Coop cleaning

[limited25]

We just use a painted board under the roost .... sprinkled with PDZ .... keeps everything dry and only takes a minute or so to scrape the poop deck. Use a putty knife to scrape poop into a pail.

 

[Chicksterfan]

Typo I guess. The p and the l are close together on a keyboard.
Should have been pine shavings.
And welcome to BYC, Chicksterfan!
What birds are in your flock?

Hi I have an Australorp named Penny, a Red-Sex Link named Rosey, a Buff Orpington named Petunia, and a Light Brahma named Daisy (we're hoping they're all hens). They're 9 weeks old as of last Wednesday.

 

[Chicksterfan]

We just use a painted board under the roost .... sprinkled with PDZ  .... keeps everything dry and only takes a minute or so to scrape the poop deck.  Use a putty knife to scrape poop into a pail.

I have bought PDZ, yippee, that should help a lot.

 

[haasle]

I am new to all this - I'm getting chicks this week, I don't even have a coop yet, but I'm already wigging out about how to keep the coop clean! I'm clueless about chicken poop, it's consistency, etc...those of you that use sand, do you sift it daily like a kitty litter box? What about those of you that use pine shavings, do you have to sift through the shavings to get the poop out? Do you use a shovel, in which case you'd be oicking up/wasting pine shavings along with poop? I'm only going to have 4 chickens so I'm guessing it will be relatively easy cleanup. I'm just afraid of it smelling bad.. I know I sound dumb as a stump, but I really have no idea what I'm doing! Which is why this site is so useful!

 

[blackwpk]

First of all haasle, relax, lol. I was once there as were so many of us. I started with 4 4-wk old chicks. I use pine shavings on the floor and I use Sweet PDZ in trays below their roost. It keeps the smell down really nice. Then, I use Food Grade DE (Diatomateous Earth) and sprinkle around in the shavings. It also helps with odor but also helps with bugs. When your chicks are older, you will want to dust them for bugs. I use the DE as I have it and it works! LOL! Like you, I was a nervous wreck and hadn't the FOGGIEST idea of what the heck I was doing or to do. This site is my go-to for EVERYTHING! Just keep looking and reading for any kind of issue you can think of. I had gone online a LOT for the type of coop I wanted my hubby to make and it came out AWESOME! Most of all, HAVE FUN!!! Once you are set up and have a routine, it's easy.

 

[haasle]

Thank you so much for the advice!

 

[ChickenMammX4]

We use pine flakes in the coop. There is probably 3-4" on the floor. We do have a poopboard under the roost filled with PDZ to absorb odor and moisture. The poopboard gets sifted out everyday or 2. The floor pine flakes gets cleaned out twice a year. I do not pick up any poop from the floor.

The coop is 8' x 9' and I have 6 chickens.

 

[ch1ckenmama]

We

Someone had suggested I put a fan in there.

We put a fan in our coop. It got hot last summer and it seemed to help keep them cool when they needed it

 

[Dmontgomery]

My coop is 16'x16' with 70' of roosting bars. Right now we only have 32 birds though. I have 6-8" of pine shavings on the floor. I turn them over every few days and I never have any bad odors. I have lots of ventilation too, which carries any smells away quickly. I change out shavings every 6 months and either pressure wash or replace all the roosting bars twice a year.

 

[ducks4you]

I use a full bag of Equine Fresh every time I replace bedding, and then top it with 1/2 a bad of Medium pine shavings bc the poop attaches more easily to it than fine pine shavings. I clean every 3 months, and I have a vinyl floor, so I don't need to scrub. I will also use clean leftover bedding to scrub any poo on the lower walls or corners.
There was a poor design to the 5 nest boxes (coop made for 12 chickens), so that they scratch out the bedding. I cut up two small entry way mats (new) to fit, and the carpet is soft and seems to suit my hens. They are a tight fit and they don't shift, plus they can be washed and put back when necessary.
The Equine Fresh is made of extruded pine mush and REALLY keeps down odors, and we know that pine isn't toxic to birds.