted a jasmine vine on it.

HomeDabbler | Trellis with jasmine vine and potted plants in front. — The same trellis after the jasmine took over. Nice divider screen, right?

Build a cucumber trellis with 2×4 welded wire.

Protecting Plants

Welded wire also makes nifty protection to keep tender plants safe from vicious weed trimmers (there is actually a little blueberry bush growing in there).

You can’t see it but there is a little blueberry bush growing in there.

What Welded Wire is Not Good For

High Security Fencing

Welded wire fencing really has only one weakness. If you need to keep the really nasty animals out – raccoons primarily – do not use welded wire.

This is especially true of chicken runs. The welded wire will work at first, but over time (usually a couple years) the welds will break and that will let the bad guys in. It takes only one broken weld for a raccoon to slither in and kill your chickens.

So what fencing should you use for a secure chicken coop? Chain link and nothing else. It’s so important I did a whole video on it.

Bottom Line

2″x 4″ welded wire fencing is great stuff. You should have a roll of it around your house at all times. Just don’t use it to protect animals from wily night crawlers like raccoons.

Kevin

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It sounds so right.

Chicken. Wire. Wire for enclosing chickens. What could go wrong?

A lot. Chicken wire, also called poultry netting, is a lot like duct tape. Used for everything but good for nothing.

You’ve seen it, the cute honey-comb pattern wrapped around rustic coops, the very model of American farm yard-ery. The only problem is that chicken wire, while visually pleasing, doesn’t do its job, at least not long term.

The primary reason for enclosing your chickens in their own space – a coop, run, or nursery – is to keep them safe. Chicken wire is made of, well, wire. However, the wire is very thin. It is galvanized to withstand the elements, but will not over the long haul.

Eventually, your chicken wire will rust and corrode. Because it is so thin, predators like raccoons can (and will) break it. And they don’t need much space to get in. A raccoon or fox can slink through a hole the size of a grape fruit.

These predators play for keeps. I lost my entire flock of 12 chickens in one night when two coons broke in.

There is a better way

There are three better options to chicken wire, based on application.

1. 2″ x 4″ weld wire

Weld wire is also made of galvanized wire, but it is much thicker than chicken wire and will last longer.

While I do not recommend using weld wire for high-security areas like your run, it is fine for a broody breaker or yard fence.

2. “Rabbit wire”

Love this stuff, especially the kind coated with PVC. Rabbit wire is the common name for 1″ weld wire (it is commonly used for rabbit hutches).

It is expensive, so use it sparingly. You would not use it to cover an entire run (you could, but you better have serious budget), but it is great for nurseries. The small spaces make it impossible for even the tiniest chick or slither-i-est rat snake to pass through.

3. The ultimate: chain link

Lasts for ages. Virtually unbreakable. Chain link is the ultimate poultry protection device.

It is also expensive but you will not have to replace it for years and years and years. No predator (save a bear, maybe) can penetrate it. I use chain link to cover my run – top, sides, and along the ground – and haven’t lost a chicken to a predator since.

My coop and run. Chain link on top, sides, and along the ground.

You won’t regret it

I used chicken wire for way too long and lost many birds along the way. If there is one tip that I wish someone had shared with me when I was a new chicken raiser, it would be this one.

Dump the chicken wire and use something actually made for chickens.

Kevin

Tag: chicken wire

2″x 4″ Welded Wire: What It’s Good For and What It’s Not

Posted at 8:00 am by HomeDabbler, on May 25, 2020