coop floors eww

[the 412 chicks]

i have about 100 birds in my 12x25 coop and the floor is constenetly cover in poo i keep it clean any help or sugestion?

 

[chickeydee]

What type of floor do you have ? That would help alot . Alot of people on here use the deep litter method . Which i have tried . You can not keep it clean unless you do it everyday . I was using the shaving at fist but did not like the adding and scraping off the top part to add more and that is expensive at 6.00 a bag ,so I bought all purpose sand and added a little de to it .It works great . I do not have to clean it and I just take a small rake and rake it when I need to . I have not had to add anymore sand yet ,just a cup of de and at 3.00 a bag it is better .

 

[2468Chickensrgr8]

Have you tried poop boards? Right now my chickens do not want to come out ....even into their yard because of the snow and cold ...this past summer I put up poop boards and I see a big difference in cleaning ....I also use the deep litter method and just scrap up the really poopy areas and put a half bag of shavings on top of that spot ...

 

[emys]

Less birds would help. Your density is quite high.

Other than that, do you have a roosting pan or drop box under roosts? That is where the largest percent of the droppings go, so that is where I'd focus first. Make that easy to clean. Also - not sure what your set up looks like - but ow about locating feeders and water by door so both you and the chickens aren't tromping in and out to get to them.

If we had a better idea what your set up is, we might be able to help more.

 

[gsim]

You have 3 sq ft/bird and minimum recommended is 4 sq ft/bird. Unless they are guineas or banties, they are overcrowded. It is paramount that you have really super great ventilation, big-time with so many in such a small place.

I use deep litter method over linoleum flooring. It is 90% grass clippings. i only have to change it once a year. Reason is I have 24" wide poop planks full length under roosts that I scrape daily.

This is accompanied by windows open first thing in AM regardless of temperature. My chooks stay out all day unless it is just pouring rain, and even then they will congregate underneath the tallest part of the coop outside. So I have no problems with poop at all. Worst place for me is their stoop outside which I sweep daily with an old broom that stays in coop. You could look into poop planks and deep litter for your operation and both will help.

Since you have so many chooks, I thought of ventilation too. What is your full-time ventilation size? I have 24 in an 8x16 coop and I have 6 sq ft of full-time ventilation above the 8 ft level and 4 large windows on top of that which add 40 more sq ft to my ventilation in warm weather. So I have 1 sq ft ventilation full time for every 4 birds even in winter with all windows closed.

My vents are on upper part of each of two gables, one turbine vent, and continuous soffit vents 18 ft long X 1 inch wide, both front and back soffits. By my reckoning, you should have 25 sq ft ventilation that is full time for optimal health. I am only including this because of the size of your flock, and the impact on you should they develop lung problems being such a large home flock.

 

[ARose4Heaven]

Have you tried poop boards?

What are poop boards? I am going to be converting an open hog shed into a coop, and want to avoid the mess I have in my existing coop. It wasn't bad until winter hit...now the deep litter has turned into a poopie hard mess.​

 

[fiberart57]

What are you using for bedding? Hay and straw don't absorb moisture as well as wood shavings or sawdust. If you have a sawmill nearby you can get sawdust by the truckload (I think) and that would help absorb the moisture. The deep litter method is a good idea but requires certain conditions to keep going. The house must be warm enough so that the litter doesn't freeze, but the litter has to stay moist, and there must be enough ventilation for the composting process as well as the respiration moisture from the chickens themselves. If your bedding is a frozen slab, then the house isn't warm enough, I think.

I've not done deep litter but I've composted for years and just maintain things in the winter and don't expect too much from it. Here in Colorado it drops below zero once and a while and the humidity hovers at 15%.

Mary

 

[Duke of Orpington]

Quote:
I've got a sawmill within hollering distance of my house. I can get all the sawdust I want for use as deep litter method if it would work. Anyone else try sawmill sawdust?

Ron

 

[2468Chickensrgr8]

Quote:
What are poop boards? I am going to be converting an open hog shed into a coop, and want to avoid the mess I have in my existing coop. It wasn't bad until winter hit...now the deep litter has turned into a poopie hard mess.

Poop boards are like shelves under the roosts that catch all there droppings easy to clean...great for compost....