That sand again!!!!

[yomama]

Love sand!. I use it in our 10' x 40' run, and the coop. So easy to clean. I couldn't afford a truck load of it either, so I went into it gradually. I get a 50lbs bag of play sand for just under $4 at Home Depot. After I was able to get a decent amount down, I just add a couple bags here and there, as needed. Really keeps smell, and all the other yuck, down. I use a poop board in my coop, but I also have a duck and Silkies, so poop does find its way around the coop, lol.

 

[aoxa]

Glad you like it I myself hate it. It does not work well for me, and my chickens do not like it. They won't dustbathe in it, and my ducks would get it wet way too easily. I find straw works the best for me in the barn (where they spend their time in the winter), and shavings where they roost.

 

[dwegg]

I am lucky, even though I live in the city I have a landscape 'quarry' just around the corner and I can get my truck bed filled with a scoop of sand for $15...gotta love that...

 

[kuntrygirl]

Love the pics! Thanks for posting the BEFORE & AFTER. I LOVE SAND !!!!!!!!!

 

[sheaviance1]

I don't have sand in my coop. We were, at one time, considering using lighting in the winter for heat and eggs. Had I decided to do that, we were going to use sand to help prevent a coop fire. I am still considering making the switch at some point. So far, the biggest reason that I haven't decided to switch is my compost pile. I love the black gold I get from composting the straw and pine shavings that we use in the coop.

 

[BWKatz]

I have sand in my covered run and the chickens love it. They scratch and take dust baths in it.They just loll around spread out in the sun on it. I did worry when temps dropped below freezing and put a big nest of pine straw in there.. they just strewed it all over. I left it for the time being because it just barely covers the top and makes it more interesting for them to find their BOSS in.I use one of the expandable rakes set on the narrowest setting to clean with and I don't have to bend over. I rake everything into a pile and then scoop it up on the rake to sift the good sand back out. Poop goes into any new plantings or the mulch in my garden. After being in the tractor or free ranging my chickens can have very dirty feet and the sand drys and cleans them off very quickly. I don't have to worry about poopy feet when I pick them up in the run.

 

[chicks4erin]

I have sand in my covered run and the chickens love it. They scratch and take dust baths in it.They just loll around spread out in the sun on it. I did worry when temps dropped below freezing and put a big nest of pine straw in there.. they just strewed it all over. I left it for the time being because it just barely covers the top and makes it more interesting for them to find their BOSS in.I use one of the expandable rakes set on the narrowest setting to clean with and I don't have to bend over. I rake everything into a pile and then scoop it up on the rake to sift the good sand back out. Poop goes into any new plantings or the mulch in my garden. After being in the tractor or free ranging my chickens can have very dirty feet and the sand drys and cleans them off very quickly. I don't have to worry about poopy feet when I pick them up in the run.

I'm so glad I saw this, with living in Chicago I was concerned about sand in a covered run because of our frigid winters. I wondered whether I could throw something like pine or hay on top of the sand in the winter for added insulation, but didn't know if it would screw up the whole sand system. Glad it worked just raking it out. Sand it is - I just need to stop reading now