Tell the truth - how clean is YOUR coop?

[mmtillman]

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NOW I like your thinking ~

 

[Flintrock]

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Wish I'd thought of caulking while I had everything out today.

DH is the king of caulk but he's out of town again.

I will be building a tractor soon -- when I get the materials together -- and I am planning on caulking the dickens out of it. I've had experience in the past with leg mites, and they love crevices and hiding places.

What kind of paint did you use, Flintrock?)

I used paint from Home Depot, water base with the primer added to the paint.

 

[Flintrock]

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Apparently I am the only one that doesn't know, since no one else has asked the question. What is a "manure box"?

The manure box is placed beneath the roost and runs the length of the roost. It is 4" in height and has metal flashing on the bottom of it. I fill it with stall dry and aspen shavings. The lid is fitted to lock down on the box. The top surface of the lid is made of 3/4" (I believe) hardware cloth. It's purpose....the dropping from roost fall through the holes in the top and into the box below. The girls do not walk in their poop. I slide it out, remove the droppings and wash off any thing that might have stayed on the wire top and put it back. Hope this helps.

 

[Kismet]

This discussion brings to mind an incident that happened when I was a child. A friend of my mother's used to clean her baby's nursery every day, washing all the services with Lestoil. At about eight months, the baby died. She had been gnawing on her crib rail as teething babies do and absorbed a little too much Lestoil.
To create healthy bodies, we all need to consume "a peck of dirt." Goes for chickens, too.

 

[jerseygirl1]

I am with chickenannie, I clean it once or twice a year with the Deep Litter Method - since I have changed their food to Blue Seal Layer instead of Dumor Grower, it also SMELLS better, too, though their poop is the size of my GSD's turds. C'est la vie

 

[Nyrial]

Clean enough that it's not gross. Dirty enough that the kids feel at home.

Honestly, they've only been in there about 4 weeks, so I've just been fluffing, raking, and adding litter as needed. They've been keeping it turned over for me.

It will be even easier once I finish the man cave side (this weekend

) and move the roos over. It's starting to get a little crowded as they get bigger.

 

[juliect]

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Apparently I am the only one that doesn't know, since no one else has asked the question. What is a "manure box"?

The manure box is placed beneath the roost and runs the length of the roost. It is 4" in height and has metal flashing on the bottom of it. I fill it with stall dry and aspen shavings. The lid is fitted to lock down on the box. The top surface of the lid is made of 3/4" (I believe) hardware cloth. It's purpose....the dropping from roost fall through the holes in the top and into the box below. The girls do not walk in their poop. I slide it out, remove the droppings and wash off any thing that might have stayed on the wire top and put it back. Hope this helps.

Brilliant idea!

I will have to work on that for my new upcoming coop. Thanks for the explanation!

 

[annie3001]

oh mines pretty clean, i have this handy tool (its for cat poop) and anyways, i open the main door ( i can stand and go into ours its about 8 feet tall) then i use my scooper and clean up the (night) poops, theres a few that are not on the floor, so i may have to use some force and scrap them, but its done everytime i let them out into their run in the morning, its done just as quick as i started, doesnt take anytime.
i save the poop in buckets, then my husband takes it to his work and throws it away.
i have a house rabbit and dog, so i have a few pet duties in the morning, before i have my (sit down with computer coffee etc.) i also have 2 young kids, that help me out too. (where they can of course)
it all takes about 30 minutes(yes i have timed it) and once everyones poops been cleaned (diapers too) then its my time.
my whole thing is, if the animals are in a clean enviorment, they are happy and hey it doesnt smell either.
This is our first time owning chickens (and our first winter) i am nervous but i feel we can do it.
i am curisous how i will clean i will keep their coop too? maybe every other day, ill empty it all out. I just dont want to keep opening the main door to the coop and let in all the cold air etc. so we'll just see how it go's.
sorry this was so long, (i am finally relaxing with my coffee and computer

)

 

[AnnesChicks]

I love love the deep litter method! And my eight hens do too! I just cleaned my coop for the first time since we set up shop the end of February! I use fir shavings (bale from the feed store $6), Stall Dri that has DE & clay ($12 fo 50#bag). Once a week I add a couple inches of shavings and a couple cups of Stall Dri, rake lightly. No smell. Very low cost.

Our small coop is raised, one wall opens, I parked the wheelbarrow up against the coop, raked out 4 1/2 loads, spread it on my veggie garden, added a few inches of fresh and I was done. Took me less then an hour.

My mom tells me my great grandpa (a life long farmer) cleaned his large coop twice a year, in the fall he filled the coop to the rafters with leaves, and in the spring he used shavings. If it worked for him, it'll work for me.

 

[bawkbawkbawk]

ChickenMaven - to tell the truth, I don't think MY room is as clean as my chicken coop

At least I've got my priorities straight, right?