Ways to get rid of smell in coop?

[BantammChick]

Hi everyone,
I am looking for a natural method to keep the smell down in my chicken coop, I've read some things about baking soda, lemon juice, and other things, but I'm not really sure if they would be okay to use. I have chickens and ducks living in the coop, any help appreciated!

 

[aart]

Hi everyone,
I am looking for a natural method to keep the smell down in my chicken coop, I've read some things about baking soda, lemon juice, and other things, but I'm not really sure if they would be okay to use. I have chickens and ducks living in the coop, any help appreciated!

The right bedding should take care of it, adding anything like you mention won't take care of things if the ducks are too wet in the coop.
What are you using for coop bedding?
How long have you had chickens and ducks?

 

[Shadrach]

Regular cleaning works.

 

[BantammChick]

The right bedding should take care of it, adding anything like you mention won't take care of things if the ducks are too wet in the coop.
What are you using for coop bedding?
How long have you had chickens and ducks?

The ducks don't really spend much time in the house, they go in it but they don't sleep in there.
I use straw for bedding.
I've had chickens for 8 years and ducks for 4 years but I've only had them living around the chickens for a few months.

I have a house that the chickens sleep and lay their eggs in and then an outdoor run that the ducks go in at night. I only have an issue with the odor in the house.

 

[BantammChick]

Regular cleaning works.

I try to keep it clean, but it still smells a little.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Maybe look into switching bedding. How are you currently managing litter in there (daily poop pickup? poop boards vs deep bedding? frequency of clean outs?)

Are the ducks bringing in moisture or is any rain or ground moisture getting in? Currently sounds like the ducks are the culprits if you didn't have odor issues before the ducks moved in.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

How's your ventilation? What are you using for bedding and how often do you change it? Do you have poop boards under the roosts, and if so what's in them? (Sand, stall fresh, etc.?). How often do you clean those? What kind of bedding is in the nests and how often do you clean those? Do the chickens sleep in the nests?

Can you tell where the odor is coming from? Nests, floor, poop boards, other? Has odor only been a problem since the arrival of the ducks?

Can you describe the odor? Does it smell like duck poo, chicken poo or something else? Is the coop elevated? Could you have a snake, skunk or rats living underneath the coop? Find the source of the odor first and then deal with it.

 

[SourRoses]

Straw isn't absorbent. Have you tried those pine pellets? They are great at drying things out. I just put a couple bags in one of ours after days of torrential rains mucking everything up. As a bonus they have a natural pine scent.

 

[BantammChick]

Maybe look into switching bedding. How are you currently managing litter in there (daily poop pickup? poop boards vs deep bedding? frequency of clean outs?)

Are the ducks bringing in moisture or is any rain or ground moisture getting in? Currently sounds like the ducks are the culprits if you didn't have odor issues before the ducks moved in.

I don't pickup the poop daily, but I don't have very much because they are free range and only go in the coop to lay eggs and sleep.

No the ducks don't go in the house very much, and I don't think any rain or anything is getting in.

 

[BantammChick]

How's your ventilation? What are you using for bedding and how often do you change it? Do you have poop boards under the roosts, and if so what's in them? (Sand, stall fresh, etc.?). How often do you clean those? What kind of bedding is in the nests and how often do you clean those? Do the chickens sleep in the nests?

Can you tell where the odor is coming from? Nests, floor, poop boards, other? Has odor only been a problem since the arrival of the ducks?

Can you describe the odor? Does it smell like duck poo, chicken poo or something else? Is the coop elevated? Could you have a snake, skunk or rats living underneath the coop? Find the source of the odor first and then deal with it.

I think they have plenty of ventilation
I use straw for bedding and I change it whenever I clean out the coop.
I don't use poop boards
The chickens don't sleep in the nest unless they're broody and I usually clean them whenever it looks dirty.
I have had the odor issue longer than the ducks
The coop is not elevated so I don't think it's a skunk or snake. We do have mice occasionally but they don't stay around the coop.