Sand for coop floor?

[CrazedGirl]

our coop is almost done and the girls (and we) are anxious to get in there!

I’m in Maryland so the seasons vary significantly. Inside of the coop I was thinking about using sand as the bedding for easier clean up- I would just rig hardware cloth to a rake.

What are opinions of using sand vs pine shavings inside of the coop?

 

[jreardon1918]

I have no experience with sand. One year of experience with... Pine shavings on the coop floor and in the nest boxes. There are poop boards with a 1/4" of Sweet PDZ. This has been great. No smell. Scoop the poop boards twice a week The pine shavings are very dry and and have very little mess. Have replaced the shavings twice, late October and again in march. The coop is small 4x8 and is not a walk in. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[MNChickMom]

Do you see what I see?

 

[TheGoldenGirlz]

This is totally opposite from our experience. We switched over to sand after a month of shavings and have ZERO regrets. We put poop boards under the 2 roosts for the 11 girls and we clean the poop boards every morning. This takes about ONE minute and we never have any odor. We use a Folger's plastic coffee can and a cat litter shovel. The poop virtually never hits the sand. Coop is 6'x10' and the run is 10'x24 and we pick up poop in the run daily, run is dirt and, again, no odor.

View attachment 1422673

Having a poop board probably made it 20,000x better, I didn’t have one

 

[Hokum Coco]

What are opinions of using sand vs pine shavings inside of the coop?

I have 68 trips around the sun and tried a wide variety of bedding material.
I have now abandoned all of it.

Since I have stumble onto a wire 2" grid (wire the size of a pencil).I placed it over my coop floor. Similar to what is pictured below with 4"x4"x4" cubed blocks stationed under neath the grid on top of a tarp to form a drop pit it worked excellent all summer and I will clean the coop before winter sets in and things freeze solid. The grid even keeps your chicken's feet cleaner which in turn keeps your eggs and nest boxes less soiled. I live in Canada and am subject to -40º temperatures.

Clean up is simple replace the tarp with a second one. Spread the first tarp out in the sun to bake and dry. Then flex the first tarp over the compost bin and hose off any stubborn chicken poop. No too coops are exactly the same this is what works best for me and may not be suitable for every situation.

Easy Peasy Japaneasy.

 

[CrazedGirl]

There are poop boards with a 1/4" of Sweet PDZ. This has been great. No smell. Scoop the poop boards twice a week The pine shavings are very dry and and have very little mess.

We may invest in a poop board with the sand later on; but, I also like the convenience of the sand when it is soiled compaired to the pine shavings. I was hoping more people would comment with their experiences..

 

[TheGoldenGirlz]

I would advise against sand, Poop eventually gets pulverized and smells awful.

 

[LittleMissCountry]

I use sand in the coop, but not the run. I started with pine shavings, but I had to change them all the time, and my chicks would sleep in them, and not roost.
I switched to sand and love it. My coop is raised, so the sand doesn't get wet when it rains. I scoop poo every day and it takes just a few minutes.

 

[ChickenDad921]

I live in Pennsylvania. Using pine shavings as base and straw on top of it. Coop doesn't smell. The straw defiantly helps keep the coop insulted. I do use dry herbs thru out. My girls roost with no problem. Hope it helps.

 

[bajabirdbrain]

I would advise against sand, Poop eventually gets pulverized and smells awful.

This is totally opposite from our experience. We switched over to sand after a month of shavings and have ZERO regrets. We put poop boards under the 2 roosts for the 11 girls and we clean the poop boards every morning. This takes about ONE minute and we never have any odor. We use a Folger's plastic coffee can and a cat litter shovel. The poop virtually never hits the sand. Coop is 6'x10' and the run is 10'x24 and we pick up poop in the run daily, run is dirt and, again, no odor.