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I switched over to sand completely and it has worked well now for years. Initially I kept shavings in the nest boxes but the girls would kick it out onto the sand floor. Switching to sand was a huge improvement.

Imagine my surprise when I found that my post from 2011 was still alive. For any that are interested, I am still using sand and loving it. Maintenance is very low. I change out the sand about every 6 months, ideally (ok, probably less in reality). No smell problems, low dust, very little poo...

I've heard of casting pearls before swine, but never storing pearls in the hens house. It sure looks like a string of pearls in that scooper photo.

Quote: This has been discussed at length on this thread. Read previous posts to see what others have done.

Get a pump garden sprayer, put water in it and keep it in the hen house. It doesn't take much to knock the dust down and you can still scoop through the sand for cleanup. I've used the garden hose on a fine mist several times and I can still easily do cleanup afterwards.

If it is closely spaced like 1/4" let me know and I'll get one too. Any larger than that won't be much good.

I agree with previous posts about the tines letting too much (all of it) slip through. I made my own long handled scoop with 1/2" hardware cloth and it still lets too much through. I currently use a large kitty litter scoop. Still very happy with the sand after nearly a year.

happima, I did not put gravel under my sand and it seems it could become a problem. If you plan to use a kitty litter scoop to periodically clean the sand as I do, you will be scooping up gravel also.

The nearest sandy river bank?

Dry things don't really freeze so much. For something to freeze it needs to be at a little bit moist. I spent years living in a desert that got way below freezing in the winter. The sand didn't freeze unless it was wet.

2 to 3 inches has worked very well for me. I haven't tried any deeper than that but I imagine it would work just as well. Mine has been in for months now. I'll be switching it out for new sand pretty soon just because I want to get some new stuff before the lake shore (my sand supply) is...

Amy, your posts brought a smile to my face after a very long day at work. Thanks. We love Zoey (the white dog) except when I have to get her hair off my dark blue suit before heading into court every friday morning. Good luck with your chicks. I continue to be very happy with the sand in the...

Unless you have sandy soil to start with I'd say it's pretty unlikely that you'd ever add too much with what comes out of the hen house. Sandy soil grows things very well and it takes a LOT of sand to turn clay sandy.

Whatever is on the bank of your nearest river or lake would probably be fine. I've heard claims that sand is dusty, but the fact is, sand is not dusty at all. After it's been in the house for a while small bits of poo will accumulate in it and make it dusty, but a regular maintenance program...

Cold and sand have been discussed a lot on this thread. In the mountains of Southern California the temps don't get real extreme. At most I had 3 to 4 feet of snow in my yard. Outside temps got into the mid teens. Temps in the hen house got down into the high twenties. No problems at all...

Courser sand is less dusty, but then you may collect some small gravel with the poo when you clean up. I've used very fine to very course and have been happy with each. It just depends what is on the shore at the local lake.

Quote: I have sand in my coop and clean it daily most of the time and have very little odor issues. I'd be concerned about baking soda increasing the dust level. I've found that putting powdered DE in the sand increases the dust level. I suspect the stories about citrus and potato's are...

Quote: This issue has been visited a number of times in this thread. Some of my highest egg production days to date have been when it was 20 outside and 30 in the house. Around here it doesn't get much colder than that. The birds seemed unaffected. Additionally, I have a 5 gal bucket on...

Quote: My sand is 2-3 inches deep. I have had no issues at all with it becoming urine soaked. The urine and poo are deposited all at once. It clumps when it hits the sand. It's easy to scoop out and toss in a bucket. I have a bare plywood floor under the sand and have had no problems with...

I put shavings in some nests and sand in others and found the hens showed no preference as to where they laid eggs. I now have sand in all nests.