TIME IS FINALLY HERE- LITTER METHOD

[Mraya]

I have 3 coops I use the deep bedding in the coops on a wooden floor, one has pine shavings, one has dried leaves and the third has a mixture of both ( I am trying to find out which is best) In the runs I use the deep litter, dried leaves, grass clippings, some straw, some hay I try to make it look like a forest floor so there are some logs in there that I turn over for the bugs the chickens love that.

 

[mpoland33]

I think you're going to have to make a choice. Either make your coop a walk in style and put it at or very near ground level. Or have a raised coop and give up the notion of doing deep litter. While that coop looks nice with the raised portion, and the extra run space under neath it, that is not practical for deep litter. Cleaning it is going to be a pain in the heiney (IMO) and it does not allow enough height for "stacked space". Chickens like to roost as high as possible, and a short floor to ceiling height does not give enough room for next boxes under perch height, and perch height under ventilation.

So how high would you make the floor to ceiling? I feel like 6' would be plenty. How big would a floor to ceiling coop be...maybe another foot?

 

[mpoland33]

I have 3 coops I use the deep bedding in the coops on a wooden floor, one has pine shavings, one has dried leaves and the third has a mixture of both ( I am trying to find out which is best) In the runs I use the deep litter, dried leaves, grass clippings, some straw, some hay I try to make it look like a forest floor so there are some logs in there that I turn over for the bugs the chickens love that.

Thanks Mraya. Are any of your coops raised off the ground like that link I had? or similar? How tall is your floor to ceiling?

 

[Mraya]

Thanks Mraya. Are any of your coops raised off the ground like that link I had? or similar? How tall is your floor to ceiling?

All are raised of the ground about 2 feet the main coop is 5x7 about 6ft high and the run is 152 sq ft this includes under the coop this is for my buffs and rocks. so from the ground it stand 8ft

The silky house is 5x7 about 5ft tall the run is 8x14 also includes under the coop from the ground it stand 7ft

And my coop for the Guineas 8X7 8ft and the run is 15x14 includes under the coop from the ground it stand 10ft tall

this floor space add and extra foot or so for the nesting boxes.

 

[sweetater22]

I agree with Lazy Gardener and Blooie above. My coop and run are on ground level coop being 8x8 and run measures 8x32, I have 8- 10 inches of wood chips, sticks, leaves, grass clippings, garden waste, etc. My overall height is 8 feet which allows for the DL and also allows plenty of walking room, being coop and run are on same level makes the DL work for both areas. To provide roost for the flock I have a cedar tree trunk stood up in the coop area with roost poles attached by drilling holes in the cedar trunk the size of branches that I use for their roost. The coop area is boxed in to provide shelter from wind with lots of ventilation allowing the DL to work great for me.

 

[Blooie]

This is what my deep litter looked like after a year and a half. You can see behind my hand on the floor where I just dug down a little bit to get that handful. You'll also notice that there is a little straw in there - I brooded all of my chicks outdoors in a pen in the run, and they got straw bedding for the insulation properties. When I took the brooder out, I just raked the straw on top of the existing bedding, so there's not much in there. Straw doesn't break down as well as leaves and other debris, so I tried to keep its usage down to bare minimum.

 

[lazy gardener]

Height of coop depends on how tall you are, and how much you value your back. I'm short. So, if I was designing a small coop for my purposes, with the criteria that it be a walk in, and that it must accommodate deep litter, I think this is what I'd do. 4 x 8 foot print. Shed roof, with good overhang on all 4 sides (6 - 12" overhang) I don't know what the pitch would need to be, cause I'm not good with figuring pitch. But, it should be adequate to shed snow load, if you are in snow country. If not, it could be a shallower pitch. High wall would need to be in the front, South facing. Short wall to the back, North facing. Short wall should be at least 6' tall. (8' x 6') Front wall, depending on pitch, possibly 7' (8' x 7') . (I think that's a 1:4 pitch) That gives a nice looking angle to work with. People door could go on front wall, or on either East or West wall, depending on your typical prevailing wind patterns. There would be plenty of room, height wise for roosts along either the east or west wall, while still allowing space for ventilation well above the roosts. Placing roosts on short wall allows the birds plenty of room to fly down off the perches. You could put in full length soffit vents on South and North walls, And perhaps a louvered vent at floor level on E or W wall, opposite the pop door which would be 1' above floor level. You might want to put a 1' high window along full length of south wall under the eave. Then, put in at least one more window on a wall of your choosing.

 

[Mraya]

Looking back now I would have made all my coops walk-in and about 3ft off the ground. My runs are covered but the chicken seem to like to go under the coop for added protection from the weather. 2ft is a little hard on the back if you have to go under ie hunting for eggs when your chickens don't lay in the nest boxes.