Deep litter and chicken smell

[Springermom]

I've been cruising this site for about 6 months and now have an issue that seems not discussed (though it probably is somewhere) so am posting for the first time.

My new flock is 4 months old and has been in the coop about 2 months. There's 5 hens in a 4x4 coop with a 8x12 run. They have been out of the run and free ranging a lot lately now
that the weather has warmed up here in Ohio.

I decided to try the DLM and put about 6 inches of pine shaving over the vinyl flooring. I stir it deeply about once each week and have added shaving about every 2 weeks along with a sprinkling of PDZ. It seems very dry and dusty when I stir it.

I dont see where anything is breaking down and the last couple of weeks have been noticing a strong "pine chicken" smell. It doesn't smell like ammonia, just chicken poo and pine. It's noticable when you get near the coop window, depending on the wind direction.

Is it TOO dry? Do I need to add some soil to get the microbes working? Am I stirring too deeply? Is it normal for this method when the weather gets warm?

Suggestions are appreciated.

 

[CityFarmer202]

Welcome to the forum!! I recently joined too. I have never had any luck with the deep litter method, maybe i did it wrong I just went back to replacing all spoiled bedding once a week and smells are almost nothing

 

[itzazoo]

I am new to chicken keeping too but DLM did not work for me either. So, I now use sand which is cheap and super easy to clean out about every 3 days.

 

[Springermom]

I hate to give up so soon especially with so many success stories There has actually been little smell until lately. Maybe the poo has just accumulated to a critical point, maybe the warm weather, maybe I need to do something different.

I used sand in the run over gravel and it works great! Rake it weekly to clean out feathers and tidy the sand and the poo seems to just dissolve into the sand.

 

[jetdog]

I hate to give up so soon especially with so many success stories There has actually been little smell until lately. Maybe the poo has just accumulated to a critical point, maybe the warm weather, maybe I need to do something different.

I used sand in the run over gravel and it works great! Rake it weekly to clean out feathers and tidy the sand and the poo seems to just dissolve into the sand.

Have you ever thought about making poop boards under the roost, I have them in my new coop and I sift out the poop from the sweet pdz with a cat litter scoop, with chickens pooping the most at night it lands in the pdz.I have the same shavings in since April and there is no smell, I clean the board every other day, best thing ever.

 

[nuttyboo]

There is a article posted called
HOW MUCH DE FOR DLM? They sift DE food grade earth into their pine shavings

 

[Springermom]

Not room for poop boards. The coop is only 4x4x4 and a 2' board would take up half the space. I'm suspecting it's too dry for decomposition to start or I may need some soil to introduce microbes. I was hoping someone else has has this issue and found an answer. I may try misting some of the bedding and scattering a little soil around. I think the PDZ keeps the ammonia down but it doesn't eliminate the chicken smell in general.
DE will kill the little bug critters but never heard it will eliminate the smell.

 

[Folly's place]

Sometimes you just need to clean it out sooner. Solid flooring is less forgiving than dirt or even concrete, and you have a very crowded coop unless you only have bantams, so more frequent cleanouts will be needed. If the waterer is leaking, too much moisture and mold will happen. I wouldn't dampen anything in there either. Mary

 

[RonP]

Too dry if you have dust.
I also have a floor, no dirt, in my coop.
I keep the pine shavings at about 8 to 12 inches deep, and fluff occasionally.
The girls are out 90% of the time, except for very inclement weather and to lay.

I will clean out the shavings once a year, no ammonia smell, but plenty of dust.
When it gets really dusty, I know i need more shavings. The dust will settle to the bottom.

True deep litter will not work well without a lot of work, when you do not have access to the dirt floor.

 

[KeepOnClucking]

If you clean frequently you shouldn't notice much in the way of offensive odors.