Considering purchasing a second hand coup...how does one go about disinfection and cleaning to avoid

[Tucker91]

When we bought our Chicks at TSC last weekend, we also bought a coop while we were there. It has become clear, that this coupe will not be big enough, so I plan to return the one I bought and buy a larger one. With that said, we are going to look at a second hand coop this weekend. It currently still has hens in it and if we get it, we will be picking it up in a few weeks when it hopefully warms up and there isn't so much snow on the ground.

I am wondering if I should have any concerns about diseases from the chickens living in the coop and of course lice. How can I go about cleaning this to avoid issues?

Thanks!

 

[Hokum Coco]

Pressure washing. Then white washing with a white washing product you can make yourself with the aid of the Internet is one approach. This method has been around for over 100 years basically.
1. Fill a stout wooden or galvanized steel bucket half-way with water.
2. Pour in lime, stirring with a wooden rod or paint stirrer, until the water level is within two or three inches of the top. Leave the stirrer resting at the bottom to help break the material out and let it set overnight (but no longer).
3. The next day, pour out the water leaving just enough to cover, and stir up the settled lime
4. Mix up a saline solution - a cup or two of salt per gallon of water - and add this to the lime until it reaches a pancake batter-like consistency. Mix only enough to use in one session. To keep the lime from resettling in the bottom of the bucket and to act as a binder, we like to add in powdered milk or paperhanger’s wheat paste. Mix them to a thin paste in water before adding.
Apply this solution with a broad, disposable whitewash brush (which you can find at an old-time country paint or hard goods store). To keep the wash from dabbling on your fence-line petunias, slosh the brush in, pull it up, shake straight down twice and flip the tip up quickly to the work.

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/whitewashing-using-slaked-lime.aspx#ixzz2wc5otz1T​

 

[Ridgerunner]

That can be a challenge. If the flock where you are getting it is pretty healthy, your odds are much better, but if they are showing signs of disease, like sneezing or runny discharge, don’t get it. Another bad sign is if the chickens are fluffed up and lethargic. If the flock looks OK, they can still have some stuff, but it’s not very likely to be that serious. You can probably deal with it. But the big key is if the flock looks sick, don’t get it.

When you get it take it somewhere the chickens will not come into contact with and dump all straw and bedding out. Scrape and clean as much poop and dirt out as you can. Wash it off well, then spray or wash it with a mild bleach solution. Get every nook and cranny wet with that bleach solution. Don’t rinse it off. Let it stay wet and air dry. Then let it air out for a while, until that bleach smell goes away.

You can spray it with insecticides or other cleaners, but a good bleach solution should take care of anything that is likely to be there. Good luck with it.

 

[Tucker91]

Thanks for the information! Both posts are very helpful!