How often does everybody change their litter in their coops?

[DobieLover]

Hello Tom,

How often a coop is cleaned is very much dependent on the coop design, the climate it's in, the bedding and the loading.
If it smells even a little of ammonia or you have excess flies, you likely have inadequate ventilation (most coops do), the loading is too heavy (too many birds and/or spending too much time in the coop) or poor husbandry.

 

[Callender Girl]

It's a good question, Tom, and I still struggle with bedding because I have different style coops and varying numbers of birds, chickens and waterfowl. So, the easy answer for me is, clean it when you need to. If it seems unpleasant to you, it's probably time to replace the stuff.

As far as the flies, right now it is unseasonably warm in Iowa -- some 10 degrees or more above our average for this time of year. It's also very dry, and the normally ever-present winds of northern Iowa are nearly nonexistent. All that seems to have contributed to an overwhelming fly population.

Coop poop scooping is currently a daily operation; in one of the coops that has a rubber mat type floor, I have removed all the bedding, and I have so many fly traps up that it looks like I'm trying to use them as yard art. I am spraying a water-based natural fly repellent. occasionally spraying the permethrin-based stuff and have a big, cheap box fan set up to move as much air (and as many flies) as possible. Still, I seem to be losing the battle.

Welcome to BYC, where new members and old often share the same challenges! I hope you get the answers you need!

 

[3KillerBs]

I use Deep Bedding in my coop: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/using-deep-bedding-in-a-small-coop.76343/

 

[Sally PB]

I have 4 chickens in my 46 square foot coop, with 3 more chicks to be added soon. I use a poop tray with PDZ under the roost, and scoop the poop daily, a 5 minute task.

I have added a bale of hemp and 3 bales of pine shavings in the course of a year. It makes a nice, thick, soft layer for them to jump down onto from the roost. I have yet to clean it all out, after a year.

There is no smell, unless someone has dropped a fresh cecal poop. I don't see any flies, either. Except for the really cold days of winter, I leave the people door open all day long, so I have plenty of air flow.

 

[srhalford]

I use deep liter method and have only cleaned it completely out once in almost 2 years. Coop floor is dirt with pine shavings added on top when needed and has worked well for me, but where you live, climate, etc. does play a big part. I'm in middle TN.

 

[Peggyjom]

We have a 4' x 8' coop with a roosting coop that we added white pine shavings, just curious how long folks go before changing out the litter? Our roost coop is dry is dry but does attract flies.

Thanks
Tom

I line my tuff shed 12x10 coop goat house with a cheap tarp and use straw in the goat area and shavings under the chickens. I also use the herb mixtures you find on line for mites and bugs I put it in each box just a little like a 1/3 cup for 4 nesting boxes. It is thyme and Rosemary smell strong to me but it works and I am not fly free but it definitely helps a lot! I considered hanging a breathable bag of it on the back patio.
Every couple months I grab the corner of the tarp pull it out the door Nd to the back of the property to clean the coupe. Works great. Put the tarp back I. The coupe and start again

 

[Mtnboomer]

When it needs it. I free range so the birds are only in there to lay and sleep. Once every 6wks on avg is about right.
I went 3 months last winter and it did great. The floor of the coop was bone dry And the litter was thick znd ready for compost

 

[Kellow1]

I use the washed, commercial-grade sand with multiple sizes of pebbles. I clean it about once a week with a kitty litter scooper. No smell! As for flies, use something for barns to control the flies.

 

[Tcline4]

We have a 4' x 8' coop with a roosting coop that we added white pine shavings, just curious how long folks go before changing out the litter? Our roost coop is dry is dry but does attract flies.

Thanks
Tom

Get industrial hemp. Carolina Coops carries it and putting this in your henhouse will keep for a minimum of a year and I've heard a lot longer. They have lots of videos youtube

 

[OffGridChook]

We have a 4' x 8' coop with a roosting coop that we added white pine shavings, just curious how long folks go before changing out the litter? Our roost coop is dry is dry but does attract flies.

Thanks
Tom

I have four hens and have a 3x8 coop. I change bedding Twice a year when I go deep cleanings But I remove the poop from under the roosting area and any that I see the following morning every day. It’s pretty dry here, though. They dry up super fast and shrink so I have to remove it in the morning ASAP. During the rainy season I added a lot more shavings. They do t really go in there much during the day unless something spoils the.

I remove poop From the run with a kitty litter scoop a few times a day so the flies are a lot less. I had some fly trap bottles but it actually attracted flies from the neighboring cow fields lol. Now I barely have flies because I use the litter scoop pretty often and no more fly trap bottles nearby. I do have mice issues in the run though. Not in the coop.