How can I keep my brooder from reeking

[catharineslover]

I am using straw and shredded paper as bedding. I am using a large Christmas tree tub that is four feet long and two feet wide. I change the bedding almost every other day.

 

[catharineslover]

The straw and paper is your problem. They retain moisture and start to mold/rot. Change to pine shavings.

That is definitely the problem! Pine shavings are great.

 

[Aschuchert]

I agree with Gray Farms, we've always had better absorption and less smells with pine shavings. Do not get cedar its harmful to chickens. Consider some clean play sand to the very bottom to help dry out the droppings - and bonus it starts the pullets with a grit for their small guts and dust bathing opportunities.
Some is also getting accustomed to "farm" smells as we dub them.
so used to it now we have sheep and pre-ordered turkey for next year....

 

[mominator60]

The combination of chicken poop, wet bedding and heat usually does smell pretty raunchy at times.
The only ways I can suggest for you is to either clean it more frequently or move it into a larger area that has some airflow.
You could also try using some PDZ which you should find at your local farm store...

What is PDZ how much does it take & how much does it cost?

 

[mominator60]

That is definitely the problem! Pine shavings are great.

I have linoleum on the floor & deep straw. I still get the ammonia smell. I heard pine shavings, is that true? When we had only 4 ladies it wasn’t a problem. Now we have 10 wonderful ladies so I guess it’s only natural for it to smell?

 

[rosemarythyme]

I have linoleum on the floor & deep straw. I still get the ammonia smell. I heard pine shavings, is that true? When we had only 4 ladies it wasn’t a problem. Now we have 10 wonderful ladies so I guess it’s only natural for it to smell?

Best things to do to counter smell/ammonia build up is providing good ventilation and keeping the coop clean and dry as possible. Obviously more chickens = more poop.

PDZ is zeolite: https://sweetpdz.com/ A lot of people on here say it's effective, though I haven't tried it myself.

 

[Fluffyflufffluff]

I am currently raising 10 jersey giant chicks who are about three weeks old. Today when I got home from school the brooder smelled bad! How do I keep the brooder smelling good?

1. Stir frequently. I always use pine shavings in the brooder. ...
2. Remove caked bedding. ...
3. Freshen by adding new bedding. ...
4. Remove wet bedding at once. ...
5. Keep feeders at chest level. ...
6. Move chicks to coop when they are four weeks old.

 

[gtaus]

I am currently raising 10 jersey giant chicks who are about three weeks old. Today when I got home from school the brooder smelled bad! How do I keep the brooder smelling good?

Many people have already offered some great advice. I never had any luck with straw and paper in the brooder. It always smelled and I had to clean it out almost daily. This past year, I started using a deep litter of wood chips in my 3X4 foot brooder for 10 chicks. I started with about 2 inches of chips and every few days I would stir it up/fluff it up and/or add more wood chips to the brooder. I did that for 8 weeks and never had any issues with bad smells. The wood chips absorb the chicken poo and dry it out pretty fast. Mixing up the wood chips every few days helps to keep things fresh. Adding additional wood chips as the chicks grew worked for me. At the end of 8 weeks, my deep litter of wood chips was about 6 inches deep.

Understand that not everybody has access to wood chips, so I would recommend switching over to pine shavings and using that as a deep litter.

As to heat, I too followed the 95F temp for the first week and dropped the temp in the brooder by 5 degrees every week. That has always worked for me, but I had always bought my chicks in the springtime when I knew that the temp in the brooder after 8 weeks was going to be about the same as our outside temps - so the transition to the coop/housing was not a shock to the chicks. I agree with others who have recommended transitioning the birds to the colder weather by using your garage. I would not take the birds out of the brooder and put them out in a cold winter chicken coop without preparing them for the change. They should be fully feathered by then, but still, allowing them to get used to colder outside temps should help them make the transition better.

It sounds like you are doing a great job with your chicks. There is no shortage of opinions offered here on the BYC forum. There are some great people with years of experience here on BYC that have been giving me some good advice. It's wonderful that you are open to suggestions and are asking important questions. Soon you will be the one giving advise to others and helping them get started with their chicks.

 

[DiYMama540]

You can find PDZ at TSC in the livestock area, usually with the horse feed and supplies. It's like the consistency of sand, not quite as fine though.

Also, get a little cat litter scoop to clean out some of the bigger poos in the brooder, then just mix and turn the shavings a bit. If you put the water and food up on a box or brick or something, they'll be less likely to make such a mess with them.

Hang in there, they don't stay little for long!!

 

[AquaDuck]

I apologize if I was doing this wrong.

First of all, sorry you feel like you did things wrong. Please don't let that deter you from asking question, it really is the best way to learn. It's great that you did research and asked for help before you got your chicks!

Your question has already been answered so I just wanted to say, you can add some accessories to your brooder.
At 3 weeks old the chicks are more than ready to explore and do stuff. They love climbing, foraging and trying out their bodies. Make the brooder a playground with some platforms, hiding places etc. Put something new in every day for them to be curious about. They'll love it!