Deep litter coop floor - linoleum or wood?

[Cryss]

Besides my plans for my new coop we are currently building I had made some alterations to my original prefab. One thing was I got it up off the ground to prevent the cheap wood frame rotting. I used a scrap of vinyl I got cheap at Lowe's or Home Depot. First I painted (to help prevent rot) and connected pallets to form a base. (I also wrapped them in hardware cloth to keep out predators).Then I painted 3/4 inch plywood and laid that on top, then covered that with the vinyl. Popped the prefab on top of that and voila! How long will it last? Probably longer than the prefab itself.

 

[aart]

The main complaint I read about it is that the rubber coating cracks.

Have never seen this reported with BlackJack 57. Got links?

I used vinyl....a good heavy duty foamed backed vinyl...had to shop for one that would not crack when corner was bent over. Is still on good shape after 6 years on floor and poop boards.

Well, my coop is built on the frame of an old boat trailer. Dirt floor was out of the question.

@JackE's point was that a true composting deep litter will not go well up off the ground...especially in your frigid climate.

 

[TwoShepherds]

Then I need to wait for along stretch of dry weather. Not this week for sure! Does anyone know how long it takes for blackjack to dry?

I just painted my floor with Black Jack 57 on Tuesday. I put down one coat in the morning and it felt dry to the touch by the late afternoon so I put down the 2nd coat. The next morning (Wednesday), it seemed dry enough to walk on but the directions say to let it cure for 10-14 days, or something like that, so I'm going to wait a week before I use it.

 

[Cryss]

Dang. 14 days.

 

[TwoShepherds]

Dang. 14 days.

haha, that is how I felt. I am really tempted to start using mine because it seems dry, but I am going to wait the full seven days. I was nervous about using it because I was unfamiliar with it and had read some reviews that it cracked, never dried, and was hard to mix, but I am really pleased with how it went on. Seems like good stuff. We'll see how it holds up. : )

I added a link to a thread I started last week because I received some helpful advice.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/blackjack-57-in-high-humidity.1314594/

 

[aart]

Dang. 14 days.

It's another one of those 'chickens will teach you patience, or not' things.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Dang. 14 days.

You don't *need* to give it the full 14 days if you can't wait. It'll surface dry in a day. But it'll remain somewhat tacky for quite a while longer as it cures. If you must move the chickens in early, put down a nice layer of bedding and there shouldn't be any issue.

Since I was building stuff to go on top of it I did have to wait for it to cure. so that the additions (nest box, roost supports) didn't stick to the floor, as I wanted everything to be removable without impacting the floor.

To OP: I honestly don't know if Black Jack is made to withstand extreme cold, you might need to contact the company directly (don't bother mentioning that it's for a coop, they'll tell you that's not an intended use). Only temperatures listed on the technical sheet are for application.

 

[gtaus]

Have never seen this reported with BlackJack 57. Got links?

There were a few negative reviews on Amazon.com, but I remember reading about cracking elsewhere too. Sorry, no links.

I used vinyl....a good heavy duty foamed backed vinyl...had to shop for one that would not crack when corner was bent over. Is still on good shape after 6 years on floor and poop boards.

Thanks, that gives me a better idea of how long linoleum might last.

@JackE's point was that a true composting deep litter will not go well up off the ground...especially in your frigid climate.

I realized that a true "composting" deep litter will not go well up off the ground, but I am thinking more in terms of the Carolina Coop videos on YouTube where they use "dry" deep litter bedding for the chickens, not composting deep litter. I would have preferred a true composting deep litter system, but for a number of reasons I had to make a mobile, off the ground coop.

 

[aart]

There were a few negative reviews on Amazon.com, but I remember reading about cracking elsewhere too. Sorry, no links.

Amazon reviews need to be taken with many grains of salt....and were the applications detailed(used on coop floors in frigid climates?) Preparation and curing is often to blame for failures.

I realized that a true "composting" deep litter will not go well up off the ground, but I am thinking more in terms of the Carolina Coop videos on YouTube where they use "dry" deep litter bedding for the chickens, not composting deep litter.

Ah, I see. Have seen that one, not sure how well it might work. The terms 'deep bedding' and 'deep litter' are often misused and misunderstood...chicken 'buzzwords'.

Lots of different ways to bed a coop and manage manure.
What kind of bedding you use may depend on how you manage the manure.
This is about cleaning, but covers my big picture

-I use poop boards under roosts with thin(<1/2") layer of sand/PDZ mix, sifted daily(takes 5-10mins) into bucket going to friends compost.

-Scrape big or wet poops off roost and ramps as needed.

-Pine shavings on coop floor, add some occasionally, totally changed out once or twice a year, old shavings added to run.

-Runs have semi-deep litter, never clean anything out, just add smaller dry materials on occasion, add larger wood chippings as needed.

-Nests are bedded with straw, add some occasionally, change out if needed(broken egg).

There is no odor, unless a fresh cecal has been dropped and when I open the bucket to add more poop.

That's how I keep it 'clean', have not found any reason to clean 'deeper' in 5 years.

 

[gtaus]

...Lots of different ways to bed a coop and manage manure.
What kind of bedding you use may depend on how you manage the manure.
This is about cleaning, but covers my big picture...

Thanks for the response. As I have said, I have no experience with laying hens and carrying them over the winter. When I talk to locals who raise chickens, they tell me they typically do not clean out their coops during the frozen winter months. They just throw more litter/bedding over the frozen droppings and plan on a big clean up in the spring.

I am currently using wood chips and pine shavings in my chick brooder and that seems to work well in controlling both the smell and keeping the bedding dry. The bedding is about 4 inches deep now and it does not smell at all. If I start to detect any smell of ammonia, I just fluff up the bedding and throw more on top. I have not removed any litter. But the chicks are relatively small and I expect that full grown chickens may require more work to keep it clean/fresh.