Please help with DL initial construction

[bevis]

i am going to have an OSB floor in my 10x10 coop and i am going to epoxy coat the wood and half
way up on the walls for easy hosing out if necessary .

I understand from reading threads that i need to start the DL at 4 to 6 " and add wood ash or dirt
and stay away from DE as it may be detramental to the DL compost process.

my question is, is there any downside to DL if you have a solid wood floor / vinyl covered / epoxy coated ?
from reading the threads i cant decipher if the DL is being used on no floor coops ( just the ground the coop was built over ) or is it a used in a built floor or natural ground ?

My other question is can i just shovel some dirt out of my woods ( mostly sand as i live in central coastal florida ) to add to the initial DL layer and if so, how much and should it go under the wood shavings on the main substrate or mixed in with the shavings ?
also can i just buy bags of garden dirt from local big box store for real dirt instead of florida sand/dirt ?

I just want to do it right the first time and learn from others mistakes.

any help would be appreciated as I'm right in the middle of the construction and don't want to have to
fix a problem that i could have avoided.

thanks again

 

[JackE]

The first thing I would do, if I were you, is scrap the idea of using OSB/particle/waffer/ board for flooring in a coop. That stuff just sucks moisture up. Even if you seal the top of it, moisture will attack the bottom. Then, one day you'll step in there and go right through the floor. Use 3/4" plywood, protect it with Lowes Blackjack #57, and forget it.
For a true deep litter method, IMO, you need a dirt floor, for everything to properly compost. I have, I guess I'd call it a modified deep litter deal. My coop has a raised wood floor. I clean out the coop twice a year. In between cleanings, the bedding (Pine shavings) gets a foot and half or so deep. At the bottom, it does break down quite a bit. But it is not what I would call good compost. You need a dirt floor with all the organisms in it, to really break it down. And as far as I'm concerned, cleaning the coop out is enough of a job, without adding a whole bunch of dirt, and wood ash, or whatever, that I'm going to have to shovel out of there anyway.
DE, again my opinion is not needed, and near worthless.
You want to do something for bug/mite prevention. Get some HappyJack kennel spray, and treat your coop with it. Or get some Poultry dust, or Seven, and dust everything.

 

[bevis]

i have 3/4 i can use. thats not a problem.
please elaborate on " Lowes Blackjack #57 "
i did a search on lowes site and got no results for that search cirteria.
thanks

 

[Ridgerunner]

I can't argue with Jack.

The purpose of adding some dirt is to get the organisms that break down the stuff into the mix. For that it's best to have dirt that has some decaying vegetable matter in it. This is mostly for those that use a barrel composter where the stuff never comes into contact with the ground. It doesn't take much and if your compost is touching the ground, it's pretty much unnecessary. Still a shovelful won't hurt.

I would not dream of using the true deep litter method on anything that might rot, like wood. For things to compost it needs to be damp. Not wet, just damp. That dampness will rot wood. You may be able to protect the wood with linoleum or something like that, but I'd still worry about the edges or if it got damaged.

My coop is on the ground. I use a fair amount of wood shavings but the coop stays pretty dry. The last time I cleaned mine out, it had gone four years. I didn't need to then but I wanted that stuff on my garden. I cleaned it out in the fall so it had all winter to break down. I did not have any real compost in there at all, just finely powdered dry chicken poop and really finely shredded shaving from all their scratching.

 

[bevis]

i certainly have the option to NOT put a floor in the coop.
that would save the floor joists and flooring.
my concern is fire ants that are EVERYWHERE here in florida.
since my chicken experience is NULL since im a beginner, i need input
to the best way to keep my chickens healthy.
its imperative to me to keep them safe and healthy.
eggs are a plus but in the end, they are pets and i
will do whatever it takes to keep them safe and healthy.

 

[JackE]

i have 3/4 i can use. thats not a problem.
please elaborate on " Lowes Blackjack #57 "
i did a search on lowes site and got no results for that search cirteria.
thanks

Here it is. Fireants, man I'm glad I don't have to deal with those.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_70989-29-60...r&pl=1&currentURL=?Ntt=roof+sealer&facetInfo=

 

[fiddlebanshee]

JackE,

Not to hijack this thread but if you coat the OSB for the floor at all sides with the Black Jack, wouldn't that solve the problem of rot? I'm asking because I am thinking of building a quail coop this way. The quail house will sit on treated joists that rest on the ground with osb as a floor, so I thought coating it both sides would take care of that problem.

please elaborate.

 

[bevis]

blackjack looks like roof coating. i have epoxy-coat to do the osb with. blackjack would not protect the wood any better than the epoxy i dont think. the epoxy is food grade and nothing gets through it other than a hammer. certainly not water / urine / any other liquid. i can see blackjack on the bottom where it meets the floor joists and the edges of the sheeting itself . but i think the epoxy is certainly a better choice for the main floor exposed to the animals. can someone tell me if i need to worry about the fire ants here in florida if i go with no floor ? if im going with a floor, i was planning to go out today and hang the floor joists.

thanks for any input

 

[JackE]

JackE,

Not to hijack this thread but if you coat the OSB for the floor at all sides with the Black Jack, wouldn't that solve the problem of rot? I'm asking because I am thinking of building a quail coop this way. The quail house will sit on treated joists that rest on the ground with osb as a floor, so I thought coating it both sides would take care of that problem.

please elaborate.

Now if you were to coat both sides, I would think that would help. But, the size of the coop would have to be taken into consideration. If you were talking about a relatively small non-walkin style coop, like 4X4' or so, then possibly yes. But if you are talking about a walkin big coop, what a pain that would be. First, you would have to coat/paint one side of the floor boards. Then, let them sit overnight to dry, Then install the next day. Then paint/coat the upper side. A multiple step process. And you still have, IMO, an inferior wafferboard floor. I still would not trust it, years down the line, to walk on. With good plywood, you would just put down the floor/deck, build the rest of the coop, then pour/dump the roofcoat in there and push it around with a roller, and you're done.

 

[JackE]

blackjack looks like roof coating. i have epoxy-coat to do the osb with. blackjack would not protect the wood any better than the epoxy i dont think. the epoxy is food grade and nothing gets through it other than a hammer. certainly not water / urine / any other liquid. i can see blackjack on the bottom where it meets the floor joists and the edges of the sheeting itself . but i think the epoxy is certainly a better choice for the main floor exposed to the animals. can someone tell me if i need to worry about the fire ants here in florida if i go with no floor ? if im going with a floor, i was planning to go out today and hang the floor joists.

thanks for any input

I guess it would really depend on the size of the coop you are building. I believe you could do a much bigger area for less with the roofcoat, than the epoxy. Also, epoxy paint drys hard and brittle. The roofcoat is flexible, and can better deal with the wood floor's expansion and contraction.