Need suggestions for coop cleaning

[FarmerMac]

What kind of material are you using on the floor? pine shavings, straw,? I use straw on the coop floor to catch the poop, once the poop build up, I add more straw on top of the poop. After the second layer get dirty, I clean the coop with a rake. I pull the straw into a pile, shovel it onto the wheelbarrow and take it to the compost pile. I get the straw bales from my local feed store. I have used pine shavings from TSC as well.

 

[WNCcluck]

Definitely get on a cleaning routine - both for your own ease and the birds' health. Poop boards can be a help. We use a mixture of sand and PDZ on the floor of our coop. The PDZ is a desiccant. It absorbs the ammonia as well as the moisture. That doesn't mean you get a pass on regular cleaning. It does mean your birds aren't living in a sea of ammonia fumes. It takes me a couple of minutes to sift the poo out our coop each day, and I don't have to endure the noxious odors.

What others have said about not using a hose is crucial. Wet and chickens aren't very good friends.

Good luck.

 

[PoultryBird12]

What kind of material are you using on the floor? pine shavings, straw,? I use straw on the coop floor to catch the poop, once the poop build up, I add more straw on top of the poop. After the second layer get dirty, I clean the coop with a rake. I pull the straw into a pile, shovel it onto the wheelbarrow and take it to the compost pile. I get the straw bales from my local feed store. I have used pine shavings from TSC as well.

I use wood chips and hay. That's all.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Do you have any strategies you use?? My coop is mildly big....

Watering
For along time I used heater tape around a bucket with chicken watering nipples. It worked excellent. However me being me I neglected to change the water as often as I should. This is what it looks like and it thermostatically controlled to come on at just above the freezing temperature. You would have to wrap it to suit your particular application if it is viable for your set up. It is available at Home Depot in Canada.



I switched to black rubber contains the wife found somewhere. The freeze solid every night but the ice just pops out of them in the morning and I replenish them with fresh warm water. They have black ones at the feed store that are similar but large than mine.

The chickens congregate around them like people having their morning coffee. The only draw back is my yard is pepper with small ice bergs the size of the buckets.

April looks after that however..


My Coop is a salvaged 4x8 metal shed insulated with Styrofoam covered with veneer from interior doors from Habitat From Humanity. Here are a few tips and a quick look at my set up.
My floor are planks with a layer of tin for rodent proofing. On top of the tin I have a piece of vinyl flooring cut one foot longer than the length and width of my coop (roughly). Six inches squares are cut out of the 4 corners of the vinyl flooring. This allows the friction fitted flooring to travel up the walls six inches around the perimeter of my 4x8 salvaged metal coop. Shovel out the heavy stuff into a wheel barrow. Pop out the vinyl flooring hose it off pop it back in.
Easy Peasy!

Bedding
I have used all types of litter for coops.

I have not tried sand (sand gets good reviews on this site).

Of all the things I tried to date wood pellets have been the best. (I tried wood pellets as a last resort when pine shavings were not available.) They are super absorbent and swell up and eventually turn to saw dust. The droppings just seem to vanish and turn to dust when it comes in contact with wood pellets .

Replace my litter and clean my coop every October after I harvest my garden.


Works for me in my deep litter method.

I do add to pellets from time to time.

I have anywhere from 10 to 24 birds housed in my 4x8 coop.

Through the winter months the pellets froze harder than concrete with -40º temperatures. The poop froze before it could be absorbed by the pellets and there was like a crusty layer of poop in certain areas where they collectively took aim (no smell, messy feet or flies @ -40º). When the crust got big enough to handle with gloves I picked it up and dropped it into my compost bin. Come April things started to look after themselves.

Nest boxes
In my nest boxes I fold a feed bag to fit (nest boxes are 1 ft³). When a bag gets soiled; fold a new one; pop out the soiled; pop in the new. Feed bags are a nylon mesh bag frozen poop just peels off in below freezing temperatures and just flakes off in summer when left out in the sun to bake and dry.



