Results from First Year with Deep Litter Method

[RonP]

Thanks, RonP!

One follow up question: You mentioned that you haven't entered the run in almost a decade. Do you have to stay out so that you don't compact the compost or is it just because you don't want to wade through it?

Thanks again for all the information!

You are making it more complicated than it is.
I haven't entered the run simply because there hasn't been a need to...

Currently there is a good 2 1/2 feet of dense compacted carbon matter above the original soil level. I am surrounded by large trees...

I could probably add nothing for 3 or more years, still have no odors, and produce plenty of compost.

Hope this helps, Ron.

 

[Kacey Elle]

Got it. Thanks again. I have no doubt I am making it more complicated--I'm trying to plan the "perfect" setup when I'm sure that reality will prove to me that there is no such thing. It's hard working with nothing but theory!

 

[paintedChix]

Hello- I am new to the whole backyard chicken thing and my chicks are 2 weeks old now. I'm getting a coop tomorrow and i'm excited for them to go outside when they're ready. I am also VERY sensitive to smells and I don't want this to ruin the whole experience and make me want to get rid of the chickens. So i'm trying to figure out and understand the best way to keep
the smell away. For this "deep litter" method, are you basically just covering up poop with layer upon layer or pine shavings?? And does this avoid having to scoop
poop daily?? People who use sand, do you have to scoop poop daily? I swear I need step by step instructions on how to keep chickens!! lol. Dumb question, but does dry chicken poop not smelll? and doesnt the chicken pee get everything wet? You spoke about the chickens "stirring things up" why do you want them to stir around their poop?

Our coops are "open air coops" - built from hooped cattle panels, chicken wire and currently all tarped (3 so far). We also have 1 temp pen about 10x10 covered w/ a tin roof about 3 1/2' high, a temp pen same size that only has wire on the top and a much larger run with a trk topper used as an open air coop. So when they roost, the droppings (poop/urine) end up on the floor, under the roosts. This one has a smaller tarp that doesn't reach as far down and these are bantam chickens, so the open area that appears below the roost is flattened cardboard boxes "stitched" to the wall at the top and on that backside also along the bottom. It's left hanging on the side in this picture. This cardboard is now breaking down and being incorporated into their DLM, so I've still got to put up new - this time I'll just flatten the cardboard & run haystring (we have lots of ponies) and hang it instead of stitching it. That was a lot of work! The cardboard STAYED there and held well thru several major rain events in later September and then 11" of slashing rain during Hurricane Matthew in October 2016. It held during several freezes and the snow/ice we got and didn't start really breaking down until April/May 2017. It's now July and I'm replacing hopefully this weekend.



DLM is a multitude of different organic materials in different sizes that decompose ("compost") right where they are. The chickens move it around - looking for bug life that comes up to check out any/all new material put in to the coop/run. By either putting a light layer of this material over the nightly deposits or flipping the deposits into the material, it will sink into the "bedding" and disappear - preventing smell and flies. When we do have flies - most chickens get really good at catching them.



Or you can use other products - BOSS, scratch, veggies, food scraps - in the general area and the chickens will then proceed to move things around and will bury their own waste. This works especially well when it's not too wet (summer rains/hurricanes) or frozen. When it freezes - then I do flip the bedding materials over the roost deposits. When it's wet, such as after Hurricane Matthew swept thru - I also just flipped bedding over it AND put dry bedding from a leaf bag (feed bag filled from our property) and a shavings bag (purchased fine shavings) over it. NO PROBLEMS.

Here are some pics from open air runs and temporary pens - with fresh materials added. Currently these pens have no chickens in them and are growing nice green weeds/grass. They will soon have more chickens in them again.



Twigs and branches will help the DLM break down as it allows air to percolate thru the bedding. If you then take some of the "compost" out to use, you can throw the sticks back in or leave them in your compost that you use around your veggies, fruit, trees or flower beds.

