New Coop floor: Sand, Pine Flakes, or Hemp and Seasonal changes

[gtaus]

Lots of good comments. Will add just a few thoughts from my experience.

I like the sand because it’s jus longer lasting and easier to clean.

I live on a lake. I used sand as litter many years ago, but I could never it get it clean enough and it smelled all the time. I was replacing my sand litter about every 2 weeks. That was too much work for me. However, I know lots of people love using sand and maybe it works for them. Like I said, I live on a lake and could get all the free sand I would ever need. It just did not work out for me.

Also, I live in northern Minnesota and sand freezes as hard as concrete in the winter. It would not be good as a winter litter for me.

Paper shreds, leaves, dried grass, and wood chips all will absorb the chicken poo even in freezing cold weather. I imagine those litter options are much warmer on the chickens feet than frozen sand in the winter. Also, it is much softer for the chickens to fly off the roost bar into the fluffy paper shreds, leaves, etc... compared to landing on a rock hard frozen sand floor.

I use chips year round and use deep litter to minimize the need to clean and I get amazing fertilizer for my garden

I have used wood chips, dried grass, and leaves for coop litter. The past few years I moved to using paper shreds as my main coop litter. However, I always suggest using whatever free resources you can use, and it's OK to mix litter.

I compost all my coop litter out in the chicken run which I converted to a chicken run composting system. I use the chicken run compost in my raised bed gardens and it is the best compost I have ever used. I'm very, very happy with my chicken run compost.

We used [wood chips] in the garden as well however did not find it very beneficial. Of course I cleaned it out coop monthly or bi-monthly. Maybe it’s me being too picky but I didn’t like the dirty smell.

Yeah, wood chips need to be composted well before using them in the garden soil. I would let my coop litter sit in the coop for a good 6 months, full of chicken poo, before I dumped the old coop litter out into the chicken run. Wood chips take another 6 months, or more, to compost where I live.

I do a dry deep bedding system in my coop and clean it out twice a year. If you do it right, it should not smell. If I get any hint of smell, I just add more paper shreds, but have also used wood chips, leaves, dried grass, etc... That takes care of most of my problems.

Deep [bedding] with drop boards picked up frequently eliminates smell & dirt with NO additional work. I empty my coop once per year.

I don't use poop boards. I let the poo drop down into my dry deep bedding where it automagically dries up and disappears into the litter.

I don't bother to turn coop litter. If a spot needs some work, I'll toss some chicken scratch on that area and the hens will scratch it up, refreshing the top layer of litter. Well, that, and every couple of weeks I toss on a thin layer of paper shreds on the coop litter, especially under the roost bar.

@gtaus has several threads regarding shredded paper in his coop & run.

I have used all kinds of free litter options, but my current favorite free resource is paper shreds. If interested, check out the thread Using Shredded Paper for Coop Litter - As Good As Wood Chips?

I had a wealth of leaves this year, so I started off my coop litter with about 4 inches of leaves this fall. I will add paper shreds about twice a month throughout the winter months. It all mixes well. Both the leaves and the paper shreds will compost faster than wood chips, if that is one of your goals.

Good luck on finding your best option. And, like I said, nothing wrong with mixing coop litter with all sorts of free material. Best wishes.

 

[Laurie Williams]

I’m in the process of finishing the final touches on my second coop. I’ve rehabbed an old barn shed, added new linoleum floor and incorporated a poop table. Thinking about what to use for floor cover.
What to do for new coop flooring, I really want to move chickens and need to finish out the final touches.

I have previously used pine flakes, cleaning the coop out fully once every month two (in old coop) but early this year I switched and currently use sand. I like the sand it’s so much easier to clean, the only exception is this old wood has cracks. So it’s all being lost under coop (I plan to redo floors once other coop is done).

I recently read that sand should not be used in winter time due to the coldness for chickens they need warmer bedding, that sand should be switched out to flakes in winter. I live is SE Missouri it gets cold here but rarely to teens temperatures however it’s possible. Does anyone else use sand and switch out to flakes depending on season?
The only downside of the new coop is there isn’t a good method to sweep out the old flooring Like the old coop because one door and using from for brooder area eventually and storage.
I’ve researched hemp bedding but due to price decided to stay with sand. Would hemp be better than sand in new coop?

Looking for advice about season use of sand. Also looking for advice on hemp option.

Some in process photos.


View attachment 3945106View attachment 3945107

That’s a great idea, the quarter round I take it is between the floor and the linoleum. Is that waterproof?

 

[paintedChix]

Well... it looks like i had already posted earlier in this thread as has Gtaus... but not deleting this one.

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Have you thought about shredded paper?

Check out Gtaus thread -Thread 'Using Shredded Paper for Coop Litter - As Good As Wood Chips?' https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...or-coop-litter-as-good-as-wood-chips.1503415/

I, myself, have not had an enclosed coop like you have. Mine have always been open to the ground with bedding, or when they roosted on dog kennel panels in carport, over cement that had mostly purchased wood chips. I do purchase some bedding - usually always have a partial bag on hand. Our properties, here in sandhills of NC, have always been sandy. The sand smells horrific when chickens on it w/out bedding in the wet & damp. That smell kept me from owning chickens for many years after my 1st introduction to chickens. I also found most enclosed horse barns, stalls, stables to almost make me physically ill here, so...

I have used a variety of bedding since 2011. Honestly, hemp is out of our price ranges, even when we both worked full time, so have never tried it. Sand (run, pens, coops sitting on what was there), different types of pine shavings, sawdust, coffee grounds (bagged for bedding hard to find & expensive for us. Got bags of used from local shops & tried drying - time. Gave up & just put directly on garden beds or in compost in chicken runs.). Best for us - natural materials of different sizes & shredded cardboard/paper.

My own pictures of shredded paper -



DLM -



Edit - punctuation & spelling

 

[Laurie Williams]

Thank you! Great info and pics. I order everything online and cardboard boxes are my nemesis. Non I know what to use them for, I just need a heavy duty shredder.