Deep litter method in shed coop/poop boards?

[DobieLover]

I read your coop article and admired it! I live almost to Canada so things are definitely cold and they freeze for sure. If you're only cleaning out the coop once a year, you just let them scratch it about and leave it? Isn't that similar to deep litter, or since most of their waste is landing on the poop boards, it doesn't accumulate enough to function that way? I am leaning toward your set up for sure. I am just curious having never done this before

All of the night time poop lands on the boards and is removed daily. Because I built my run as predator-proof as is the coop they just go out there as soon as they come off the roost in the morning. So between the run and the pen, the daytime poop is not getting left in the coop. Therefore the bedding in the coop only gets somewhat soiled during the winter. It doesn't need to be changed out more than once a year.

 

[emyancey]

All of the night time poop lands on the boards and is removed daily. Because I built my run as predator-proof as is the coop they just go out there as soon as they come off the roost in the morning. So between the run and the pen, the daytime poop is not getting left in the coop. Therefore the bedding in the coop only gets somewhat soiled during the winter. It doesn't need to be changed out more than once a year.

Thank you! My run will also be predator proof with a roof and it will be able to be winterized. I am not able to freerange.

 

[aart]

You missed the BOLD granular comment...
It's no more dusty than Sweet PDZ.

No, I saw granular PDZ, and I agree.
Didn't know you could get DE in granular form....or that it would do anything like absorb ammonia like PD does.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

I read your coop article and admired it!

After many, many years of improving my coop I have 3 coops that I've decided are the most functional for 12 chickens AND attractive. This coop is one of them. I've copied almost every aspect of Dobie's coop. I have L shape roosting with poop boards, brooder in coop... To do this now will save you all of the time I've spent demo-ing and re-doing.... I vote poop boards. Compost bin and chicken coop mutually exclusive......

 

[emyancey]

Thank you!

After many, many years of improving my coop I have 3 coops that I've decided are the most functional for 12 chickens AND attractive. This coop is one of them. I've copied almost every aspect of Dobie's coop. I have L shape roosting with poop boards, brooder in coop... To do this now will save you all of the time I've spent demo-ing and re-doing.... I vote poop boards. Compost bin and chicken coop mutually exclusive......

 

[emyancey]

Deep litter method in a shed in NY is going to be difficult to accomplish because of the cold weather.

THIS is the way to go IMO. This is what I do in Southern NY and it is just so easy.

It also needs warmth and moisture. Due to the freezing temps in NY, you don't really want added moisture in the coop because of frostbite.

I use pine shavings and/or hemp bedding on the coop floor and granular zeolite or DE on the boards and scoop the boards every morning with a metal cat litter scoop. The full poop buckets get dumped into a compost pile.

The coop is cleaned out once a year and layered with the poop pile into a second pile to 'cook' for another year before going into my gardens.

You can maximize space by using the roost/poop board arrangement below.
I have my nest boxes bumped out into my storage space over a built-in brooder but you could hang them under a poop board just as easily. For the number of birds you want, you could just install 3 nests and that would be enough.
View attachment 3788384

What are the dimensions of your poop boards?

 

[DobieLover]

I have L shape roosting with poop boards

They went to U-shaped in a few months.

 

[DobieLover]

What are the dimensions of your poop boards?

It's all in the article.

 

[DobieLover]

No, I saw granular PDZ, and I agree.
Didn't know you could get DE in granular form....or that it would do anything like absorb ammonia like PD does.

I don't notice a difference in odor at all than when I used Sweet PDZ. The stuff looks like cat litter.

 

[SandyRiverChick]

They went to U-shaped in a few months.

That was the cause of my most recent demo, so I could go U shape when my 4 littles are integrated. Almost done