Sealed Coop Floor / No Shavings

[Mr D]

Pros & Cons of this idea: I was thinking of designing my Chicken House on a slightly sloped floor with a screened drainage hole. The floor will be sealed with a few coats of an exterior marine spar varnish (like what’s used on boats). Each day, I. An open the door, rinse it out with a water hose and the screened drainage hole will drain the waste water quickly and efficiently. This idea will do away with the need for any shavings, etc. To deal with the accumulation of amonia, to fans will be utilized, one on each end of house (above roosting height and with a screened ceiling to keep the birds from flying up there) to bring in outside air and blow out the amonia. Plus, I’d keep it rinsed out daily. The coop will house between 18-20 birds.

 

[PirateGirl]

I guess my question/concern is where is the wastewater going? If it's all accumulating in essentially the same spot outside the coop every day, it's likely going to become a stinky mess. Wet chicken waste smells more than dry. When you mix in some sort of bedding you now have both green and brown materials which compliment each other in composting as things break down, which helps neutralize odor. Or is it going into some sort of grey water sewer drain and being carried away to the waste treatment plant? or... I guess my advice is to think about what happens to the waste once it is no longer in the coop. I don't see a problem with the inside of the coop and cleaning it out this way (though it seems a bit much to have to do it every day, and a bit wasteful of water).

 

[123RedBeard]

Water & chicken coops not a good idea, besides the stink ... if your coop is wood, no matter how well you think it is sealed, with time and temperature swings ... and chickens ... and people walking in there ... and getting blasted/drenched with water every day ... it will rot!

Then if your waste water is not piped to a sewage treatment system ... even piped 20' feet away ... that pipe may clog ... and all that poopy water is gonna attract all kinds of insects ...

Don't do it.

 

[imnukensc]

Not something I'd do for a few reasons. How big is your screen going to be? Chicken poop, even wet chicken poop, is not going to fall easily through a screen. Adding the extra humidity to coop every day is going to be a breeding ground for mold/mildew even with your fans. How high are your roosts going to be? Chickens flying down to a solid floor is asking for bumblefoot or other possible injuries.

 

[blackdog043]

No pros fro me, but cons as mentioned above.
If you want easy, no odor, with no water involved. Make a poop board, keep 1/4 - 1/2" of PDZ in the board and scoop the poop daily. Put 2 - 3" of shavings on the floor, sprinkle a little PDZ on them and add a little shavings to freshen as needed. Clean out the shavings once a year. Your daily scooping and using PDZ will keep your coop from stinking. The only time my coop smells is before I scoop, even then it's not an ammonia smell, just a poop smell. I also don't see many flies in or around my coop, my run is deep litter.

 

[aart]

Ditto All Dat!^^^