Lime in the coops?

[mama dixie]

ok so maybe I am all wet here. I used a lime that was a powder form and was told it was ag lime. I put a good layer of straw down, and kept adding as needed so it would not burn the birds so maybe I am not using ag lime? I will have to take a good look. I ask for ag lime when I get it at Wilco and maybe it is a case of God looking after fools and babes again. all I know is I use this lime once a year and have been happy with the results. I also use this lime in the garden and fruit trees and flower beds. Please keep in mind I am new to this and may use the wrong termanology from time to time. good to learn from knoledge able and kind people...

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
Ag lime / barn lime can be fairly fine with a lot of powder in it, a 50 lb bag is a pretty compact little brick though. Hydrated lime is all powder and a 50 lb bag is closer to the size of an overstuffed feed bag.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

N. Virginia :

Hydrated lime is very caustic to skin when wet; don't know about chickens, but I've seen it burn right through a horse's skin after they lay on their wet, limed bedding. The result was a bleeding wound that took months to heal. Maybe chickens are tougher, but I wouldn't want it on my chicken's feet.

It needs to be used with some common sense. I've also used solutions of bleach or peroxyacetic acid to sanitize the hen house and drinking lines, or to sanitize drinking water. I don't get strong solutions all over me, hose down the birds with them, or allow them to drink them. Hydrated lime works well when used properly; cover it up with bedding or stir it into the litter as necessary. Don't leave thick slurries laying around for the chickens to walk in and they'll be fine.​

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

I used a lime that was a powder form and was told it was ag lime

Don't put any faith in what you are TOLD, when all you need to do is READ the bag.

AG Lime (Calcium Carbonate)=Good

Hydrated Lime (Calcium Hydroxide)=Bad​

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
???

As I said, ag lime does little. The caustic properties of hydrated lime are what make it useful.

From the Alabama cooperative extension service:

http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~blpprt/Aub+244.html

Hydrated Lime. Hydrated lime (calcium hydroxide) will help dry out litter, reduce fly problems, and maintain good litter condition. However, it will also increase ammonia volatilization and N loss. Do not use it when the ammonia level in the house is high. Use lime at the rate of 50 pounds per 1,000 square feet of floor space. Never apply agricultural lime to poultry houses!

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

Quote:
???

As I said, ag lime does little. The caustic properties of hydrated lime are what make it useful.

From the Alabama cooperative extension service:

http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~blpprt/Aub+244.html

Hydrated Lime. Hydrated lime (calcium hydroxide) will help dry out litter, reduce fly problems, and maintain good litter condition. However, it will also increase ammonia volatilization and N loss. Do not use it when the ammonia level in the house is high. Use lime at the rate of 50 pounds per 1,000 square feet of floor space. Never apply agricultural lime to poultry houses!

This article says it can be used with LOTS of ventilation:

http://www.bae.ncsu.edu/programs/extension/publicat/wqwm/poultry/factsheet_agw-657short.pdf

Either type of lime will help with ammonia odors, and one type isn't as likely to cause burns

There are plenty of experiments, but none overwhelmingly conclusive:

http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?seq_no_115=188636

Interpretive Summary: The effectiveness of adding hydrated lime (calcium hydroxide) to poultry litter to reduce disease causing bacteria numbers was examined. Hydrated lime was added to wood shavings at various concentrations. Young turkeys were raised on the litter for 49 days, during which time disease causing bacteria numbers and turkey body weights were measured.

The addition of the hydrated lime did not consistently reduce pathogenic bacterial numbers in these experiments, but did reduce total bacteria numbers. Additionally, it was observed that the addition of as much as 1% lime to the total litter weight, allowed for the turkeys to grow more quickly than the control birds that were raised on wood litter with out lime added.

However, preliminary studies with day-of-hatch poults suggested that lime in excess of 5% (wt/v) in new litter caused mild but apparent ocular and respiratory irritation ​

 

[spiritdance]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned wood ash yet. It's the best thing I've found for deodorizing, we always have some on hand, and it doesn't take much of it. Of course, you have to top dress it or your chickens look like chimney sweeps, but it's safe for them (I use it in my dust bath) and it repels external parasites.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

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Yes, the ammonia will increase until the area dries out. We don't use it as a general-purpose litter amendment though. It is used to sanitize the floors and structures within the hen house or to sanitize the soil right outside of the doors where the manure tends to build up rather than dispersing. The only time we have used it in the litter is to dry out problem areas that were rotting. Ammonia wasn't our concern. The ventilation system is always adjusted to keep ammonia at a minimum. Our concern was the hydrogen sulfide and other rotting odors. Fresh manure always gives off some ammonia, rotting manure is something completely different.

It has it uses... I wouldn't completely disregard it as bad.

Hydrated lime has been used in livestock housing for longer than any of us have been around. I think the internet tends to breed its own version of things. Pretty much everybody has heard of using "lime", but most aren't sure what "lime" is. They go to the farm supply where they are asked what type of lime they want. They find hydrated lime to have warnings on the bag and come here to ask what the deal is and are told by the internet experts,"No, it's caustic! This Wiki article says so! Ag lime isn't caustic so that must be the appropriate thing to use!". In reality, there's not much basis for using ag lime in a poultry house. Confusing the issue though, is that it also sold as "barn lime" and used in dairy and horse barns to neutralize urine. I've even heard people here say not to use hydrated lime because it will kill your chickens. Come on! Really? It's mildly caustic when wet, just like any wet mortar or cement mix. If you bathe in it for hours on end it will probably remove your skin. On the other hand, I just use a dust mask when spreading it and have come in from the barn white from head to toe at times. I wash it off and all is good.

http://www.irishlime.com/pdfs/Practical Guidelines on the Use of Lime.pdf

 

[Mac in Wisco]

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Yes, wood ashes work well. Why? Because it is a highly alkaline liming material.

Did you know that wet wood ashes are caustic and will burn your skin off?

People jump to too many conclusions. Wood ashes are safe but hydrated lime isn't? They share the same properties, i.e., mostly calcium and highly alkaline. The caustic properties are what make them effective as a sanitizing agent and parasiticide.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

If you are looking for something to reduce ammonia odors, look at gypsum. Gypsum will bind up ammonium in the litter before it volatilizes as gaseous ammonia.

We provide water via nipple drinkers suspended over poultry slats. The area underneath the slats becomes a manure pit where the chickens aren't allowed to run because the increased moisture from the waterers will cause the manure to cake up, trapping moisture and increasing ammonia. When I prepare the hen house for new hens I pour several hundred pounds of gypsum through the slats in a line directly underneath the watering lines. This helps tremendously to lower ammonia production from these moister areas.