Deep Litter Method AND DE dustbath- YES OR NO?

[Bear Foot Farm]

Is there a benefit to deep litter over sand? And how deep are we talking? Newbie here. Hi Nicole!!

"Deep" is relative, but I think it should be at least 6 inches to start.
Sand is great for drainage, but won't absorb moisture as well as shavings, and pine adds a nice scent

Shavings are also much easier to handle than sand

 

[nicole63021]

Hey Lissa! I wanted to start with 5-6 inches, adding up to 10-12 inches at cleaning. Really looking at doing this so I don't have to clean as much in the cold, but if I like it, will stick with it year round. I have also heard (not sure if it's true) that it helps keep the coop slightly warmer during colder months. Add to that the lower smell factor and it seemed like a good try! Does this seem like a good way to go about trying the deep litter for the first time?

 

[yogifink]

Quote:
DLM is technically a form of composting. A good compost heats up as it breaks down. Personally, the coop I use DLM in does not get enough moisture to be a good compost, so it doesn't heat up. I don't want to add moisture for this purpose, but, I will get a good mix to add to my real compost once a year or so.

 

[Brahmama]

Thanks for the input! I will look into this some more.

 

[DeannaA]

I have been using the deep litter method in my coop for a few months and everything was fine. We got exsesive rain and the last 2 days I have had a very strong ammonia smell. I have raked and added new bedding, I have ventalation along the roof and I have left the door open all day. Has not improved. I added lime, I was desperate. I don't want my chickens to get sick. I also noticed that that the bedding started putting off heat the same time the ammonia smell started. I know it's supposed to get warm but I know it's not supposed to smell like ammonia. The rain has made it a little damp but not wet. How can I fix this? I add 2 bags of pine shavings every week. I have 44 chickens in there. It is 8'X16'. They only sleep and lay in there.

 

[nicole63021]

We just cleaned out our DL last weekend, with all the snow melting it looked a little damp near the vent windows. It was the first time I had seen any dampness at all, and since it had been going since October, it seemed a good time to change it. Also discovered our little EE has been hiding her eggs! Thankfully she's a new layer and most of the eggs were good. If you are smelling any ammonia at all I would say to change it out, your compost will thank you, and so will your flock. Dampness is also never good as far as I'm concerned. Best of luck!