How far do YOU go to get the chicken coop clean.

[debryman]

Quote:
Same here 'cept I use a kitty litter scoop. Clean under the roosts every morning (95% of the poop is here) and in the run every few days. We don't have any smell and it always looks cared for. My friends and family think I clean too much too

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
Maybe, maybe not. As we are organic and don't use deworming medications or pesticides, we completely clean out and disinfect the hen house between flocks and then let the house and pasture rest for a few weeks before restocking to help break parasite cycles.

I realize that many don't replace their flocks like I do, but some of the same can apply. If you have a portable coop or a way to rotate the ground they are using, a thorough clean out along with different ground to run on can help reduce parasite loads. If you deworm your birds, deworming at the same time would really get you off to a clean start.

A thought in regard to the above: Years ago the theory on bluebird houses was to clean them out at the end of the season and destroy the nesting material to prevent disease/parasites. Now, however, the recommendation is to just scatter the nest material in the area of the house to "seed" the microbes and insects that feed on those parasites.

 

[babylotzahenz]

Thanks for the bluebird advice, didn't know that. That is pretty much what I did anyway though.

 

[CrazyChickensEverwhere]

In the big coop I have a dirt floor so if I vaccumed i would be there all day lol!

I clean the pine shavings out, clean nesting box, rake, Put new shavings in, I wash the top of the nesting boxes because they jump up and poo. I wash the water dishes, sometimes wall. And bam I am done!

I do that once a week.

 

[Gardengirl 2011]

What's with the cleaning of a Coop.? I removed 8 wheelbarrows of brown gold for my Garden this spring from my sub-ground level dirt floored pit which I use the deep litter composting process to make fertilizer. (See my BYC page for pics of my setup) And now, have started adding my lawnmower clippings and other raked up stuff to start the process over for another year. I'll add layers all summer, then in the winter the composting helps with the heat while it turns into Garden Gold.

I can say I've honestly never heard of anyone taking cleaning as far as vacuuming. Though if it works for you, so be it. Personally, I scrape the poo onto the ground, which is dirt and leaves, and when my girls have all the leaves scratched up into a fine mulch, it all gets raked and shoveled into my garden cart and goes into the flower or veggie beds. Fresh hay goes into the nest boxes. Done. My chickens are my natural composters and this is what works for me.​

 

[michelle89]

I used our shop-vac to clean out the brooder box, but now that their in the coop I use a rake and shovel. For the hen house I have a hand broom with a dust pan. Its hanging right next to the door. I'm in the process of figuring out what works and what doesn't. When I decided what kind of coop I wanted there were a few things it had to have, I didn't want to be bending down to clean out the hen house, the nesting boxes had to be up high with a access door at chest height. I have to keep it clean, my hubby is a city boy and I don't want the coop to stink, that would be his only complaint! He has been wonderful through this whole chicken raising process, he even surrendered his garage for six weeks while the chicks and ducks were in their brooder! He even built the chicken coop, he's a good sport!! I've heard him talking to the chickens and ducks and I just smile, I know he likes them!!

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

We use DE and pine bedding and probably clean out coops every couple of months. They never stink, so if I see flies, we clean them. Or rather my kids clean them.

Cleaning the coops means we scoop, sweep, etc., all the bedding out, sprinkle more DE, and more bedding goes in. We have no water down where our coops are, so...

 

[guinea fowl galore]

Well it's interesting to hear everybody's coop maintenance stories.
I always thought that the coops had to be cleaned out as regulary as possible. So it's good to see another side of things. I don't think i would be able to leave the coops a few months between cleaning, but just because i've done it the other way for so long.
I have decided to paint the inside of the coops so when I am cleaning them I can just get a damp cloth and wipe down the walls.
One reason for me to have a clean coop is for... Well, Me. Because when I go into the coop to refill feeders and check eggs. If it's all dusty then I would be breathing in all the chicken dust and could get emphysema.
But again, that's just my opinion.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Quote:
How is your coop set up? I must be missing something because I have to clean my coops out at least monthly. I have to clean the poop from the roosts and the walls in addition to shoveling up the hay bedding in my open air coops. My chickens free range all day, every day but there is still a lot of poop in there from them going in to roost at night.

So, when you say leave some bacteria, do you mean leave some poop in there for them?

 

[WiMoSiFr]

Well, I did my first big coop clean-out last month. It was about 10 months after first putting the chickens in there. I use pine shavings litter which I will stir and add shavings as needed (not often). But it's not as bad as it sounds because I installed a poop board under the roosts which I have shavings on and clean weekly. They free range, so most of the poop is either on the board or outside. I finally cleaned it because I couldn't stand the dust. It wasn't too stinky either.

So method? I took out the poop board, roosts, nest box, feeder and waterer and cleaned those. I shoveled out all the litter and put it in the compost pile, swept the cobwebs off the walls and swept the floor. Then put it all back in and a good layer of shavings on the floor. Simple. I agree that things can be too sanitary, obviously that's not a concern in my coop.