post your chicken coop pictures here!

[NanaNeen]

My son asked me today if Sweet PDZ could be used on the ground of a small run to prevent odor. I've only used it in my poop tray. Does anyone have any experience doing that?

 

[perchie.girl]

My son asked me today if Sweet PDZ could be used on the ground of a small run to prevent odor. I've only used it in my poop tray. Does anyone have any experience doing that?

its used in all sorts of on the ground applications from Horse stalls to sewage odor abatement.

A very interesting chemical if you read up on it. It has a Wikipedia page. PDZ has an affinity for ammonia and will absorb huge quantities of it and nutrilized it.

deb

 

[NanaNeen]

its used in all sorts of on the ground applications from Horse stalls to sewage odor abatement.

A very interesting chemical if you read up on it.  It has a Wikipedia page.   PDZ has an affinity for ammonia and will absorb huge quantities of it and nutrilized it.

deb

Cool. Maybe I'll spread some out in the run. My run is pretty close to the front of the house. I suppose it will still work and be ok as they scratch, dig and dust bathe themselves?

 

[Sylvester017]

Here's a picture of my coop, pretty much all done minus some final paint and trim. Designed and built it myself after scouring this forum for weeks. Extremely happy with how it turned out.

It houses 3 ducks and we had 6 chickens (3 Rhode Island reds and 3 Plymouth rocks). Two of our Reds turned out to be Roosters so we had to rehome them, we live in the town limits and aren't allowed roosters.

I LUV Barn Coops! You've provided a lot of ventilation. LUV the Red! Have you found the ducks any messier than the chickens inside the coop?

My smaller pre-fab Barn Coop:

 

[searlus]

The other side with the nesting box before the roofing was installed.

I did add a lot of ventilation after reading posts on this forum, it was a last minute design addition and I am so thankful I made sure to add the vents. It also has a window on the upper back wall.

The ducks do like to "play" with the water in the coop and soak the shavings but other than that it's not too bad. Been thinking about changing the waterer to the on demand waterers but not sure how well the ducks will adapt to those.

They love their outdoor pool too.

 

[DCMuffin]

Though our coop and run are fully functional and the girls (and Leroy

) have been out there for about a month now, it's still a work in progress. We've got some finish work to do on the overhang and next week, we will complete the cover on the run so that everything is fully enclosed and predator proof.

The coop is 7x8x6, with a clear, PVC roof. The run is 18x24x6, on dirt, which makes for some happy birdies! There's PDZ below the roosts, which has been absolutely fabulous! I scoop each morning and there's no smell. Love it! I had originally built the table so that the food & water could go underneath, as you see in the pictures. I have taken that out for the time being because I have ducks here (orphaned mallards, release date next week) and they, of course, make a ginormous mess of it if I leave it in there. The ladder looks a little crooked on the table LOL but it's attached and not going anywhere.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote: from the manufacturers site: http://www.sweetpdz.com/our-products.html

How Does Sweet PDZ Work?
Sweet PDZ is extremely effective at neutralizing and removing ammonia and odors, because of its two special properties:
1) Adsorption - Which is the sticking of the ammonia gas molecule to the surface of the Sweet PDZ granule. When the Sweet PDZ granules desorb, or dries out, the ammonia odor molecule is driven off the surface of the mineral as nitrogen. This is why spent (used) bedding material that includes Sweet PDZ, works so well as a slow release fertilizer or as an enhancement to composting.
2) Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) - This is the liquid exchange aspect of Sweet PDZ’s odor neutralizing process. A sodium or potassium cation from the zeolite granule hydrolyzes (goes to liquid/urine) and the ammonium is exchanged and then becomes part of the Sweet PDZ granule. This liquid exchange works because the Sweet PDZ granules are always holding water.

the active particle is made of Zeolite which can be made of many different things.... clinoptilolite is the one they use in the product

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clinoptilolite

Its a product of volcanic activity. weve been using it for horse stall treatment for a very long time.

deb

 

[DCMuffin]

I am currently using the powdered PDZ, but I know my horse friends use the granules. The powdered works great for coating the poop so I can scoop it each morning. Not sure the granules would do the same?

 

[Leigti]

I am currently using the powdered PDZ, but I know my horse friends use the granules.  The powdered works great for coating the poop so I can scoop it each morning.  Not sure the granules would do the same?

Are use the granules and they work great. Think they would be easier on the chickens lungs.

 

[DCMuffin]

There's very little dust with the powdered. So you use the granules as litter and scoop it?