Concerned with possible smell issues

[enggass]

How far from the house should I put my coop? I am concerned with smell issues...
Any and all input would be great regarding smell...
Thanks,
Steve

 

[homeschoolmama]

This is my 1st year having chickens. I use the deep litter method and the coop just smells faintly like chickens live there- I don't think it smells badly at all. I am very pleased. Our city requires that poultry housing be a minimum of 50' from any residential building and ours is just that far away- wish it was closer during snow shoveling season! You might want to be sure what the laws say before building.

 

[elmo]

It depends on how many chickens you keep, and what your husbandry practices are. I have five bantams that I rotate around my yard in different runs and a tractor, and I clean out droppings daily to put into the composter. Even someone with a sensitive nose would never have a clue that we keep chickens: no odor whatsoever. I also use a soy free feed. When my chicks were in their brooder indoors, they smelled chickeny until I switched to soy free.

 

[Baymen Moe]

Keep up with your poo maintanence and you shouldn't have a problem. Heck, you can step in my coop and sometimes you'd think I had no chickens. My run is the only area that can sometimes get smelly, but that's usually after wet weather. Other than that. you wouldn't even know I had chickens unless you were standing next to the coop looking at them.

 

[eastbaychicks]

I have my coop right behind my bedroom, on the side yard. I'm not concerned about the smell at all I usually sprinkle new wood chips in their run as it starts to look/smell a little off when you're standing right over it. And I change the litter in the coop quarterly.

You may consider the noise. Some mornings they are so LOUD, and others like today they were super quiet. Since it is different everyday I can't quite get used to it. I'm glad we didn't put the coop next to a neighbors bedroom. Better me getting an earful in the morning than my neighbor.

 

[CityChook]

If you get a reasonable amount of snow, consider how far you'll be willing to trek to feed/water/open/close on a daily basis. It's kind of a bummer to have to shovel out to reach it EVERY time it snows.

I have 4 standards (no roosters) in a coop with deep litter. The run is covered, so it doesn't get soaking wet. I change the coop litter out in May and October. I have no smell and would have no problems putting the coop right next to my house.