Mats for the coop floor?

[HenOnAJuneBug]

I use a paint scraper, and clean the poop boards under their roosts too. Takes about 20 seconds to clean every day.

My dad used to buy all kinds of junk at estate sales just because it was cheap, and then give it to me. One thing was a giant long-handle stainless spatula used for outdoor grilling that I knew I'd never use. Little did I know that it would become the best chicken poop scraper ever.

 

[lazy gardener]

Nest boxes: IMO very important. You DON'T want your birds laying eggs out about in the yard. Too much of an attraction to predators. Coons, rats, possums find the nest, enjoy the eggs. Next thing you know, they want some chicken nuggets to go with their omelets.

 

[Killer Tomato]

My dad used to buy all kinds of junk at estate sales just because it was cheap, and then give it to me. One thing was a giant long-handle stainless spatula used for outdoor grilling that I knew I'd never use. Little did I know that it would become the best chicken poop scraper ever.

I know! There's some real gems to be found out there -- I actually think this tool is a "dry wall spatula". It's about 8 inches, flat, metal, and cleans the boards with two swipes. I grabbed it from my Sweetie's toolbox, so I have no idea how much they cost, but it's mine now!

For nest boxes in our coop we recycled our old 80's style waterbed headboard (remember those waterbeds? With the etched mirrors?). We put a lip on the front so the eggs don't fall out, and removed the mirrors -- works perfect, and quite spacious! Far more sturdy than it needs to be. The only cost was for the brackets to hook it to the wall.

 

[Killer Tomato]

I wish I could find river sand. IMO sand is the absolute best for coop and run. Quarry (crushed) sand is too dusty, but I'll probably go back to it and just keep it slightly damp. Makes poop cleanup very easy.

Gathering our own sand was a summer time job, and we had to let it dry on a tarp outside for at least a week. It took a lot of buckets of sand, back and forth from the creek to the truck, to fill the coop. We were trying to do this on the cheap!

For the fall coop clean out, we opted for washed river sand from Home Depot (same stuff, supposedly). It was faster, but it is more dusty. It's always raining here, so that's not really an issue.

 

[Seaecho]

How about this stuff? Reviews say one package of these can last for months.

https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Pe...d=1511498817&sr=8-2&keywords=chickens+nesting

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

If they kick out the straw maybe they do not need any nesting materials.... Mine lay eggs on a dense carpet square, almost like felt with a rubber backing. Hmmm....

Gary

 

[CapricornFarm]

I wish I could find river sand. IMO sand is the absolute best for coop and run. Quarry (crushed) sand is too dusty, but I'll probably go back to it and just keep it slightly damp. Makes poop cleanup very easy.

I am loving living on a river with all this sand! Great for my clay soil in the garden and for chicken runs!

 

[Hokum Coco]

mats you just rinse it off, let it dry for ten minutes, and put back in coop.

I tried something new in my coop. For years I have been
lining my nest boxes with the folded empty nylon mesh feed bags. When a bag gets soiled pop out the soiled and pop in another. Poop just peels off in below freezing temperatures and just flakes off when left out in the sun to bake and dry. It is the best method I have stumbled upon in my 67 trips around the sun. Oh remove the excess string from the open end of the bag it can get tangled in your birds legs and wings.

This year I took even a step further I place an elevated false wire floor with no bedding over the main floor works as a drop pit for the poop. It keeps my nest boxes and bird's feet much cleaner. I may revert back to pine shaving during the Canadian winters time will tell.




I have gone with a wire 2" grid (wire the size of a pencil) over my coop floor. Similar to what is pictured below with 4"x4"x4" cubed blocks stationed under neath the grid on top of a tarp to form a drop pit it worked excellent all summer and I will clean the coop before winter sets in and things freeze solid. The grid even keeps you chickens feet cleaner which in turn keeps your eggs and nest boxes less soiled. I live in Canada and am subject to -40º temperatures.

Clean up is simple replace the tarp with a second one. Spread the first tarp out in the sun to bake and dry. Then flex the first tarp over the compost bin and hose off any stubborn chicken poop.

Easy Peasy Japaneasy.

Hokum Coco, Nov 9, 2017 Report
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[aart]

How about this stuff? Reviews say one package of these can last for months.

https://www.amazon.com/Precision-Pe...d=1511498817&sr=8-2&keywords=chickens+nesting

Basically the same as the other mats, meant to be used in nests where poops are not usually present, not on floor of coop.

 

[HeidiEmbrey]

I'm the OP. There are two of us asking questions, lol. That's fine though. I don't even have chickens yet. I am looking ahead, as I'll be getting them in February, and was just looking for something to put in the coop besides hay, because I really can't afford the shavings, and I'm allergic to pine shavings on top of that. I will have bantams, for pets only. I don't care about eggs or making more chicks. So I won't have nest boxes. My coop is only 3 feet high, 4 feet long and 2 feet deep, so yes, I wanted to use the mats on the coop floor. I will only have 3-4 pullets. I figured I'd have to take the soiled hay out at least a couple of times a week, and I wanted to avoid that, and get the mats so I could clean them well, and not have to worry about poop stink. And yes, I was planning on getting two sets.

You can use any dried plant material as long as it's not dusty or moldy, or sand..dry leaves..grass clippings..shredded newspaper.. etc.. you can also do the coop floor in wire if you live some place hot and then just cover it with linoleum in the winter if it's colder..