Never ending rain/muddy run/mulch vs sand?

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drdvmd

drdvmd

Chirping
6 Years
Oct 2, 2013
17
7
79
Devon, PA
I am a relative chook newbie and live in PA, outside Philadelphia. Our hens have been outside since June and it has rained at least 50% of the time since our girls were big enough to be outside (rainiest year on record in our area). Their run is a mud pit and never dries out.

My husband and I are continually working on improving the run and coop but cannot get the mud under control. We are currently debating whether mulch or sand would be the best flooring for the coop. I would love to hear pros/cons of each for those who have used mulch and sand. If we use sand, do we have to dig out the mud first then add sand? Our soil is impossibly rocky so digging is a nightmare. I'd love any suggestions! So tired of the rain and mud!
 
drdvmd said:
I am a relative chook newbie and live in PA, outside Philadelphia. Our hens have been outside since June and it has rained at least 50% of the time since our girls were big enough to be outside (rainiest year on record in our area). Their run is a mud pit and never dries out.

My husband and I are continually working on improving the run and coop but cannot get the mud under control. We are currently debating whether mulch or sand would be the best flooring for the coop. I would love to hear pros/cons of each for those who have used mulch and sand. If we use sand, do we have to dig out the mud first then add sand? Our soil is impossibly rocky so digging is a nightmare. I'd love any suggestions! So tired of the rain and mud!
Click to expand...
Me too. I'm in stroudsburg. Mine ended up getting sick from the rain. I started out with mulch. I had a bunch of bags. You need to rake it back in place every now and then. My coop os on a slant so the mulch rolls to the front door. Not sure about sand. Never used sand with my chooks. I also gave them a bale of alfalfa hay which is now strewn around the pen. Good luck to you and your chooks. Also check around for any wetness on the coop ceiling or mold. Had green mold in hiding places from all the rain.
 
TwitchysChicks said:
Me too. I'm in stroudsburg. Mine ended up getting sick from the rain. I started out with mulch. I had a bunch of bags. You need to rake it back in place every now and then. My coop os on a slant so the mulch rolls to the front door. Not sure about sand. Never used sand with my chooks. I also gave them a bale of alfalfa hay which is now strewn around the pen. Good luck to you and your chooks. Also check around for any wetness on the coop ceiling or mold. Had green mold in hiding places from all the rain.
Click to expand...
as for the inside I did deep litter of pine shavings. I have a rake with a screen on top to sift through like a litter box.
 
TwitchysChicks said:
Me too. I'm in stroudsburg. Mine ended up getting sick from the rain. I started out with mulch. I had a bunch of bags. You need to rake it back in place every now and then. My coop os on a slant so the mulch rolls to the front door. Not sure about sand. Never used sand with my chooks. I also gave them a bale of alfalfa hay which is now strewn around the pen. Good luck to you and your chooks. Also check around for any wetness on the coop ceiling or mold. Had green mold in hiding places from all the rain.
Click to expand...
If you are in Stroudsberg you feel my pain with all of this rain! I used straw on the run floor for a few months but I worry about crop impaction, so I don't want to keep that up. Is that a concern with alfalfa hay too?
 
I prefer deep litter in the run....essentially a compost in place built with a variety of sizes which is essential to good drainage... wicking the wet down & away. I use chipped tree (not shavings), bark nuggets, sticks, leaf litter, yard debris, hay from nests when I swap it out, etc....whatever is readily available and free (tree care companies, etc are my best friends...)...each summer I bring a huge load of stripped corn cobs and shucks from the "corn day" our family does at my sister's farm, putting up a years worth ofblanched freezer corn for four households. To me it is cleaner than sand and requires less work...and after a year or so theres good compost to trade for more wood chips, etc.
 
What Ol Grey Mare said. Deep litter will help greatly with your mud.
This is mine after adding yard waste, corn stalks and shucks, before the chickens got to it. Think of deep litter, like walking on a deep mulched flower bed, except there are other things added with the wood chips. The poop gets mixed into the deep litter and breaks down, your run will not smell or draw flies, as long as you add more stuff as needed or when you have stuff to add.
deep litter run.jpg
 
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