Two roosts - How wide should my poop board be?

[RADK]

Hello all, working on the interior of my coop for my 12 BSL chicks.

I am planning on doing 2 6’ long roosts, one a foot higher and a foot behind the other.
I am aiming for 16” from the wall for the back roost. So 16” plus 12” plus 6” extra for in front of the front roost.

All said and done my poop board will be 3 feet wide which seems… excessive. Maybe it’s because the chicks are so small and the board seems so big in comparison. Is 3 feet a good width for 2 roosts or am I wasting space here?

 

[Ted Brown]

I have a mixed flock that includes several large fowl. My back roost is 12" from the wall and each roost (all same height) are 12" apart, 6 inches from front roost to edge of drop board. No droppings on the back wall and none on the chickens; i do get some dropping that hit the front edge and fall to the bedding but not a big issue.

I have read that one should have 18" between roosts that are not the same height.

At 3' wide I cannot reach the back and have to use my scoop to reach the back wall to clean.

 

[RADK]

I have a mixed flock that includes several large fowl. My back roost is 12" from the wall and each roost (all same height) are 12" apart, 6 inches from front roost to edge of drop board. No droppings on the back wall and none on the chickens; i do get some dropping that hit the front edge and fall to the bedding but not a big issue.

I have read that one should have 18" between roosts that are not the same height.

At 3' wide I cannot reach the back and have to use my scoop to reach the back wall to clean.

Thank you - very helpful! I mainly see single roost/poop board set ups online so I appreciate the feedback.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't consider 3' excessive. I use the 3' wide top of my built-in brooder as a droppings board. I use crooked tree limbs as roosts and have them roughly 12" apart at the same elevation and 12" off of the back wall. I use a garden hoe with a broken handle to scrape it off into a bin as needed. The broken handle on the garden hoe was an accident but with the shorter handle I'm not breaking out windows when I scrape. The roosts are high enough to get the hoe under but not real high.

Mine is a piece of plywood, nothing more fancy. Somen people build trays and fill them with sand, DZ, wood shavings, something and use a scoop to scoop out the poop. If you do that you need to be able to reach to the back so you need a scoop with a handle on it.

 

[RADK]

I don't consider 3' excessive. I use the 3' wide top of my built-in brooder as a droppings board. I use crooked tree limbs as roosts and have them roughly 12" apart at the same elevation and 12" off of the back wall. I use a garden hoe with a broken handle to scrape it off into a bin as needed. The broken handle on the garden hoe was an accident but with the shorter handle I'm not breaking out windows when I scrape. The roosts are high enough to get the hoe under but not real high.

Mine is a piece of plywood, nothing more fancy. Somen people build trays and fill them with sand, DZ, wood shavings, something and use a scoop to scoop out the poop. If you do that you need to be able to reach to the back so you need a scoop with a handle on it.

Thank you! I plan on using a piece of plywood lined with some extra linoleum for easy scraping.

 

[aart]

I use a garden hoe with a broken handle to scrape it off into a bin as needed. The broken handle on the garden hoe was an accident

Happy Accidents...I also have a broken handled hoe to tend to the poop boards.

 

[Bigbluefrog]

I am designing my poop boards as well so this is a very helpful topic! I also have a broken Hoe that works great for cleaning! So a ridge for sand no ridge if just scrapping

 

[MiMito3]

Hello all, working on the interior of my coop for my 12 BSL chicks.

I am planning on doing 2 6’ long roosts, one a foot higher and a foot behind the other.
I am aiming for 16” from the wall for the back roost. So 16” plus 12” plus 6” extra for in front of the front roost.

All said and done my poop board will be 3 feet wide which seems… excessive. Maybe it’s because the chicks are so small and the board seems so big in comparison. Is 3 feet a good width for 2 roosts or am I wasting space here?

 

[MiMito3]

These are mine and are approximately those dimensions you are planning. I used two washing machine drain trays for ease of cleaning.

 

[Sefirothe]

These are mine and are approximately those dimensions you are planning. I used two washing machine drain trays for ease of cleaning.

Do you know the approximate size of the trays? Are they plastic or metal?