How Often Should I Clean Out a 3 Chicken Coop

[3chicksinacoop]

The title says it.

 

[limited25]

I scrape the poop decks in mine every day. I just use a putty knife and scrape it into a pail, and use an old slotted spoon to take poop off the floor. How often you clean your coop really depends on how big your coop is .... wouldn't think 3 chickens would make a big mess so shouldn't have to clean often. We use the deep litter method during the winter, and not much bedding during the hot summer.

 

[ramsburgchicken]

I agree with limited. Though we don't do a deep litter method, even in the winter time. When we had 12 silkies we swept the floor 1-2x a day and cleaned up roosts and nesting boxes 1-2x a week. With 49 chickens now, I do a deep cleaning in the morning and sweep out the coop multiple times a day. I've found by sneaking in early in the morning before they wake up, I can just go around them with the broom and dust pan. Cleanup is super easy.

 

[aart]

It depends....on a lot of details you give no clues to.....climate, size and configuration of coop, bedding, ranging or run, etc,etc,etc.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Each coop is unique and as Aart kind if says, there are a whole lot of variables. Some people clean daily as you can see by the above answers. I scrape my droppings board every few weeks and clean out the entire coop bedding every few years. We all have our own definition of “clean” too. That makes it really hard to set a schedule for you.

My suggestion is to let it go until you see a reason to clean it. Smell is one. If it starts to stink, you waited too long so don’t wait so long next time. Smell can be related to moisture so if the weather is wet you may need to clean more often. It is so hot and dry here I can go several weeks between scraping my droppings boards right now. In wet weather that can be a weekly event, even with fewer chickens. I never have to clean out my bedding, partly in thanks to those droppings boards plus my coop stays really dry, but I do every few years because I want that stuff on my garden.

Some people try to maintain a sterile environment for their chickens, trying to keep it as pristine as their own house. I don’t, I prefer to let the chickens live in their environment. A wet stinky coop is a dangerous coop healthwise, plus it is just unpleasant. But as long as it is dry and does not stink, their immune system can handle a little mess.

If the poop builds up to a point it offends you, clean it out. I don’t know what offends you. This is one of those nebulous questions where we all have to find our own way. Good luck!