eddie_van_quailen
Songster
Hello, all!
There is an old (large) chicken coop in our pasture that has been in very poor condition the entire time we’ve lived here. I am starting to rehabilitate it in anticipation of getting some chickens this spring, and would like some advice on the best way(s) to do so.
I started with a decent power washing inside and out, but am unsure if any type of disinfectant would be necessary at some point. There have been no chickens here for 2 years at the very least. The door has been closed to wild birds/other animals since spring of last year. Most of the filth was from the sheep that were using it as a shelter until that point.
It’s come fairly clean with just the power washing, but I will likely need to sand down/scrape out the nest boxes a bit more (it’s tough to pressure wash in those). The roosts came very clean and should be reusable. But I’m wondering if I should use some type of disinfectant on it before adding birds, such as Oxine or something else? Or is it clean “enough” now? It still doesn’t smell great, but I doubt a chicken coop will ever smell like roses… Neighbors say "chickens are messy, they’ll be fine, just throw them in" but I am a vet tech with a somewhat-paranoid mind for germs and want to be thorough and safe. I plan to use pine shavings as bedding.
Thanks in advance!
There is an old (large) chicken coop in our pasture that has been in very poor condition the entire time we’ve lived here. I am starting to rehabilitate it in anticipation of getting some chickens this spring, and would like some advice on the best way(s) to do so.
I started with a decent power washing inside and out, but am unsure if any type of disinfectant would be necessary at some point. There have been no chickens here for 2 years at the very least. The door has been closed to wild birds/other animals since spring of last year. Most of the filth was from the sheep that were using it as a shelter until that point.
It’s come fairly clean with just the power washing, but I will likely need to sand down/scrape out the nest boxes a bit more (it’s tough to pressure wash in those). The roosts came very clean and should be reusable. But I’m wondering if I should use some type of disinfectant on it before adding birds, such as Oxine or something else? Or is it clean “enough” now? It still doesn’t smell great, but I doubt a chicken coop will ever smell like roses… Neighbors say "chickens are messy, they’ll be fine, just throw them in" but I am a vet tech with a somewhat-paranoid mind for germs and want to be thorough and safe. I plan to use pine shavings as bedding.
Thanks in advance!
There are some rubber mats that go over the floor which I also pressure-washed and left in the sun for 2 days before putting them back in. Still on my list is to sand & repaint the nest boxes, and figure out how to securely attach the roosting ladder to the wall.
Before and after pics attached
