How to dry sand in coop

[SnootyHen]

We had a ton of rain here today very unexpectedly and a lot got in the coop before I got out to close the windows. There's a slight gap above the door where it normally gets in and I just sift the wet and dry sand around a little and it dries but this time it's soaked through everywhere. Trying to Google how to dry sand isn't helpful because the main way is letting it dry in the sun or baking it in the oven which won't work here for obvious reasons. I thought about using a blow dryer but that would take forever. I could lock the chickens in the run and leave the main door open to let a little more sun in but it's pretty cloudy here today so I don't think that will do much.

Any hints to getting it to dry fast or do I have to just wait for it to dry on it's own?

 

[azygous]

Compacted sand holds water longer, so fluff it up. As the top part dries, fluff up the sand underneath. Having a fan blowing across it will speed things up. The chickens adore damp fluffed sand and will further churn it for you. Just get things started, and they'll be happy to help.

Coarse construction sand dries out quicker than fine sand. Let that determine what grade of sand you get next time.

 

[SnootyHen]

Compacted sand holds water longer, so fluff it up. As the top part dries, fluff up the sand underneath. Having a fan blowing across it will speed things up. The chickens adore damp fluffed sand and will further churn it for you. Just get things started, and they'll be happy to help.

Coarse construction sand dries out quicker than fine sand. Let that determine what grade of sand you get next time.

Thank you!! I'll put the fan in there now. Definitely beats using a hair dryer on it for the next 3 hours. LOL!!!

 

[aart]

Fluffing and a fan will help.
How fast it dries may depend on the ambient humidity.

Best to get your coop fixed so no rain can get in
If you want help with that, post some pics of your coop.

 

[SnootyHen]

Fluffing and a fan will help.
How fast it dries may depend on the ambient humidity.

Best to get your coop fixed so no rain can get in
If you want help with that, post some pics of your coop.

Thanks! I'm adding an awning to the door to fix the little gap but the bigger problem was just plain old user error. Didn't realize it was going to rain and I left the windows open.

 

[Northwest_Wannabe]

Hi! I've been following this thread since it started, I live in the rainy Pacific Northwest and I'm curious, is sand only really feasible for warmer/drier climates? thank you! It seems like it'd be a wet mess up here haha

 

[SnootyHen]

Hi! I've been following this thread since it started, I live in the rainy Pacific Northwest and I'm curious, is sand only really feasible for warmer/drier climates? thank you! It seems like it'd be a wet mess up here haha

I'm sure someone with more experienced will chime in, but so far it's still pretty wet more than 24 hrs later. It's rained now and again and it dries. The little bit that gets in over the door dries decently fast. But we got dumped on yesterday and both my coop and run are still soggy. And because the coop is enclosed and the run is covered, it's hard to get them any real sunlight. They were designed to be shady.

 

[3KillerBs]

Didn't realize it was going to rain and I left the windows open.

Can you alter your windows to a top-hinged style so that you can keep the rain out without compromising the ventilation?

 

[SnootyHen]

Can you alter your windows to a top-hinged style so that you can keep the rain out without compromising the ventilation?

Not without tearing it apart. Any other time it's rained, it's not been a problem. We just got drenched on Saturday and it was coming down sideways. That's not a common thing here and usually it would be in the forecast so I'd close them up ahead of the rain.