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

[CatSeg]

Awesome thank you

I found it on Amazon.

 

[UspsMatt]

Thanks I love it too

It is made by The Little Cottage Company in Ohio (Amish made). Go to cottagekits.com and look for the round roof chicken coop kit.

THANK you for the site we will definitely order from them, im wondering did you buy the pre built kit? if so what was shipping cost? and if it was just the build kit how many pieces was it?

 

[tlatham72]

Ok, so my first coop was done without poop boards-I simply loaded up the floor with sand figuring that would be easy enough to sift the poop out of. Well, the plan sounded good in theory but I found it didn't work so good in reality. Don't get me wrong, the poop scoops out of the sand BUT- the sand SMELLS even after the poop is gone. Also, it is a dusty mess while scooping and I need to take frequent breaks just to breath fresh air. Still better though than changing out shavings weekly (I don't like DLM).

So when we built our 2nd coop we decided to try poop boards

WOW, what a difference. We built a waist high shelf and then added a lip all around and filled it with Sweet PDZ, LOVE IT!!!! I simply sift the poop up every day or two but you certainly can leave it longer if you had to. The Sweet PDZ keeps it from smelling at all. And the best part- NO DUST when scooping. It's almost like sifting flour. It is very zen like to clean and I tend to get carried away and make designs for my girls ( I know, I have issues

)

Anyway, thought I would share my experience and of course some pics

Awesome idea with the PDZ! I use it with my goats. And good to know that the sand can continue to smell even after the poop is scooped. I am building my coop out currently. It will be a human sized shed like yours. I plan to use sand for the floor and the poop boards, but now I may just use the PDZ for the poop boards.

How often do you have to switch out the PDZ? Never? Just add as it is used up?
Did you consider mixing PDZ with the sand on the poop boards?
Do you think it would be a good or bad idea to mix the PDZ with the sand on the floor if you were using sand on the floor?

 

[tlatham72]

Ok, so my first coop was done without poop boards-I simply loaded up the floor with sand figuring that would be easy enough to sift the poop out of. Well, the plan sounded good in theory but I found it didn't work so good in reality. Don't get me wrong, the poop scoops out of the sand BUT- the sand SMELLS even after the poop is gone. Also, it is a dusty mess while scooping and I need to take frequent breaks just to breath fresh air. Still better though than changing out shavings weekly (I don't like DLM).

So when we built our 2nd coop we decided to try poop boards

WOW, what a difference. We built a waist high shelf and then added a lip all around and filled it with Sweet PDZ, LOVE IT!!!! I simply sift the poop up every day or two but you certainly can leave it longer if you had to. The Sweet PDZ keeps it from smelling at all. And the best part- NO DUST when scooping. It's almost like sifting flour. It is very zen like to clean and I tend to get carried away and make designs for my girls ( I know, I have issues

)

Anyway, thought I would share my experience and of course some pics

Also, thanks for the up close pic of the poop and the sifter. I've been needing that to actually visualize the sifting of the poop from sand (or, in this case, the PDZ).

 

[CatSeg]

How much PDZ did you need to use?

 

[aart]

How often do you have to switch out the PDZ? Never? Just add as it is used up?

How much PDZ did you need to use?

I keep the layer of PDZ thin(<1/4") and sift it all daily....add as needed.

Here's some posts about it, they're kind of old, but changes are noted.
...and the threads these posts are in has a ton of examples of poop boards.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...s-poop-pictures.621363/page-111#post-13179595
Updates:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...s-poop-pictures.621363/page-178#post-18966048

https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/1/...ch-x-9-inch-mesh-drawer-organizer-silver.html

 

[Margiebirds]

I can't believe the difference this has made in my coop !!! I used deep litter this past winter and after Spring cleaning, I wanted it to stay fresh and airy for the warmer months. I built a 4 inch high, 4x2 foot box with a roost board attached and placed it by making a ledge of a 2x4 boards. One on each side of my 4 foot wide coop and placed the box on them. Added some vinyl squares (didn't stick them because I'll remove them and wash them off eventually) Then a bag of PDZ. Everyday I scoop into a can and throw it in the compost bin. Couldn't be easier and I tell people the coop is cleaner than my house. It's true. Thank You..Thank You..Thank You..for this brilliant idea. I think of you every morning as I scoop up the bits !!!!! I'll try to get a pic on here of how I did it.

I have been waiting and waiting until I could post pictures of my poops boards. I used Trisha"s idea under one to place food and water. Then I came up with my own idea for under the other... a brooder/seperation pen!

Here they are...


