Deep litter method or similar?

[Bluemonster107]

I have seen so many examples or mostly listed for chicken ... but maybe someone can give me some guidance for my particular situation??? Okay, I have an outdoor walk in enclosure that I am building (getting ready to attach all the hardware cloth) that is built upon cement slab and as I get to the substrate... what should I do? I was thinking play sand with some wood chips and maybe hay?? I have some potted plants and branches and stuff... but having hard time on what would work best for the “litter” portion??? Any suggestions? I don’t mind cleaning up.. not an issue.. and I don’t like to garden so no use for reusable compost... thanks in advance

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

I do deep litter *bedding* but I clean it out every spring.
If you put mealworms or oats in the coop they’ll stir up the poop

 

[Bluemonster107]

I do deep litter but I clean it out every spring.
If you put mealworms or oats in the coop they’ll stir up the poop

What material do you use for your deep litter?

 

[le_bwah]

With that setup, you might go with sand (raking and spot-cleaning, dries out well but makes dust) or deep bedding (just keep adding new material as the old stuff becomes soiled.

Deep litter is hard to do if you can't keep turning new dirt into it, but you could simulate a ground floor by adding a sprinkling of dirt each time you turn it over. A generally good mix is "forest floor-y," with different particle sizes and decomposition rates. I've had luck with untreated bark and wood chips, grass clippings, kitchen scraps and straw. Wood chips just didn't break down fast enough to be worth the cost.

 

[Bluemonster107]

With that setup, you might go with sand...
A generally good mix is "forest floor-y," ....

Yes... I am using sand... so do you think all sand might be best to try to start with? AND also forest floor mixed in? Or just certain areas ? Or try if the sand isn’t doing it’s thing? And about how deep is suggested?
I have LOTS of the forest floor left over from one of my reptiles... I hated it for that use... it actually absorbed all the needed humidity in that enclosure and I needed high humidity... so if that is what it should do with the quail.. then win

 

[TwentyOneChickens]

What material do you use for your deep litter?

Pine shavings.