POOP BOARDS are the "BEST" addition yet. Handles well over ½ of the poop in my set up keeps ammonia smell in check 3½" below roost excellent for catching eggs laid through the night (roost are in cups for easier removal and cleaning). I recently friction fit a piece of vinyl flooring over my poop board.it makes clean up even easier; Pop out; Scrap; Hose; Pop in.

Winter months even easier flex over compost bin DONE!

Easy peasy!.

 

[Blooie]

I haven't cleaned out my coop for a while because it's been so cold up here in MN. As it got warmer the last couple days I decided to clean it. But I don't know how.

I haven't had chickens very long (I just got my own this last Easter). My parents are bugging me about it saying it has to be clean by tonight.... It reeks so bad because I have nine chickens and six ducks in it and when I try to shovel everything out into the wheelbarrow I can't stand it. The hose is frozen so I won't be able hose the gunk out.... Do you have any strategies you use?? My coop is mildly big.... big enough to hold fifteen animals. when you walk in there is a storage space, then a screen door... and then the coop. (don't worry, I also have a run). Any suggestions would be great before tomorrow....

I'm really sorry to be so blunt, but if it's miserable for you to be out there in the smell and the mess, why would you think that your chickens and ducks will remain healthy and happy? DISCLAIMER: If you don't want to hear some constructive criticism, feel free to stop reading here, no hard feelings. But if you want to make sure that your birds' environment is pleasant for you, the birds, and your family, read on.

Part of the problem might be the combination of ducks and chickens in the same coop. If your building is large enough maybe you could divide it up to give each their own space. Many people mix the two very successfully, but they make it work by being diligent about cleanliness. Ducks are just plain messier than chickens. The poop boards that folks are suggesting are an excellent way to cut down on the poop in the coop, but it's pretty doggone difficult to get ducks to roost up there. And ducks are wet - they use water for everything. Moisture + poultry poop = stinky and dangerous ammonia. Add wet hay into the equation and frankly you couldn't get me out there for any reason. Hosing things out in the winter only works if you are living in southern Arizona, so you're just going to have to do it the old fashioned way - a shovel, a wheelbarrow, maybe a mask, and elbow grease. There are no shortcuts when you let it get ahead of you.

I may be way off base here, but if your parents have to order you to go out and clean your coop, that makes me wonder if you go out there daily and check on them. Or do you just toss in some food and add a little water to the tub every few days? It gets just as cold here in Northern Wyoming as it does in Minnesota, but when my husband and I left town for a week in November our 8 year old granddaughter took care of our chickens, gathering eggs, cleaning the poop board, and making sure they had water and food - every single day. The first day we left the temps were down in the single digits and we got 8 inches of new snow. She lives across the street and had to get out in that weather twice a day - once for chores and egg gathering and the second time to make sure the coop and run were secure and gather any additional eggs. Now, I'm not comparing her to you - I'm saying that because taking care of the coop and the chickens is a habit we all got into from day one, and because it's easier to keep a clean coop than it is to face several weeks' worth of messes and be overwhelmed, the chores out there were easy enough for an 8 year old to do it in a snowstorm. This was not a one time thing - she and our 9 year old grandson take turns caring for the coop, run, and chickens every time my husband and I have to travel for his statewide position no matter what the season is and I have never been disappointed in the job they do.

I think you need to get that coop cleaned out, no matter what you have do to accomplish that, then maintain it. Check things out there and do chores daily, not just when it's warm enough for you to be willing to go outside. It sounds like you care for your ducks and chickens very much - you just haven't learned how to care for your ducks and chickens to keep them (and yourself) healthy. We can help you with suggestions to make that easier, but ultimately the job itself is up to you. I think you're up to the challenge! I'll be very interested to follow your progress and cheer your success!

 

[enola]

Another story that proves ducks and chickens should not be housed together..... At least move the ducks out of the chicken house. The ammonia you are describing can cause all type of respiratory problems.

