Official BYC Poll: How Often Do You Clean Your Coop?

[Magoo1957]

I clean out the coop once a year. Whether it needs it or not!
The poop boards are cleaned every morning. The floor of my coop gets very little poop in the bedding as the birds go out to the run as soon as they come off the roost and wait there for me to release them.
When winter really bears down, they will spend more time hunkered down in the bedding of the coop.View attachment 2583454
I'll be doing a cleaning next month. It'll get hit with a spray down of Elector PSP when I've emptied it and before I bed it down.

DobieLover......do you spray the surfaces or the birds themselves? Please remember I'm still in my research stage so I'm still in "elementary" school! LOL

 

[ChickyWhicky]

Once a year right before winter hits. Keep super deep bedding all year round and turn it occasionaly. Maybe a fresh sprinkle here and there. Might do a partial clean (remove top layer) in spring if they spend alot of time inside during winter.

 

[DobieLover]

DobieLover......do you spray the surfaces or the birds themselves? Please remember I'm still in my research stage so I'm still in "elementary" school! LOL

Just the coop. I don't treat the birds unless I see they actually have external parasites.

 

[Birdsonghill]

I clean out under the roost, from my cleanout hatch every two to three weeks and add it to the compost piles. The coop floor stays fairly clean for many weeks but I spot clean and spread a bit of fresh litter most weeks over the floor. I completely clean out the house twice a year, spring and fall and dust with DE all cracks and crevices before applying fresh litter. Diatomaceous Earth is just a possible safe aide in reducing insects/mites.

 

[Crooked Chicken]

I clean my coop daily, except for rare occasions. I use Sweet PDZ in all of the tray-style poop boards and lots of straw and pine chips on the floor. The PDZ makes it super easy to keep it nice and clean. I use a mesh strainer to sift out the poop. I scoop up any poop I see in the straw. All of this goes into a metal trash can that gets emptied into my compost pile when full. I try to clean early in the day otherwise they bury the poop. I probably spend 30 to 45 minutes per day cleaning and filling food, water etc.

The entire coop gets a complete cleanout just before winter hits and mid-spring. A good portion of the straw will go into their pen, and they take care of mixing it in with the dirt The rest goes into compost or on garden.

 

[DSill]

View attachment 2583103​

It's not a pleasant part of keeping chickens, but it's one we must all deal with regardless: poop. How often do you clean your coop out? Don't include pens in your answer, just your coop or coops. Do you find it easy or difficult to clean them out? What changes to your coop design or technique would you make to improve the process?

(Check out more Official BYC Polls HERE!)

I have straw under the raised roost bars, and (with a latex glove) I pick out the poop underneath every morning. I clean the cats’ litter box twice a day for the same reasons- health and no smell.

 

[Ponypoor]

View attachment 2583103​

It's not a pleasant part of keeping chickens, but it's one we must all deal with regardless: poop. How often do you clean your coop out? Don't include pens in your answer, just your coop or coops. Do you find it easy or difficult to clean them out? What changes to your coop design or technique would you make to improve the process?

(Check out more Official BYC Polls HERE!)

Every day, when I clean stall I also clean off the roosting ledges and pick pops from the floors covered in shavings. Takes about 5 min if done every day.

 

[BonnieBlue]

I clean out the coop once a year. Whether it needs it or not!
The poop boards are cleaned every morning. The floor of my coop gets very little poop in the bedding as the birds go out to the run as soon as they come off the roost and wait there for me to release them.
When winter really bears down, they will spend more time hunkered down in the bedding of the coop.View attachment 2583454
I'll be doing a cleaning next month. It'll get hit with a spray down of Elector PSP when I've emptied it and before I bed it down.

Your roosts with poop boards are what I envision having if I am able to move to a more rural area and have a larger coop. I would love to have more info on dimensions.

How deep (total are the poop boards?
How far from the wall are the roosts?
How much clearance between roosts and poop boards?
Do the poop boards have a rim? or are they flat from edge to edge?
Are the roosts 2 inches, or 4 inches, wide?

Thank you for any info you can give.

 

[DobieLover]

Your roosts with poop boards are what I envision having if I am able to move to a more rural area and have a larger coop. I would love to have more info on dimensions.

How deep (total are the poop boards?
How far from the wall are the roosts?
How much clearance between roosts and poop boards?
Do the poop boards have a rim? or are they flat from edge to edge?
Are the roosts 2 inches, or 4 inches, wide?

Thank you for any info you can give.

Please click on the My Coop link under my avatar and read the article. Everything you want to know is in there.

 

[BonnieBlue]

Please click on the My Coop link under my avatar and read the article. Everything you want to know is in there.

Thank you!