Deep litter question!

[Pghelp]

Is there something else you recommend for bedding inside the coop? At least during warmer months?

If you have a coffee shop nearby that does their own roasting, ask them to save the dry coffee chaff for you. It’s fluffy and free. I’ve been using it for several years with great success. It’s a byproduct of the roasting.

 

[Kriscam]

Is there something else you recommend for bedding inside the coop? At least during warmer months?

Have you tried hemp bedding?

 

[cp2894_]

If you have a coffee shop nearby that does their own roasting, ask them to save the dry coffee chaff for you. It’s fluffy and free. I’ve been using it for several years with great success. It’s a byproduct of the roasting.

Oh that's so cool! We actually do have a local coffee shop nearby. I'll look into that!

 

[cp2894_]

Have you tried hemp bedding?

I'm on a tight budget so hemp is personally a little too expensive.

 

[cp2894_]

I have always used this method, granted I live in the Pacific Northwest. I use pine shavings and straw. I don't think it should put out that much heat. It is nice for the winter, it keeps the floor and coop comfortable. I have no heat source. The temps got down to 9 this winter and no problem. Also in the evening when I lock the girls up I throw some scratch around the coop floor to keep things stirred up. Good luck. I think you will be happy with this method.

Thank you for sharing! The scratch is a good idea. Do you get any mites or insects using the straw?

 

[Blooie]

I‘ve been using true deep litter (not deep bedding) in both coop and run for over 7 years now. I live in Wyoming in an area that is semi-desert, so we see scorching hot summers and extreme winters. I’ve never noticed excessive heat using it. It’s a dirt floor and the litter is mostly dried leaves that we’ve raked up - little twigs, dead grasses, twigs, bugs and all - plus whatever else I have that I can toss in there. That includes almost anything that would normally go in a compost heap….whatever veggie scraps the chickens miss, garden waste, and weeds. If the litter seems to be getting too dry and dusty, (high in carbon material) I hit it with a very light mist of water and the flip the top layer under, and/or increase the green component with grass clippings and the like. If there’s too much green material (too damp), I increase the carbon in the ratio by dumping in another bag of leaves. It’s all a balance.

We just cleaned out the run this week after 2 years and were able to to put the litter directly in the garden without the need for a secondary period of composting. If I’m planting a shrub or flower bed, I can scoop out a fews shovels full and put it directly in the planting or hole. When I clean out, I never take it all the way to the dirt floor….I leave a few inches to give the new litter a head start, sort of like sourdough starter. I don’t end up with 12 inches or more of litter to deal with - this last clean out, after 2 years, was about 4-6 inches deep.

I love using true deep litter year round. There’s nothing wrong with pine shavings and deep bedding. Shaings make for a soft flooring, they smell great, they look so bright and fresh, and they absorb liquids. But they just don’t break down. I started with pine shavings, then switched to deep litter. It’s been 7 years and during this week’s clean out, we’re still finding pine shavings. They’re a little wetter and a little grayer, but they’re still easily recognizable as pine shavings. Thats fine for those who like pine shavings, but I want more from the litter I use.

 

[HNDYMN]

We have a 4 foot wide by 8 foot long by 6 foot high coop with a plastic hard floor. Ventilation is super important so we have three 18 x 20 inch windows.
1 on the end and two on the sides. Also have a walk-in person door which we occasionally leave open during the summer "days".
We use pine shavings from tractor supply and do the deep litter method. Adding a bit of shavings here and there just to keep it fresh. Also have heard true or not that the pine shavings deter insects. We have been doing the deep litter method for years and all has been well. We clean out/off the coop floor about three or four times a year. Be ready and have a spot to compost. We put straw in the nesting boxes for no reason and on one end of the run. The chickens like to scratch in it. Happy chickens more eggs.

 

[HNDYMN]

Oh that's so cool! We actually do have a local coffee shop nearby. I'll look into that!

Coffee Chaff, first I've heard of it. Right off the top sounds like a way interesting idea.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Deep Litter is A COLD compost method, not meaning that it gets cool - the laws of physics says that's not happenening - but rather that the heat of decomposition, though computable and measurable with modern scientific instruments, is imperceptible by you or your chickens, and insignificant as a consideration for heat management. The pile of green lawn clippings in the back corner of the yard - assuming its managed correctly - is a hot compost method, easily over 100 degrees F. 6" of leaf litter, refilled 4-5 times yearly, becomes less than 2" of top soil in my deep litter system in... a year. A hot compost tumbler can generate that in a few months under optimum conditions.

Those fear-mongering websites are missing proportionality and context. But it does generate clicks, which can be monetized.

 

[3KillerBs]

Those fear-mongering websites are missing proportionality and context.

This could be said about many things -- especially if the fear-mongerers stand to make money from offering a "solution" to the "problem".