 

[PoultryBird12]

Thank you everyone for your help! I cleaned my coop out and it wasn't that bad.. I just used a shovel and scooped every thing into our wheelbarow then dumped it. I will think about everything you guys said for next time! Thanks again!

 

[PoultryBird12]

I'm really sorry to be so blunt, but if it's miserable for you to be out there in the smell and the mess, why would you think that your chickens and ducks will remain healthy and happy? DISCLAIMER: If you don't want to hear some constructive criticism, feel free to stop reading here, no hard feelings. But if you want to make sure that your birds' environment is pleasant for you, the birds, and your family, read on.

Part of the problem might be the combination of ducks and chickens in the same coop. If your building is large enough maybe you could divide it up to give each their own space. Many people mix the two very successfully, but they make it work by being diligent about cleanliness. Ducks are just plain messier than chickens. The poop boards that folks are suggesting are an excellent way to cut down on the poop in the coop, but it's pretty doggone difficult to get ducks to roost up there. And ducks are wet - they use water for everything. Moisture + poultry poop = stinky and dangerous ammonia. Add wet hay into the equation and frankly you couldn't get me out there for any reason. Hosing things out in the winter only works if you are living in southern Arizona, so you're just going to have to do it the old fashioned way - a shovel, a wheelbarrow, maybe a mask, and elbow grease. There are no shortcuts when you let it get ahead of you.

I may be way off base here, but if your parents have to order you to go out and clean your coop, that makes me wonder if you go out there daily and check on them. Or do you just toss in some food and add a little water to the tub every few days? It gets just as cold here in Northern Wyoming as it does in Minnesota, but when my husband and I left town for a week in November our 8 year old granddaughter took care of our chickens, gathering eggs, cleaning the poop board, and making sure they had water and food - every single day. The first day we left the temps were down in the single digits and we got 8 inches of new snow. She lives across the street and had to get out in that weather twice a day - once for chores and egg gathering and the second time to make sure the coop and run were secure and gather any additional eggs. Now, I'm not comparing her to you - I'm saying that because taking care of the coop and the chickens is a habit we all got into from day one, and because it's easier to keep a clean coop than it is to face several weeks' worth of messes and be overwhelmed, the chores out there were easy enough for an 8 year old to do it in a snowstorm. This was not a one time thing - she and our 9 year old grandson take turns caring for the coop, run, and chickens every time my husband and I have to travel for his statewide position no matter what the season is and I have never been disappointed in the job they do.

I think you need to get that coop cleaned out, no matter what you have do to accomplish that, then maintain it. Check things out there and do chores daily, not just when it's warm enough for you to be willing to go outside. It sounds like you care for your ducks and chickens very much - you just haven't learned how to care for your ducks and chickens to keep them (and yourself) healthy. We can help you with suggestions to make that easier, but ultimately the job itself is up to you. I think you're up to the challenge! I'll be very interested to follow your progress and cheer your success!

I do take care of the chickens every day. I take a bucket of fresh water out every morning and open up the coop. Then I check if they have food and make sure they are all healthy. i just meant that I don't like cleaning the coop so my parents had to make me go out there and do it. And I did. Thanks for all your time!

 

[Blooie]

I'm glad you got that unpleasant chore done! It's kinda like going to the dentist, isn't it? Sometimes dreading something is far worse than actually getting it done - at least that's the way it is for me. I can waste a whole lot of time dreading doing something, but when I actually do it it wasn't as as I thought it would be!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

I'm glad you got that unpleasant chore done! It's kinda like going to the dentist, isn't it? Sometimes dreading something is far worse than actually getting it done - at least that's the way it is for me. I can waste a whole lot of time dreading doing something, but when I actually do it it wasn't as as I thought it would be!

*nodding in agreement* -- good job on getting it done -- your birds will appreciate your effort. The good news is that keeping up with it being clean is MUCH easier than trying to get it clean after letting it go. Now that you've done the hard part all it takes is a few minutes a day and you and your birds will never have to deal with this again.