Coop Odor

[Patch&Phoebe]

Thanks Mac, I was thinking lime but not certain if that was ok 1. for my ladies and 2. for the compost.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Patch&Phoebe :

Thanks Mac, I was thinking lime but not certain if that was ok 1. for my ladies and 2. for the compost.

It won't hurt anything. It's good for the lawn and if the chickens eat it, it's just an extra source of calcium.​

 

[aran]

I was about to post about this very thing. My coop is not really smelly at all...i put extra shavings in there and turn it all over every couple of weeks and apart from smelling like chickens inside the coop its not a bad smell at all. The run however freakin smells like a sewer! This all happened after I overfilled the duckpool in there and the ground got wet...man it smells SOOOOOOOOOOO bad...i was planning on buying a bunch of bales of hay today and putting them down all thoughout the run to try and mop up some of the moisture and hopefully stop the smell...the run is a large area ( not concreted) ...any other thoughts on how to get rid of this ungodly stench?

 

[cristina33]

Hi , I also have a stinky icky run right now. I personaly would not use hay. Last time I did that it got hard as a rock and was very hard to clean. I was told to use lime. But to be sure I used garden lime because the hydrated (sp) lime will burn my chickens feet. Good Luck with the stink.
(wish me luck too

)

Take Care
Cristina

 

[bluie]

Hi All. I don't know how to post a link, but look in recent posts in coop design, for a thread named "sand run". Look for a post by Standard Hen. That's what I'm going to do in my run 'cause I am in the burbs and must keep the smell down or DH and neighbors won't be happy.

 

[Patch&Phoebe]

I'll go check out "Sand Run" now but for sure - hay does not cure the problem. We tried that and found that the hay just retains the odor even worse in the run so then add the wettish hay smell into the mix and it's even worse than what you have now. Our local feed store was out of Sweet PDZ and does not carry lime, so about to drive for an hour to get the stuff which I don't mind if it does the trick! I'll keep posting back w/ updates and checking for other bright ideas!

 

[aran]

thanks for the heads up on the hay...i will also try and get some of the lime...is there a particular kind i need to look for?

 

[ruth]

Hi P&P - I too have a raised coop with a wire floor. The small rectangular holes (I think it's called hardware cloth - the kind hutches are made with?) It works great in our hot humid tons of rain environment. So far I don't have a problem with odor. The poop doesn't fall through the holes as well I thought it would since the holes are too small so I use the hose with a presser nozzel on it and once a week I BLAST the stuff through the holes and onto the ground two feet below. The ground is covered in a thick layer of natural mulch from the overhanging oak and pine trees plus I throw pine shavings down there every once in a while. The only I time I have odor in my coop is when the piles of poop have started building up again. By blasting it, it tends to dissentegrate. What lands on the ground gets scratched up and around the run by the chicks since they tend to hang out under the coop in the shade a lot. I don't have a problem with smell from the ground or with moisture because once the sun comes out at 100 degrees it dries up everything. So far I have not had to rake out under the coop because the chicks do that for me. So instead of raking, scraping and shoveling - try blasting it to smithereens with a water hose nozzel set on high pressure. Nothing left to worry about then.

As far as the wire being hard on their feet - the Chick-N-Hutch I bought and started them all in had the same type of bottom and that was what we used when we built our own. Our girls free range all day from morning till night and the only time they are in the coop is to get on the roost to sleep or to get in a nest box (which is floored) to lay and egg. However the wire works great for us because it provides ventilation and when it's really hot here the chicks will get in their coop, on their roosts, because it is raised and vaulted and ventilated so it stays cooler than outside. I haven't been through winter yet with chicks but have decided that I could cut a piece of plywood to cover wire bottom for winter IF we ever get an acutal freezing night (rare) and/or I could lay hay in the bottom for winter - like I do in the Chick-N-Hutch for any babies (so their feet don't fall through).

 

[imloulou]

Quote:
This is when our run smells....when it rains!!! Most of the time you cant smell anything...we clean 2-3 times a week and our chickens free range for the day so it cuts down on the smell BUT WHEN IT RAINS it STINKS!!!!!!!!! It REALLY stinks. Wet chicken poo is awful!

I try to keep the runs/coop as clean as possible so when it rains it wont be as bad...but it still stinks until it dries up. I use DE on it when it is damp (and when it looks like it won't rain again for the day) it seems to help dry it up and conquer the smell for a while...at least until the next rain.

Lisa

 

[imloulou]

Quote:
I agree...hay did not work for us either. It is much easier to sweep the poo off dirt than rake wet, hay...blech!