Deep litter method

[GopherBoyFarms]

we add a layer of DE and shavings about once a weeks when we stir the littler. In a yr we havent even gone though a 50 pound bag of DE...little goes a long way!! (we have close to 30 chickens in the one coop) And its on a wood floor.....no rodent problems....but I really dont think there would be anyway for a rodent to get into the coop unless during the day when the doors are open, and I think Nikki (our rooster) would just eat them!!! LOL


~Tiff~

 

[crzychicken]

I used the DLM this winter no smell until I went on a trip for 8 days and my brother didn't turn the litter under the roost, but I just clean the top off mixed in more shavings and DE and it's been fine,I do have poop bins under the roost. I turn the shavings every 3 or 4 days I don't usually add more DE because their should be some still there. My girls go outside in the winter they have a small covered run and I keep part of the yard snow free as much as i can the windy cold cold days they will stay in mostly.DLM I have only good thing to say about it it was easy for the winter months.

 

[jmschristiansen]

The deep litter method is the way to go, if you don't want to spend a lot of time on maintenance, etc. We have been using it for about a year now. Cleaned the coop twice, once, just because, and the second time when we moved the coop. I have a friend who bags his leaves (oak trees), and so I go in about once a month and kick the old stuff up into a pile towards the back of the coop, and dump another bag or two at the front. Right now, I have about 18 inches of decomposing leaves. In the summer, I put DE in the coop, on the chickens, and in the nest boxes, about once or twice a month.

My kitchen scraps go into the chicken yard, and about once a month, I go rake the pile back up. The chickens love to dig through it, and spread it around, ends up being 15 feet across.

We really like it, makes it easy to have them, and keeps the coop fairly pleasant.

Good luck!

 

[brandywine]

There was a supply of sawdust horse bedding in the barn when we bought our place, so I'm using that.

Put the chooks in their coop (converted stall) in August, built up the litter for about a month or so by adding a barrow-full once a week as the birds grew, and haven't added to it since. It's about ten inches deep over a dirt floor. I did put down some hardware cloth in one corner where there were rodent tunnels before adding the litter. No rodent problems (but I keep feed stored securely and have two barn cats).

I turn it with a fork or hoe about three times a week, or daily if the birds are cooped up during bad weather. Scrape the roost and the windowsill daily so that the deposits there make it into the litter.

I throw kitchen scraps onto the litter, and what the birds don't eat (banana peels, mostly) becomes part of the floor composting system.

Very little odor -- only when they are cooped.

Almost no work.

The guano seems to vaporize. It just disappears into the the litter.

I have no plans to change it out unless something happens. Maybe I'll clean the coop in the fall so I can age that great compost over the winter.

 

[mountaintopchicken]

The traditional deep littler method was on a dirt floor, as one person already mentioned.

The litter actually composted in the coop, generating warmth, and insects could live in the composting litter, providing fun scratching and a protein source for the chickens. New litter was added on top of the old litter.

The thing is, in order for litter to compost, there needs to be moisture in the bedding. Bone dry litter will not rot. On a dirt floor, that composting could occur beginning on the surface of the dirt floor due to moisture coming up from the ground, and work its way up.

A lot of people seem to be using something they also call a 'deep litter' method, but all it involves is deep litter, no composting. The floor is not dirt, and the litter is kept dry, and new litter is added to the old.

My personal preference is for a moderately deep litter - say 5-6", but I don't like to keep piling on new shavings for too long, because when you finally do clean the whole thing out, it's a real pain, there is so much litter in the coop. Also, I have asthma, and I find that things do get dusty when the old litter is left in, even when you add new litter on top. The pulverized poo etc. is still in the coop creating dust (ick.)

 

[chickeepoo]

I've never been able to find just DE locally, so I use Stall-Dry which is a granulated combination of DE and clay.Does this affect how things decompose? It's not powder, so I can't sprinkle it on the hens as pest control, but I suppose they probably eat some of it in their scratching and pecking. It does dry things up and hold down odor- does anyone else use this?

 

[mendogurl]

Hi-
So I am building my coop, have a plywood floor which I was planning on covering with linoleum and then using the deep litter method.
Do I put down the linoleum? Not sure after reading this thread.

 

[cmom]

My coop has a wood floor. I did paint the floor. I use the DLM. I use pine shavings. I sprinkle a bucket on the old shavings weekly and then sprinkle some DE in. Woks great. I have been buying my pine shavings at Wal-Mart in the pet section.

 

[HiDelight]

:my coop has a concrete floor ....before I cleaned the pad off to build the coop it was covered with thick leaf compost from the trees above so I thought for sure I could compost right on top of it..before I put the coop in I was going to use it for my composting area
will it not work at all for the DL method? what if I put a layer of wormy soil on top of it then put straw on top of the dirt ? I have a huge pile of compost/soil for my garden beds and there is enough I could line the coop with it if you think it would work under the litter

also is it possible to deep liter the pen where they run around? or is that not practical?

is straw just as good ? or do I need to buy shavings? or if shavings are better can I just wait and add them when I run out of straw?

I usually compost in a bin but this is why I got the chickens (besides the fact I adore them!) so they could help with my gardening/composting/weeding

so much to learn here so many questions!

thank you so much

 

[HiDelight]

do I have to buy the DE? I really do not want to make another trip to the store and I do not want to spend anymore money right now...I just want to stop for a few moments and relax with my chickens! ..but this deep liter sounds like what I need to do! I am only 5 days into this and have done nothing but work on and set up this coop ..get the hens settled ..figure out what and when to feed them ( I kept reading and everytime I did I got more confused!) so now I have pine shavings and straw both and do not want to go buy the DE if I do not have to ...just someone tell me please if do what I said above ..just freshen and turn a few times a week will it compost with out it? I am looking on the web as well for info but any and all tips would be appreciated!

I really just want to stop working on this and sit and enjoy my birthday gift for a moment!!! they are just so beautiful!