Flooring for run and coop

[KimInKy]

I need advice on what to use for flooring in my chicken run and coop. I have large pine shavings inside the coop. I haven’t put anything in the run yet. It slants downward I thought about using pine shavings out there as well but am hesitant afraid they will mold. Any help and thoughts would be appreciated. Also I’m trying to use the deep litter method in the coop but not sure if that is good or not. We live in Kentucky and the winter usually doesn’t have much snow.

 

[aart]

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 10 years.

 

[Rangergord]

The deep litter method is a well proven method. Having litter in the run will keep it from becoming a wet, sticky mess of manure and mud even when it rains. There may be some mold but the chickens will likely keep things mixed up when weather allows. A roof on at least one of the runs would help, but still litter is going to be better than no litter.
What to use for litter? It should be readily available and affordable. I use straw and wood chips separately in my coop and run. What you plan to do with the litter should influence your decision. Hopefully you can use it for soil improvement in gardens or landscape. Another idea is to put it in a grazing area that they can be placed into once it has rotted and enhanced the insect life in the soil.

 

[The Welch Chickens]

We use the deep litter method with hemp as the bedding. No bedding in the run, just dirt. The hemp is fantastic bedding, for both coops and chick brooders.

 

[RaesChicks]

I’m still new to this and have tried the different shavings and hay in my coop. Right now I’ve settled on fine flake pine shavings for the floor but I spend a lot of time spot cleaning with the shovel and I change the bedding weekly. One of the tractor supplies near me recommended the compressed pine pellets but I was hesitant there for fear they’d eat it.

In my run I do dirt, every week I rake it and remove what doesn’t mix in. I add patches of grass and weeds that they like to graze on and whatever mulch is under the trees around the run. I need to expand my run in the near future hopefully to avoid the amount of work put in but right now my run is 10’x12’x4’ for 12 6 month old pulleys and when my girls can’t be out that day I feel awful. I let my girls free range daily when I’m home and all day on weekends and holidays so I don’t feel badly moving dirt from around the yard into the run to keep the soil fresh. Half of the run is covered the side that gets rain seems to work the soil better than the dry, which tends to get raked into a pile by the run door and removed to the compost pile.

I saw this great video on YouTube recently, he does sand for scooping in the run and I’m really considering it. I also love the poop board set up in his coop and plan to install one just like it.

 

[Debbie292d]

I’m still new to this and have tried the different shavings and hay in my coop. Right now I’ve settled on fine flake pine shavings for the floor but I spend a lot of time spot cleaning with the shovel and I change the bedding weekly. One of the tractor supplies near me recommended the compressed pine pellets but I was hesitant there for fear they’d eat it.

They maybe do, but what chicken keeps eating something that tastes nasty? They pick through them, sure, looking for something better, but after trying one, that's about it. 7 years for us. We change them every spring and don't touch them even once throughout the year as the chickens scratch them around.

Get this though. We use them in our brooder. We provide grit though as surely they'll eat sawdust after pellets get wet. We switched to nipple bottles so don't even have that anymore. For the brooder, every few days I take a stick and stir them as they can't scratch them very well.