Sorry the pictures is crooked.


And the second one...



The PDZ granulated is now on them and the chickens are moved in. Thanks so much again for posting this thread!

I love your ideas

 

[tlatham72]

I put poop boards in when I built my coop last summer for 10 Large fowl chooks and I love them. I use shavings on floor and straw in nests.
2 feet wide luan (cheap 1/4 thk underflooring) with 2x2 around the edges lined with foam backed vinyl sheet flooring.
Roosts are 2x4 wide side up, 8" above board and removable, but I find I don't need to remove them and they rarely get pooped on.
My coop is only 6' wide so built ramps as they can't fly down easily without crashing into the wall.
Boards are waist high for my ease, feeder hangs underneath the board.

Boards have washed, dried sand and granular PDZ mixed at about a 4:1 ratio about 1 inch deep. I use this mix in my brooder too, at about 1/2" deep, as well.

I use a mesh office organizer basket as a sifter, a short handled hoe to carefully scrape vinyl and push into basket. I use a reptile poop scoop in the brooder as it stirs up less dust than the mesh basket. I dump the poops into a lidded bucket to go to compost. I made a 'leveler' to smooth the sand/PDZ back out to an even depth, screws in the edge of a 1x3x21 can be tilted to adjust depth.
Even in frigid winter, frozen watery poops scraped off the vinyl pretty easily.

I think the key minimizing dust is to use clean sand, but everything chicken will get dusty (really, really dusty) sooner or later.
The zeolite definitely helps with ammonia odor, but nothing quickly quenches the stench of a fresh cecal poop.
Oh, and, pullet poops are cute and nothing compared to adult chicken poops.

Pics for clarity and inspiration....more details on My Coop page.
Birds do hang out on boards during the day and some roost on the board itself or the edge...not really a problem.

Pullets 'hiding' from big birds.

Ramp....added another up to nest bar too.

Mesh basket, 12" handled hoe and bucket.

Leveler



Size of sand for reference

I've read a lot about how important it is to get all natural "river" or "construction grade" sand that is of varying particle size (medium and large I thought) and not man-made or machine crushed in any way. How does the fine sand in the quikrete bag measure up to this?

You are obviously using it with success. But, I would have steered clear of it based on other stuff I've read because the fine size. I'm so nervous about getting the "right" kind of sand. I'm planning to use sand for my coop floor and run as well, so the bags wouldn't really be efficient, but I was thinking I wanted to do this in my brooder too. So, based on the above, it seems it would be okay for me to buy a few bags of this for my brooder?

Here's a few pics of the river sand I've sourced from my local mulch supply company that meets the specs I've been reading in most places. I like the clean look of that quikrete sand and this sand in my pics looks dingy, but it is all natural and washed and all of that.

Any thoughts?

 

[aart]

You are obviously using it with success.

Well, that post you quoted is 6 years old, I've long ago gone to straight PDZ on the poop boards because I couldn't find that sand any more.
It worked fine, it was washed so dustless.
I used it for concrete sculpture before getting chickens, I've looked at a LOT of sands.

I would not use sand on coop floor or run ground, it eventually becomes saturated with pulverized poop and reeks with the least bit of dampness. Used it in the brooder for 2-3 batches of chicks, it got nasty, used it to fill holes in lawn from an auto accident.

 

[tlatham72]

Well, that post you quoted is 6 years old, I've long ago gone to straight PDZ on the poop boards because I couldn't find that sand any more.
It worked fine, it was washed so dustless.
I used it for concrete sculpture before getting chickens, I've looked at a LOT of sands.

I would not use sand on coop floor or run ground, it eventually becomes saturated with pulverized poop and reeks with the least bit of dampness. Used it in the brooder for 2-3 batches of chicks, it got nasty, used it to fill holes in lawn from an auto accident.

Thanks for the updated info!

• If my coop will be indoors (in half of a 12x16 shed for 10 bantam chickens), I plan to remove and clean the sand and deep clean the coop floor once a year, and I'm sealing the plywood floor with liquid rubber before putting down the sand, do you think it will still be a bad idea to use sand?
  
  The inside of the coop really won't be getting exposed to rain or water and I plan to use the nipple waterer to keep that water contained.

• If my run will be 10x20 and have a roof and dirt ground under the sand, do you think it will still be a bad idea to use sand?
  
  It will be minimally exposed to wet weather from windy rain, etc. but not direct downpour since it will have a full roof. And since it will be regular ground underneath the sand, would the poop just break down and compost essentially into the dirt?

Thanks! I'm completely new to this and trying to research as much info as possible.