Alternatives to wood shavings?

[redneck farmer]

I use Florida pine shavins an it works good.. I would use river sand but the only thing that lines a Florida river an bottom is mudd. An I don't think the chickens would Iike salty sand from the beach..

 

[aldarita]

What kind of sand do you use in your coop? Could it be the sand they sell in Home Depot in big sacs (I think they use it to mix it with cement to make mortar) I am seriously thinking about changing the floor bedding from hay to sand. My coop is 4 x 8 and I am in South Texas with 106F temps average in the summer so I need something cool for the girls. They only go to the coop to roost and lay but still sand will be cooler for them. I am currently using PDZ in the poop boxes and it is working great, however sand will be cheaper for the floor

 

[Crisses]

What kind of sand do you use in your coop? Could it be the sand they sell in Home Depot in big sacs (I think they use it to mix it with cement to make mortar) I am seriously thinking about changing the floor bedding from hay to sand. My coop is 4 x 8 and I am in South Texas with 106F temps average in the summer so I need something cool for the girls. They only go to the coop to roost and lay but still sand will be cooler for them. I am currently using PDZ in the poop boxes and it is working great, however sand will be cheaper for the floor

 

I use the Quikrete Play Sand from Lowes, they probably have the same at Home Depot. If you need more than a couple bags try the types of places that supply gravel for driveways and such...they probably have sand too. The 50# bags weigh more than a 50# bag of feed, I swear! Anyway, here in NY it is about $4 a bag, tax included.

 

[aldarita]

I use the Quikrete Play Sand from Lowes, they probably have the same at Home Depot. If you need more than a couple bags try the types of places that supply gravel for driveways and such...they probably have sand too. The 50# bags weigh more than a 50# bag of feed, I swear!

Anyway, here in NY it is about $4 a bag, tax included.

Thanks, now that you mentioned it I have seen the quikrete bags so I am getting them for my coop, I wonder if this sand absorbs moisture as PDZ does?

 

[JimH99]

I live in the west and I have used everything there is that you can buy and think of, and I keep going back to barley straw which is like wheat straw, but doesn't break down as fast. I love to watch them scratch in deep warm dry yellow straw and it is easy to rake out and pitchfork into wheelbarrow which is usually about once a month. Shavings are not worth it. Chickens love straw!!! Put fresh straw in and watch them, they will tell you. I have used wood shavings for many years too, we had a local saw mill down the road where I could take the horse van truck to and drive under the chute and fill it up to top for $15.00, so we used tons of the stuff for all the animals on farm, mainly bedding the horse stalls.... as dad said it was cheaper than anything else at the time too.
Most all feed supply stores carry nice clean straw preferrably barley straw.

 

[JimH99]

Oh yes, I just read another post that alluded to using sand.....I agree with that totally as I have used it too and it lasts FOREVER and breaks down the manure too. It is cheap too, I got 2,000 lbs for $20 about 8 months ago at local sand and gravel company. Far as less maintenance you cannot beat sand for bottoms of coop. I just like the feel and warmth that fresh straw puts out, but it is once a month clean out with straw vs. sand which all you do is rake with small kid rake and it stays nice.

 

[bruceha2000]

I tried to make one out of a one of these and some hardware cloth, but honestly the less you can disturb the bedding underneath the poo, the better.
.....
Believe me... I was disappointed in the scoop idea too. But the screen works great. I do have plans to build a smaller screen though... The one I am using is the size it is because it was actually a batiking frame for dying silk scarves before my husband put the hardware cloth on it and employed it to sift topsoil out of the woods behind our house (that the gas company basically pushed down last summer) for use in our garden.

You are way ahead of me Gifa, as usual

I guess you won't be doing more batik for awhile!

I am building an 8'x8' coop and will have between 15-25 birds in there at night.

Don't know about the coop floor but I don't think I'd but more than 15 or 16 chickens in an 8x8 unless they are bantams.

Bruce

 

[Joultry]

I'm going to use regular old pine straw in my nesting boxes.

 

[vivinsetx]

Hi Can u use the rice hulls for chickens,will they eat them?

 

[vivinsetx]

Hi Can u use the rice hulls for chickens,will they eat them?