Poop board convert *warning-graphic/gross poop pictures*

[annav410]

My question is that we are getting 15 chickens in June..... wish it was sooner, but giving me the extra time to get our Chicken~Shanty (recycled/renovated ice fishing shanty) ready! How much Roost Bar should I have for 15 birds? I did read somewhere that I should have 12 inches or 1 foot per bird, is that correct or could I get away with less?

I plan on using the poo board and PDZ, but need to know how much roost bar space I will need when I design the inside of my coop. I will have 5x8 chicken space for them.

I have heard you can go with 10 inches of roosting space per chicken so that would be 150 inches or 12.5 feet. We found this site very helpful.

http://www.chickenwaterer.com/v/vspfiles/assets/Chicken Calculator 2/Chicken Calculator.htm

 

[nono]

My question is that we are getting 15 chickens in June..... wish it was sooner, but giving me the extra time to get our Chicken~Shanty (recycled/renovated ice fishing shanty) ready! How much Roost Bar should I have for 15 birds? I did read somewhere that I should have 12 inches or 1 foot per bird, is that correct or could I get away with less?

I plan on using the poo board and PDZ, but need to know how much roost bar space I will need when I design the inside of my coop. I will have 5x8 chicken space for them.

We have 9 chickens (1 year old hens) and they all perch on a single 7.5 foot natural branch we have mounted above a poop board. Our coop is 8 x 8.

 

[Cebarmlds]

My question is that we are getting 15 chickens in June..... wish it was sooner, but giving me the extra time to get our Chicken~Shanty (recycled/renovated ice fishing shanty) ready! How much Roost Bar should I have for 15 birds? I did read somewhere that I should have 12 inches or 1 foot per bird, is that correct or could I get away with less?

I plan on using the poo board and PDZ, but need to know how much roost bar space I will need when I design the inside of my coop. I will have 5x8 chicken space for them.

I have found that 1 foot of roost space per bird is ok for winter because they like to be close together to keep warm but in the warmer months they really need more room to spread out.

 

[LittleBits]

I am wondering how long before you have to change the entire tray of PDZ? How long would it last for about 15 chickens? Sounds like a great idea!

 

[Nambroth]

I am wondering how long before you have to change the entire tray of PDZ? How long would it last for about 15 chickens? Sounds like a great idea!

I have 7/8 birds and I have only replaced the whole tray once when I deep cleaned the coop this spring. Otherwise, I just scoop out the clumps, and then when the PDZ gets low, I pour more in (less than 1/2 bag at a time). It seems like I only need to add more PDZ every 2-3 months. More in the winter, as they spend longer on the roost. Less in the summer, because they go outside at the crack of daylight!

Since I can only gt the 25# bags for approx $10, I'd estimate that keeping a PDZ poop board in my coop of 8 chickens costs me a little less than $40/year. It saves me a ton of time and keeps things so much cleaner, and I never see flies, so it's worth it to me.

If your chickens tend to have loose droppings, it might use the PDZ up faster, too. Mine tend to have loose droppings only occasionally.

 

[LittleBits]

The PDZ that this thread is talking about, is it what is called "stall refresher" or "stall refresher granules"? Here is a link that shows what I found at Southern States. It seems to be the only place around here that sells it. http://www.southernstates.com/catalog/search.aspx?searchterm=sweet%20pdz I guess that is a good price for 40 lbs? Sounds like it lasts a long time.

 

[Alaskan]

I do something similar also. I just push everything back, scoop and then rake it forward again. So easy! I have to say that I was very happy with the PDZ this winter. We had a few bad snowstorms which limited my access to my coop. I was able to feed and water my chickens in their run through my basement door but the coop was snowed in. I didn't scoop anything for a couple weeks When I finally did get in there I was surprised to see everything was still contained nicely on the poop boards and no smell And I had ZERO humidity problems! Scooping the poops out on a regular basis really cuts down on the coops humidity levels This is how my coops looked almost all winter

How deep did the snow get on your run roof? And how thick is the run roof framing? You have tarp/plastic over the run top, right? I am having to redo my runs...... So I would love any info.. And, because of this thread, I will be putting in poop boards, will try to take before and after fotos. Thanks for all the info! ETA: I just finished reading ALL begillion pages! WHOOP!

 

[LeskoLayers]

Could I use pine pellets to absorb the poop in the coop instead of pdz? I need that for my bunnies, but wasnt sure if I could get a duel purpose out of it

 

[kynewbchickie]

Here's what we did today:




And yes, I left them a note in the PDZ:



They were already running up the ramp to check out the new area when I put them in for the night! Thanks again for the awesome idea!!!

 

[LittleBits]

How deep is the PDZ in the trough?