When I put a wagon or bag or trash can full of materials in the coops, I leave it piled or stacked. I don't spread it - just go to get more materials. The chix do the work. Now if I could only teach them to collect it!! I have not cleaned the runs or the coops since we moved into this property - chickens moved into from temporary boarded at neighbors in January 2015. This works wonders for us.

 

[paintedChix]

RonP:

I love your run. I currently don't have chickens of my own but I'm planning to get them this coming March or April. In the meantime--after reading this entire thread--I'm planning to save all the dried leaves I can in my neighborhood!

My questions:
1. If I currently have compost in one of those open-bottomed plastic bins, should I spread it on the bottom of the run to get things started, then cover it with dried leaves before installing my flock?

2. I'm confused on how you collect the compost from the bottom. You mentioned that it gets sifted out of the hardware mesh and it looks like you have stones to form a sort of catch-basin for the compost. Is that right? Do you ever dig down past the top layers to harvest the compost? Wouldn't the compost in the middle form a "hill" since it couldn't ever leave the run?

3. Do you ever add water to the run or turn/aerate it yourself?

Thanks!
Kacey

#1 - you don't have to, but you can.

#2 - AART will answer on his specific set up, but I can answer too. I sift/move the top layer around to dig under to get the compost. I've only removed a wagon load or so at a time (see the above pics in my response) to use so not even going very deep. I don't refill the "hole" as the chix do that quite nicely! Heap in the center? What is that? When we pile the materials in the center the chix go thru it - scattering it and flattening it. Sometimes there will be holes and/or piles but it's pretty even. I don't have to worry about it.

Our runs/coops were originally on straight sand. NOW, I have compost that has mixed with that sand and it's about 6" deep (into the sand! yea!!!) and then the lose materials on top. When I put materials into the coops/runs, they will often be loosely stacked as the shapes of whatever container I put them in when collected (wagon, 50 # bag, 32 gallon trashcan) until the chix spread it out flat. They do "kick" the loose litter right out of the chicken wire as it breaks down and they move it - again it is mixing into the sand and changing my sand to better quality soil. NICE.

#3 - We live in currently VERY humid NC. Our coops/runs get wet when it rains/snows or when it's foggy, misty or very humid. When it does dry out, I simply empty the waterers into the DLM - in the hooped coops, the pens/runs and in the truck topper coop.



When I'm watering ponies at the one coop where the hoses connect, I will sometimes spray into coop/run 1, but really haven't done it with the others and haven't found where I've really needed to.

 

[Kacey Elle]

Thanks PaintedChix! I'm starting to see that there are lots of different ways to achieve the same result. I'm going to keep learning everything I can and hopefully figure out what will work best for my situation by the time I get chickens in the spring.

I really appreciate all the pictures--it makes it so much easier to understand how you've set up your coop/run!

Thanks again!

 

[paintedChix]

What we've put together has lasted longer than we expected it to on one hand and is starting to need replacing/repair sooner than we were expecting. The hooped coops were put together on our previous property partially with supplies we had, but two were literally "thrown together" at the last minute and in a hurry when we had to move off of leased property in 30 days...

You can take any of these ideas/designs and really solidify & pretty them up, too.

Glad our "country hick" pics helped you out!

 

[Hugelpook]

They will need to be hardened off before living out there full time. If you've got electricity to the coop you can provide them some warmth for the nights and turn it off in the days, decreasing it gradually until they have developed the right feathering for being outside full time.

 

[Hugelpook]

Beekist,
Can you tell me what your vacation set up is, so that you can go away for 3 or 4 days?

 

[Hugelpook]

What is your set up for when you go on vacation? How do you manage with food and water?

 

[Hugelpook]

I'm not bee or woodlandwomen, but I feed scrapes in a large dog crock. That way if they don't like something I don't have to go all over removing it. I do throw down black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) the girls scratch everything around, so I don't have to rake as often and I don't step in fresh piles gathering eggs, always a plus. I prefer not encouraging them eating in their own feces.