3 hens and 8 nesting boxes? It would be interesting to see photos of your set-up and know dimensions of the coop and run. It sounds like you inherited something and that it is plenty big which is great. Modifying your profile to show your general area so we better understand climate can help too. It might help a little with the responses. Welcome to the forum, by the way.
Some people try to keep the coop and/or run pristine, cleaning daily. A lot of us don’t. We find it’s just not necessary. As long as the poop is dry it won’t hurt anything. Wet poop on the other hand will stink to high heaven and can lead to disease. The moisture can come from outside, from a leaking waterer, or if the poop builds up thick it won’t dry out. The poop will come from your chickens, but if your facilities are of any size with only four chickens that poop will be spread out enough during the day it shouldn’t be a problem. But they also poop a lot at night and they are not moving around, so it can build up. That’s where droppings boards and raking can come in handy, if it’s thick enough to be a problem.
You’ll find that we use all kinds of things for bedding: straw, hay, wood shavings, wood chips, sand, or bare dirt. In the right circumstances any of them can work. I use wood shavings in the coop and bare dirt in the run. In my climate and the way I manage them, this works for me. There is no one way that is right for everyone where every other way is wrong. It’s what works for us with our unique set-up, flock, and management techniques.
If the coop or run is stinking with a strong ammonia smell, yes you need to do something. But if all you get is an earthy smell the chickens’ health is not compromised and you really don’t have to work hard to solve a problem that doesn’t exist.
