Illinois...

[ChicagoClucker]

How do you remove the poop from the stones? or Is it sand?

You don't remove the poop and its small stones. It dries and breaks down through the stones. For right now it seems to be working well, but it has only been since Sunday. I compare it to a fish tank, you have the gravel on the bottom, and the sediment breaks down and goes through the gravel. They say the stones need to be 4 inches deep in order for it to work properly. Mine is not deep enough around the edges, so I have to come up with something to help retain the stone so they don't spill out and I can add some more stone. I always wondered why the Agricultural School by me, had stone in their chicken runs, now I know. Their stones are larger than mine, so will have to see if I need to go larger or if the smaller stones are ok.

 

[MeepBeep]

I compare it to a fish tank, you have the gravel on the bottom, and the sediment breaks down and goes through the gravel.

As an avid aquarium keeper, I will have to argue that it breaks down as it goes through the gravel, or at least that it's a healthy break down... In most cases it decays very slowly due to the lack of oxygen in the gravel while promoting anaerobic bacteria growth that in turn releases hydrogen sulfide that can be deadly toxic to the fish within minutes if a pocket develops and is released...

That said outside you have a completely different and much more diverse ecosystem at work and the gravel bed will work differently, especially with the natural ground/dirt under it doing composting...

 

[ChicagoClucker]

As an avid aquarium keeper, I will have to argue that it breaks down as it goes through the gravel, or at least that it's a healthy break down... In most cases it decays very slowly due to the lack of oxygen in the gravel while promoting anaerobic bacteria growth that in turn releases hydrogen sulfide that can be deadly toxic to the fish within minutes if a pocket develops and is released...

That said outside you have a completely differenI t and much more diverse ecosystem at work and the gravel bed will work differently, especially with the natural ground/dirt under it doing composting...

Exactly, your explanation is much better! Didn't mean that the break down of waste was the same, just that the stone is part of a filtration process that the waste falls through. I do remember all the waste below the gravel when I had to clean the kids fish tank. Glad those days have long past. Now its chicken poop, and I don't have to clean under the gravel, the natural composting does it for me.

 

[Faraday40]

Interesting. I have a gravel walk behind the coop & also between our garage & the neighbors. The chickens like to dig around in it, but no I've never actually cleaned it. They're only back there sometimes & stuff disappears as it rains. It's not part of their run or even a primary hang out spot. I use sand in their run & coop. Poop dries easily & we don't get many flies, but I do sift daily. I can never get all the poop, but I do turn it from time to time. (Sand is 12-16" deep in the run, because they like to dig & roll in it.)

Definitely keep us posted on how it works out. I'm always looking for new ideas.

 

[ChicagoClucker]

Interesting. I have a gravel walk behind the coop & also between our garage & the neighbors. The chickens like to dig around in it, but no I've never actually cleaned it. They're only back there sometimes & stuff disappears as it rains. It's not part of their run or even a primary hang out spot. I use sand in their run & coop. Poop dries easily & we don't get many flies, but I do sift daily. I can never get all the poop, but I do turn it from time to time. (Sand is 12-16" deep in the run, because they like to dig & roll in it.)

Definitely keep us posted on how it works out. I'm always looking for new ideas.

I will, I was looking for a way to alleviate the smell and fly problem that will be upon me soon. If it works out, I will be ordering a truck load of stone to be delivered since the other runs are much larger. I would rather haul a wheel barrel than make many trips to Menards.

 

[MeepBeep]

If it  works out, I will be ordering a truck load of stone to be delivered since the other runs are much larger. I would rather haul a wheel barrel than make many trips to Menards.

Not to mention a ton of pea gravel can be purchased for about the same amount as a few 50lb bags, less delivery... I can get a ton delivered for under $100 in my area, or $22/ton (or about 50 cents per 50lbs) if I want to pickup myself in smaller quantities... If you have a local gravel pit that is open to the public for self load you can even get it cheaper...

 

[ChicagoClucker]

Not to mention a ton of pea gravel can be purchased for about the same amount as a few 50lb bags, less delivery... I can get a ton delivered for under $100 in my area, or $22/ton (or about 50 cents per 50lbs) if I want to pickup myself in smaller quantities... If you have a local gravel pit that is open to the public for self load you can even get it cheaper...

Do you use pea gravel in your runs?

Went out this morning, and all 5 of the cochin bantams have gone broody. 3 sisters sitting in the same nesting boxes. Who wants some chicks? LOL, I have locked up that coop, it is now the brooding coop. The older girls will just have to learn to use the other 6 nesting boxes in the big coop

 

[MeepBeep]

Do you use pea gravel in your runs?

No my 'run' is my goat and llama pasture, all grass and weeds...

I did have a dog kennel many years ago that was a deep bed of pea gravel, can't say it worked out well for that application though, easy to clean up the poop but it held the urine smell very well... I literally would go out there with a pump sprayer filed with a bleach solution and spray down the gravel regularly to knock down the urine smell...

Went out this morning, and all 5 of the cochin bantams have gone broody.

All my bantam hens are bare bellied and broody as well, can't say I'm all that upset though as I have little use for their eggs and ample nesting boxes to let them do their thing on some golf balls...

 

[chickendreams24]

Oh I would love to be on that list but I promised DH2B we would wait on cochins until next year maybe I could sneak in a couple though lol

 

[ChicagoClucker]

No my 'run' is my goat and llama pasture, all grass and weeds...

I did have a dog kennel many years ago that was a deep bed of pea gravel, can't say it worked out well for that application though, easy to clean up the poop but it held the urine smell very well... I literally would go out there with a pump sprayer filed with a bleach solution and spray down the gravel regularly to knock down the urine smell...
All my bantam hens are bare bellied and broody as well, can't say I'm all that upset though as I have little use for their eggs and ample nesting boxes to let them do their thing on some golf balls...

I'm not upset either, just couldn't believe it. 3 sisters in the same nest. LOL. Most of the eggs are the Blue and Black mottled cochins with the Silver laced as the sire. So they aren't going to be pure, but sure will be cute. Then I have some pure SL cochins and Orpington eggs in there too. SO, they are sitting on a total of about 25 to 30 eggs. That's why I had to locked them up, everyone keeps going in and adding eggs. I would try and go in and pull the eggs laid for that day, but apparently I have missed some because my husband cracked open a CCL egg this morning and it was a developing embryo. So I went out and locked up the broody coop, food and water went in and there is open space for them to poop.