Composting chicken run

[JCaseyHammond]

I am curious if it is possible to have a chicken run that also works as a composter. I would like to throw a certain amount of food scraps (things that can be composted), leaves, etc. and collect compost from the run to use in my garden. Needless to say, it should not smell as I have neighbors nearby.

Just a few info, my run has a roof so it doesn't get wet by rain. If necessary I can spray water by a controlled amount.

If this is possible, what would be the ideal bedding material? I am currently using construction grade sand but this is probably not ideal for compost. Perhaps some soil mixed with wood chips?

Anybody has experience on this?

Yes, I had sandy soil, now it’s very rich. I dumped loads of wood chips in the run and raked them around because I don’t like stepping on wet areas. I throw grass clippings and scratch on top of the chips and the
chickens enjoy kicking it all around.

Over a season the wood chips break down and have to be replenished. I get them from the city landscapers because they are not dyed black like the chips at the home improvement stores.

Edited to add, the run is 6 feet wide by 150 feet long for 20 chickens. It doesn’t smell because it has excellent ventilation, same as the coop. The run is fenced with chain link. It has a party canopy frame with shade cloth for a roof.

 

[gtaus]

Most things stink because they become anaerobic from lack of oxygen.

Yes, but perhaps some people do not realize that if they dump lots of grass clippings, for example, in one pile, and it rains, the grass clippings will clump up and become anaerobic and smell bad. Even though the pile is outside in full air, it can still become anaerobic if the material mats down. I usually spread out my grass clippings to avoid this matting issue, but one could also just mix in carbon like leaves or wood chips. I find it easiest to put things down in layers and the chickens will mix it up on their own as they scratch around looking for food.

A well balanced chicken run compost system would smell like a fresh forest floor. At least, that is what I get with my system and it seems to be working great for me.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I was considering in run compost piles last summer, but by the fall, I had so much compost in the run that I could not even use it all. The only advantage I can think of in using compost piles would be to speed up the compost process. Was that your goal or do your piles have other advantages? Also, I am assuming that your have wire or wood enclosures to pile the compost, correct? Whenever I tried to pile compost in the run - without wire or wood - the chickens would tear apart the pile and level it out faster than I could build it up.

Really, it was about volume...I have a LOT of food waste coming in, and this made the most sense for processing the volume - by piling it up. The pile in theory will decompose faster, although I really only plan to harvest once a year - but when the pile gets hot it does reduce in volume significantly.

 

[gtaus]

Really, it was about volume...I have a LOT of food waste coming in, and this made the most sense for processing the volume - by piling it up. The pile in theory will decompose faster, although I really only plan to harvest once a year - but when the pile gets hot it does reduce in volume significantly. View attachment 2533024

I wish I had access to more food waste for my chickens. But it's just Dear Wife and myself and we don't produce too many kitchen scraps on our own. I know some people have food waste pickups from restaurants, but we live out in the country and it's just not worth it for me to go into town to get kitchen scraps for 10 chickens. And with COVID-19, I only go to town maybe twice a month.

But, speaking of having a LOT of food waste so that you need to pile it up, there may be another solution. A few years ago, before I had chickens, I bought a used kitchen garbage disposal unit for $5.00 and hooked it up to an old double sink that I had saved for a garage clean up station. I built a stand for everything and set it up outside behind the garage. I just used a bucket of water and scooped it out as need while I fed our kitchen scraps into the disposal. The disposal emptied into a 5 gallon bucket I had underneath my scrap lumber 2X4 stand to hold the sink. The food scraps and water made a nice slurry that I would just dump over the compost pile, then threw a layer of carbon on top of it. It turned into compost in just days. Never smelled. Never attracted any varmints.

It's probably the fastest way I know to make compost, if you don't plan on feeding your chickens the scraps directly. Since I got the chickens, I let them eat the scraps and their poo just gets added to the chicken run compost. But, like I said, we don't have that much kitchen scraps to feed them.

BTW, your link to the attachment is broken. Was it a picture of something?

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

@gtaus - Not sure why the picture of my current pile didn't come through. Trying again:

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

And a pic of my largest recent food waste pickup. Most are about half this size, but I’m getting them twice a week.

 

[gtaus]

And a pic of my largest recent food waste pickup. Most are about half this size, but I’m getting them twice a week.

Wow, that's a lot of food scraps! 2X per week! I think you need more chicken processors....

Thanks for the pics. Looks like a great system you got going there.

 

[BReeder!]

Yes, I had sandy soil, now it’s very rich. I dumped loads of wood chips in the run and raked them around because I don’t like stepping on wet areas. I throw grass clippings and scratch on top of the chips and the
chickens enjoy kicking it all around.

Over a season the wood chips break down and have to be replenished. I get them from the city landscapers because they are not dyed black like the chips at the home improvement stores.

Edited to add, the run is 6 feet wide by 150 feet long for 20 chickens. It doesn’t smell because it has excellent ventilation, same as the coop. The run is fenced with chain link. It has a party canopy frame with shade cloth for a roof.

Ventilation isn't the only thing helping to prevent unwanted odors there. Woodchips are high in carbon. Composting in a carbon rich environment can be a bit slower, but it prevents odor because the carbon will trap other minerals that would cause odors or feed odor creating bacteria. Another plus with wood chips is they are loaded with surface area for bacteria and fungi to grow on. That bacteria and fungi are what breaks down the manure and scraps that collect in the run turning it into compost.

 

[JCaseyHammond]

Yes, but perhaps some people do not realize that if they dump lots of grass clippings, for example, in one pile, and it rains, the grass clippings will clump up and become anaerobic and smell bad. Even though the pile is outside in full air, it can still become anaerobic if the material mats down. I usually spread out my grass clippings to avoid this matting issue, but one could also just mix in carbon like leaves or wood chips. I find it easiest to put things down in layers and the chickens will mix it up on their own as they scratch around looking for food.

A well balanced chicken run compost system would smell like a fresh forest floor. At least, that is what I get with my system and it seems to be working great for me.

Good point. When I “dump” my grass clippings, I drag the mower clippings bag along the wood chips to make a long shallow line. Then I kick em around a bit. We don’t get rain in the mowing season (summer in California), so someone in a rainier clime might want to put a roof over the clippings dumping area.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

Wow, that's a lot of food scraps! 2X per week! I think you need more chicken processors....

Thanks for the pics. Looks like a great system you got going there.

Thanks...system working pretty well so far but constantly learning and trying to improve.

My next upgrade is switching the food pantry from plastic bags to reusable 5-gallon buckets. That should help keep a LOT of plastic out of the landfill going forward!