Deep litter smell?

[Aunt Angus]

As @Ted Brown said, there is a difference between Deep Bedding and Deep Litter.

Here is my article on Deep Bedding: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/using-deep-bedding-in-a-small-coop.76343/

Both are low-maintenance if done correctly and both are problems if you have too many chickens for the amount of bedding/litter, poor ventilation, etc. My article discusses pros and cons.

Very good article!

 

[WIchickMama]

Ditto on all of the above.

However and to clarify deep litter normally refers to a method used in RUNS as it implies that composting is occurring; properly done one simply add more material over time and never cleans it out.

Deep bedding refers to a similar method used in coops. Most often pine shavings are used and will easily last a year or more IF DROPPINGS ARE REMOVED ON A REGULAR BASIS. The easiest way to do this is by having drop boards under the roosts; removal is done daily or every very few days. Given this there is little to no smell.

Yep, I use both of these methods. I love the deep bedding in the coop-I use pine shavings and straw and clean out the piles each morning off the drop board and top of bedding. For the deep litter method in the run-I started with dirt/grass, when they ate all the grass I added organic non-treated mulch, leaves, grass and then the straw/pine shavings that get kicked out of the coop gets mixed in too. I also have an area that I add some sand/ash to in the run which they bathe in, that eventually gets mixed into the rest. No smell ever

 

[Ted Brown]

@WIchickMama i use both with great success. My run space is completely covered and therefore used yet round.

I took my cues from @aart (THE font of so much wisdom) and started with rough mulch then added great bunches of leaves/pine needles gathered each fall; I use a blower to gather from around the yard then stuff it into the run areas. Under the coop I end with the 3'+ of height almost full. The flock goes crazy for a couple of days while they rearrange to what they like.

I randomly throw in a bale of straw in the winters, once again provides amusements and activity that is good for everyone. Add more mulch each spring.

Also in the spring I empty the coop and throw that into the run area as well. Not my favorite activity because of the dust that develops over the year. Best practice is dust masks!! Once empty I spray down the entire coop with permethrin; not driven by critter infestations (I was through that nightmare once for several months) rather as preventative maintenance given the coop is empty and everything exposed. This is the biggest single job but only comes once per year.

 

[WIchickMama]

@Ted Brown my run is also completely covered, which has made all the difference I think. I also took guidance from @aart to get mine started because I was cleaning out the run and coop daily in the beginning--suck a time suck and it still smelled! haha

Good luck to the OP--lots of amazing people and resources to learn from here

 

[Ted Brown]

Good luck to the OP--lots of amazing people and resources to learn from here
[/QUOTE]

SO TRUE!!!

 

[aart]

I don't really do 'deep' anything.

What kind of bedding you use may depend on how you manage the manure.
This is about cleaning, but covers my big picture

-I use poop boards under roosts with thin(<1/2") layer of sand/PDZ mix, sifted daily(takes 5-10mins) into bucket going to friends compost.
-Scrape big or wet poops off roost and ramps as needed.
- Large flake pine shavings on coop floor, add some occasionally, totally changed out once or twice a year, old shavings added to run.
- My runs have semi-deep litter(cold composting), never clean anything out, just add smaller dry materials on occasion, add larger wood chippings as needed.
Aged ramial wood chippings are best IMO.
-Nests are bedded with straw, add some occasionally, change out if needed(broken egg).

There is no odor, unless a fresh cecal has been dropped and when I open the bucket to add more poop.
That's how I keep it 'clean', have not found any reason to clean 'deeper' in 8 years.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I also do deep litter and deep bedding. If its done right, no smell. Only maintenance is adding more leaf litter periodically (how much, how often is litter material, chicken density, and climate specific).

Pine shavings and straw in the nest boxes join leaf litter under the roosts wen spent to become deep bedding. Periodically, it gets raked out of the raised coop and replaced. What gets raked out joins the leaf litter on the ground as deep litter.

I've not had big problems with compaction or rapid decomposition of the shavings when they are part of the bedding. When they make contact with the deep litter on the ground, they decompose very quickly. As does the straw. I have to fill the raised coop (about 100 sq ft of surface floor) with about a cu yd of leaf litter at least quarterly to maintain the bedding. I could do so more often, and it wouldn't hurt. Also go thru 2-3 bales of compressed straw/shavings for the nest boxes in a year.

I remove about 1 cu yd of composted soil annually. **I think** Its not been done all at once, so I could be WAY off.

 

[Sally PB]

There is no odor, unless a fresh cecal has been dropped and when I open the bucket to add more poop.

Ditto.

I'm looking forward to scooping some nice compost out of my run in the spring. I've added a bale of straw, lots of leaves, and some wood chips. It's nice and spongy to walk on.

After I scoop stuff out of the run, I'll clean the pine shaving bedding out of the coop. I hadn't thought about doing a preventative permethrin spraying, but that might be a good idea.

Two bales of shavings from TSC fills the coop nicely, and I add one or two more a year as needed when it "feels" thin underfoot.

 

[aart]

I'm looking forward to scooping some nice compost out of my run in the spring. I've added a bale of straw, lots of leaves, and some wood chips. It's nice and spongy to walk on.

If you're making garden soil, best to keep the wood portion smaller(in size and quantity).

I hadn't thought about doing a preventative permethrin spraying, but that might be a good idea.

Best not to, can create resistance.

 

[Sally PB]

Best not to, can create resistance.

Ok! Thank you. That makes sense.