Schmamy, Welcome to BYC and all I can say after reading your posts is "good luck to you and your friend, ya gonna need it"! In my opinion I see nothing but problems for you two, and possibly your chickens. Coop smelly and full of poop, not good for chickens. Can't seem to decide on proper way to handle poop(DLM, poop boards, regular maintenence, etc) Neither of you sound to be into the chickens, just the eggs. That bothers me! Money issues? Chickens like any other animals cost $ to keep. Even on the lowest level of care. Communication problem as far as doing your research together and deciding what would be best way to achieve a clean, safe enviroment for the chickens. I just see a disaster in the making. Sorry to be so glum, but call it as I see it based on what you have told us. However I hope you both can turn it around and start enjoying the girls and give them a great place to thrive, be happy and lay great tasting "FREE" eggs. Good luck
Erik
Erik