Coop moisture? How to prevent?

[Penpal]

You wrote that you had used hay. Hay is not a good litter as it has more moisture than you think. When it gets wet it will become moldy, and the mold will be poisonous.

Use straw. Barley straw is said to be the most absorbent, but use what you got. Any straw is better than hay. When we had livestock every winter I would get hay for the sheep and donkeys, and add a couple of bales of straw for the chicken coop.

 

[Logar]

Well, on a negative note, I accidentally bought cedar mulch instead of oak mulch and spread it in the run before realizing it. I have no sense of smell so I couldn't smell it as I was working. Explains why there are no bugs in our dirt run. The work was already done before reading here that it is toxic. Why is that? I picked up as much as I could, the larger pieces anyway. I covered and mixed in the rest with compost dirt, dry leaves and some pine pellets. This was a month or so ago. On a positive note, the girls are still alive. I really messed that one up. I suppose over time the cedar will break down and in the process become less toxic or should I go through the painstaking effort of removing as much as possible?

I honestly wouldn't worry too much. If it was in the coop, I would be worried but in the run where there is constant air movement and is open it shouldn't be an issue. I wouldn't use it again just to be safe but your girls almost certainly will be fine

 

[Bawkbok]

I honestly wouldn't worry too much. If it was in the coop, I would be worried but in the run where there is constant air movement and is open it shouldn't be an issue. I wouldn't use it again just to be safe but your girls almost certainly will be fine

ok, thank you. There seems to be no ill affects on the girls and my husband says he can't smell it anymore. I have a lot of compost and leaves in there, we're probably up to a good 6" of deep litter.

 

[nuthatched]

What type of ventilation does the coop have?

 

[Bawkbok]

The coop is an omlet cube so ventilation is not the best. We've been leaving the door open for maximum air flow until a few nights ago when the temp has dropped below 40 and the humidity goes up to the high 90s overnight so it's a wet damp air therefore, I've been closing the door at night so they don't get chilled. I also removed the plastic barrier that creates the layer nest apart from the roosting section to also increase air flow.

 

[nuthatched]

The coop is an omlet cube so ventilation is not the best. We've been leaving the door open for maximum air flow until a few nights ago when the temp has dropped below 40 and the humidity goes up to the high 90s overnight so it's a wet damp air therefore, I've been closing the door at night so they don't get chilled. I also removed the plastic barrier that creates the layer nest apart from the roosting section to also increase air flow.

Can you cut out more ventilation? Under the roof peak?

 

[Bawkbok]

Can you cut out more ventilation? Under the roof peak?

There is no roof peak, it is one curved piece of double walled plastic and if we cut into it (not sure how) we would be severely compromising the design / shape of the structure. Eventually, when I grow up and move away from this humid climate, I will have a "real" coop.