How to handle smell from water dripping onto floor of coop

[kittydoc]

We have a watering system made from a large cooler, PVC, and a series of about 5 nipple waterers inside our coop, which just has a soil floor and some straw cover. The area under the waterers stays damp, and was causing two problems (1) erosion, and (2) odor. I covered part of the ground with two ceramic tiles, but in the process created a low oxygen zone beneath them that allowed the odor to get stronger and stronger until hubby finally dug out the stenchy mud and tossed it out of the coop today.

I was thinking of ways to improve the drainage under the PVC section, such as a mini French drain (section of drain pipe buried in small rounded pebbles on the bottom, sides, and top, covered with a small amount of soil). My thinking is that this will allow the moisture to spread out more slowly over a larger area. If anyone has any better or sure-fire ideas, please let us know. That anaerobic bacteria stink is not a fun thing, so there will be no more attempt to prevent erosion by just covering the soil with ceramic tile, though whatever I do, I'm hoping it will also reduce the erosion effect of the dripping water. The nipples don't drip except when the birds "hit" them, but of course, they hit them and release a lot more water than they drink.

TIA!

 

[chooks4life]

Hydrated agricultural lime, the same sort you can add to their feed. It's ideal to use on all areas they walk on, just throw it down in sprinkling handfuls, no need to be specific and it won't harm them. It helps destroy the harmful bacteria, pathogens, parasite eggs etc and stops the stink.

What really controls the stink long term though is healthy soil, so liming will take a few repeats before it works long term, but gradually healthy soil will take over and control the stink. For this it can be helpful to add healthy soil to that area from elsewhere to inoculate that area with the right microorganisms etc.

I'd possibly look into planting something there too, or nearby, i.e. if you had a ground cover type plant with long creeping surface roots which doesn't cause you any grief as a pest, then you could lay the roots into the eroded area, cover with better soil, and put down mesh or something to hold it there while the plant settles in, so the chooks can't dig it up. The plant would stop the erosion and use the otherwise wasted water.

Best wishes.

 

[jetdog]

Pull the nipples out and try Teflon tape on the threads, seems like if you stop the dripping water the smell will go away.

 

[chooks4life]

While it's true that the smell will go away if you stop the dripping water, the problem remains, and the problem is that the soil's unhealthy, which can be a concern in terms of disease for your flock. At the least, liming the ground can save you a world of trouble with disease.

Best wishes.

 

[vehve]

If the issue is leaky plumbing, then the Teflon tape is a good place to start. If you just have a humid climate, and the cold water in the tanks is causing condensation, then some sort of collection vessel under the tank might be a good idea.

 

[RJSorensen]

You might want to look into getting horizontal nipples, they are spring loaded and don't leak like the vertical nippled do. That may go a long way towards putting an end to the cause of the problem. I got mine from Amazon but ebay has them as well, just do a search.

Good luck with your choice of repair…


RJ

 

[kittydoc]

Thanks for all of these useful suggestions. I appreciate it!

 

[subhanalah]

Is that the same stuff used in horse stalls, someone told me it burns their feet. You have to "rest" the area for 4 weeks before letting them on it? Or is that different stuff?

 

[chooks4life]

Is that the same stuff used in horse stalls, someone told me it burns their feet. You have to "rest" the area for 4 weeks before letting them on it? Or is that different stuff?

It's different stuff. The sort I use is labeled for use in their diets as well, and if it were so caustic, it wouldn't be labeled for food use as obviously it would be harmful or even fatal. With the sort I'm referring to, we used it on the ground where our horse also often rested as she liked to rest outside the chook coops, and she never had hoof problems.

I have an idea what sort you're referring to, you'll probably find what matches your description in the quoted text below or in the linked wikipedia article. The wikipedia article is America-specific but the quoted text after that is Australia-specific and more specific still to New South Wales than Queensland.

Quote:
You do need to read the labels and ensure it's the same sort you can feed to them. Here's an Australian agricultural sites' info on lime types:
Quote:
This says 'hydrated lime' is burnt lime that's been water treated, but that's specific to New South Wales. In Queensland (where I live) the lime that's labeled 'Hydrated Agricultural Lime' is the same thing that's just referred to as 'Agricultural Lime' in NSW. Small difference in name, but important difference in ingredients. One is labeled for feed addition, the other not; if I move to NSW I'll need to get Agricultural Lime or 'Aglime' instead of what I buy here due to the name difference. Since the info from that site is targeted at soil treatment, not livestock use, it doesn't address that usage.

The differences between states, never mind countries, can be very important to pay attention to in all matters.

Best wishes.