Deep litter method

[armorfirelady]

I'm assuming you need to build a pretty tall coop to be able to do the DLM??? How does that work if you have "fixed" exterior nestboxes?

Here is a picture of my coop & enclosed run

I use DL in both. The enclosed run made out of lattice is only 4 feet high and DL has been in there since August. The doll house coop on the right is even shorter. the front part is only about 36" tall and the rear about 42" high. The DL was started here in August as well and last month I did remove 4 garbage cans of the DL since it was almost to the roosts lol But it is composting wonderfully. The DL I removed I threw in the veggie garden and the hens are happily digging thru it.

 

[hopefulpeeps]

Here is a picture of my coop & enclosed run

I use DL in both. The enclosed run made out of lattice is only 4 feet high and DL has been in there since August. The doll house coop on the right is even shorter. the front part is only about 36" tall and the rear about 42" high. The DL was started here in August as well and last month I did remove 4 garbage cans of the DL since it was almost to the roosts lol But it is composting wonderfully. The DL I removed I threw in the veggie garden and the hens are happily digging thru it.

So you are taking the litter out more than once a year?

 

[armorfirelady]

No I only took litter out because it was so high in tiny coop.

 

[AlienChick]

Who's got pics?
Thanks
Chicken Myster

Some pics of my coop with deep litter.
I use a DRY deep litter method because:

1. I have a wood floor, and
2. I do not want the coop to smell

I keep the litter about 6-8 inches deep.
I use flake shavings for my litter and recently added a half bale of shavings a couple of weeks ago.
Because it is a dry litter, it never gets moist or ferments.
I change it twice a year to dump in the compost pile for use on my garden.

Here are some pics. I also show a pic of a spot that I raked up to show how dry my litter stays.
I usually rake it about once a week or throw in some bread crumbs and allow the chickens to stir it all up.
It's a 10x12 size coop with about 15 chickens/guineas inside.










ETA: I just changed the litter the beginning of December, so it's not nearly as deep as it can become by the time it gets changed again in 6 months.

 

[jenhenny]

Hi I have a few questions. I am still in the planning phase of our coop. I was thinking if using poop boards with sweet PDZ and cleaning out daily. I would like to have the floor space under the roosts for the girls. Could I just scoop the poop from the poop board and put it in the deep litter or should I remove it from the coop? Also, I live in Colorado where we can get rather weird weather. It sometimes does a quick rain down pore and the ground has standing water. Our soil is mostly clay so not good drainage. For this reason I was planning on doing a raised coop with a wood floor but it sounds like the DLM works best on an earthen floor. Any suggestions? Thanks for your help!

 

[AlienChick]

If you're gonna go to all the trouble of scooping poop, you might as well toss it outside the coop to keep the coop clean.
And if you have a wood floor, just keep the litter dry.

 

[armorfirelady]

Hi I have a few questions. I am still in the planning phase of our coop. I was thinking if using poop boards with sweet PDZ and cleaning out daily. I would like to have the floor space under the roosts for the girls. Could I just scoop the poop from the poop board and put it in the deep litter or should I remove it from the coop? Also, I live in Colorado where we can get rather weird weather. It sometimes does a quick rain down pore and the ground has standing water. Our soil is mostly clay so not good drainage. For this reason I was planning on doing a raised coop with a wood floor but it sounds like the DLM works best on an earthen floor. Any suggestions? Thanks for your help

The PDZ is not neccesary. It actually kills some of the good bugs you need in order for the DL to work. There are others here who have wood floors and use the DL method. Some of them have put a piece of linoleum (sp) down over the wood so the wood stays dry. Others just turn the litter daily so the DL stays dryer.
I used to have a poop board in my doll house coop. I think it lasted about a week before I removed it because it was such a pain to clean off.

The DL I have in my enclosed run & coop has been there since August. I only removed some in the small coop because it was so high. I turn it about once a week and add shaving, straw or hay about every other week or so. My enclosed run is made of lattice work and open to the elements except in the winter when I put plastic around it. But even then there is ventilation on the top & bottom so it still gets some snow.rain in it. Same with the doll house coop open ventilation at the top & bottom. . I just keep everything turned once a week and I have no smell and it stays dry. I have 4 hens which is a tight fit for the doll house coop but it works for now.

I know that some who have the linoleum or wood floors add dirt to the DL to help the composting. I also add wood ashes to it. Its a natural mite & lice preventive and the girls dust bathe in it. U can also use leaves, grass clippings, weeds, pine needles...whatever plant matter you would normally throw out can go in the coop. The chickens love to dig through it. I also about once a week toss some corn & BOSS in the DL so that the girls happily dig thru the DL to keep it tossed over.

For the areas where there is standing water this is a great spot to throw some DL down. It will raise the soil level and help keep the ground good for bugs for the hens. Even throwing some straw, hay or leaves down here helps. My soil to is clay in spots and I have low points that turn into mini lakes when it rains. The hens dont mind wading in the water but I do toss DL & bedding down there to help raise the level. This spring I plan on putting compost there to raise the level and make it more inviting to bugs.

I hope this helps. There is a pic of my coop & enclosed run 4 posts above this one.

 

[Arielle]

If you're gonna go to all the trouble of scooping poop, you might as well toss it outside the coop to keep the coop clean.
And if you have a wood floor, just keep the litter dry.

I thought the same thing-- I use a little shavings on areas to clean off easily. Like a poop board, and put in the compost or I fling it over the grass areas as instant fertilizer. IMO too much poo for the area can be problematic, so I think if you can remove the majority of the poo, you can see how your system is working. I have one coop with a lot of birds-- they prefer that coop for some reason so it is crowded. A mix of dry fall eaves and poo is not working well--but I"m still trying out different recipes!!

I'm wondering if ashes function much like lime for ammonia control. Does anyone know?? FOr some reason I'm thinking about old fashion soap making using the lye in the ashes . . . maybe totally off here.

 

[Janay]

I am wondering if it's ok to use different kinds of bedding for the deep litter method? I was thinking a mixture of wood shavings (or chips?), dry grass, dead leaves, etc. How will that work? And how many inches do I need?

 

[wsmith]

I am wondering if it's ok to use different kinds of bedding for the deep litter method? I was thinking a mixture of wood shavings (or chips?), dry grass, dead leaves, etc. How will that work? And how many inches do I need?

Most definately! I use whatever is on hand, dry leaves, old hay, straw wood chips, whatever. I would start out with about 3 inches, it will compact and break down. Add more every week or two as needed.