Odor control in sand equipped run?

[aart]

Many folks using sand in the run in a wet climate have.....
.....shoveled all the sand out to a far away place, gone with deep litter and never looked back (or gagged) again.

You could just start the DL on top of existing sand....it'll still help.

 

[TalkALittle]

I have sand in my run and have had zero problem with smell. I rake the poop once a week and use a shovel to put it thru a homemade sifter I made out of 2X4s and hardware cloth. It makes my life so much easier! I think that the key is to keep up on the cleaning on a weekly basis, and you'll find you won't have problems with smell

How long have your birds been on sand? I had sand in my covered run for the better part of a year and loved it. It wasn't until the rainy spring thaw hit that my sand got saturated and started to reek. It would have eventually dried out and the odor dissipated, but since I would have the problem for a good three months out of every year, I looked for a better alternative. Now that I've gone with deep litter I can't ever imagine going back to sifting and raking sand. Even if my sand stayed dry all year round, having experienced the ease and benefits of deep litter, I'd never go back to sand.

 

[marieff]

This is a good idea in a perfect world. ... Some time life gets in the way ... New Years resolution is to keep up with the poop!

Agreed! In my case, I don't have the choice but to keep it really clean all the time. I live in California in one of those tract home development so I need to make sure I keep my neighbors happy!

 

[marieff]

How long have your birds been on sand? I had sand in my covered run for the better part of a year and loved it. It wasn't until the rainy spring thaw hit that my sand got saturated and started to reek. It would have eventually dried out and the odor dissipated, but since I would have the problem for a good three months out of every year, I looked for a better alternative. Now that I've gone with deep litter I can't ever imagine going back to sifting and raking sand. Even if my sand stayed dry all year round, having experienced the ease and benefits of deep litter, I'd never go back to sand.

Ok touché: I've had it for a couple months. However since I'm in California, our weather is drastically different. And we're in a drought. Plus, my run is covered. I'm a first time chicken owner so I'm learning as I go.

Our summers get brutally hot here (frequently over 95) so I wanted a substrate that would help keep them cool if possible. Which is why I can't do deep litter. I'm planning on adding some Sweet PDZ to help with the smell also. I'm glad your issue was resolved. I read your thread you included earlier. What a pain in the neck it must have been!

 

[Folly's place]

The easiest surface to manage is deep litter, especially if you have more than a very few birds, and don't love daily cleanout. Sand and scooping daily is a choice, and when it gets very wet in rain it will smell anyway. Deep litter can be cleaned out one to three times per year, and makes great compost. I've had neighbors come and clean it out for me for their gardens, the perfect solution! Mary

 

[KCAmelia]

Lots of folks in this thread advocating deep litter for the run. I'm doing DL in the coop but never thought of it for the run. I have sand out there now, and there is no significant odor, but I do notice that I can only rake it when it is dry. The run is covered, but some wetness creeps in the sides because they are open. Would DL in the run be manageable in this situation? Wouldn't it get too wet? Would it be too warm for summer? We get 100+ temps and high humidity regularly in summer. Thanks!

 

[TalkALittle]

My run is about 8x12 feet and is covered. Enclosed in welded wire fencing, plenty of rain blows in from the sides. I get more coming in on the two sides where prevailing winds blow. That's also the side I get the most Sun from in summer. I keep a shade cloth on that side. It cuts down on the sun in summer. I also lower it when we get heavy rains for days in the spring. I don't have a problem with the litter getting too wet. It manages any moisture seeping up from the ground below too. I have occasionally sprayed it down with the hose when it got super dry this summer. To get good composting action there needs to be some moisture in the litter.

I don't get excess heat off the litter in the summer. Deep litter is cold composting so you don't get that massive heating the way you do in a hot compost pile. All summer long my birds dust bathed in the litter. They scratched down to where it was moist and would lay in the holes they made. It wasn't pumping out heat.