Sand for Coop?

[Sljanik]

Hi all, I just bought a new coop, and allowed the girls to get all the grass and weeds pecked up. Right now the floor is just dirt, however I want to get them switched to sand. Previously I used quickcrete all purpose sand, it says it is course grain washed sand. Is that good to continue to use? also, should I lay some concrete pavers down so the sand doesn't mix in with the dirt? All help is appreciated!

 

[perkolator]

If you were a chicken, which environment would you want to be pecking around in all day - a "desert" made of sand, or a "forest floor" made of organic materials?

I'm in the "use organic materials" camp - so wood chips, leaves, straw, shavings, clippings, etc. Never have I been like "I wonder if this is the right kind of organic materials?" like I always see people asking about sand of all things, lol. There's no cleaning, the poops mix in and don't smell, you simply just let it all mix in with the native soil and keep adding more materials through the year, maybe water it on occasion in hot weather. It attracts small insects, microorganisms, LOTS of worms and actually improves the soil there. After time, it's a beautiful humus underneath the top layer, and can be used in the garden.
That's my on sand, lol

 

[ChaosMom]

If you were a chicken, which environment would you want to be pecking around in all day - a "desert" made of sand, or a "forest floor" made of organic materials?

I'm in the "use organic materials" camp - so wood chips, leaves, straw, shavings, clippings, etc. Never have I been like "I wonder if this is the right kind of organic materials?" like I always see people asking about sand of all things, lol. There's no cleaning, the poops mix in and don't smell, you simply just let it all mix in with the native soil and keep adding more materials through the year, maybe water it on occasion in hot weather. It attracts small insects, microorganisms, LOTS of worms and actually improves the soil there. After time, it's a beautiful humus underneath the top layer, and can be used in the garden.
That's my on sand, lol

Yep!!!

 

[SandyRiverChick]

Hi all, I just bought a new coop, and allowed the girls to get all the grass and weeds pecked up. Right now the floor is just dirt, however I want to get them switched to sand. Previously I used quickcrete all purpose sand, it says it is course grain washed sand. Is that good to continue to use? also, should I lay some concrete pavers down so the sand doesn't mix in with the dirt? All help is appreciated!

Can you post a picture? It seems the word "coop" might also mean "run." To me there is a big difference in my answer.... A coop (the hen house,) with a bare dirt or sand floor is just a mess. I've tried it. It was awful. I prefer wood flooring with woodchips or any other material to catch any one off poo's that dont wind up in my poop trays. THE RUN however has sandy parts for dust bathing and a mix of dirt, leaves, wood chips in other parts.

 

[Sljanik]

Can you post a picture? It seems the word "coop" might also mean "run." To me there is a big difference in my answer.... A coop (the hen house,) with a bare dirt or sand floor is just a mess. I've tried it. It was awful. I prefer wood flooring with woodchips or any other material to catch any one off poo's that dont wind up in my poop trays. THE RUN however has sandy parts for dust bathing and a mix of dirt, leaves, wood chips in other parts.

Hi! I’m sorry, I meant in the run. I use hemp in the coop with nesting pads. Here is a picture of the coop!

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Hi all, I just bought a new coop, and allowed the girls to get all the grass and weeds pecked up. Right now the floor is just dirt, however I want to get them switched to sand. Previously I used quickcrete all purpose sand, it says it is course grain washed sand. Is that good to continue to use? also, should I lay some concrete pavers down so the sand doesn't mix in with the dirt? All help is appreciated!

Sand is fine. Many of us live in the desert and we keep chickens on sand because that's all there is here:

Chickens do just fine on it. They scratch their poop right into it so they break it down for you and mix it in. There's very little to clean up and no odor. They don't need additional grit and everywhere is a dust bath.

 

[StinkyAcres]

Sand is fine. Many of us live in the desert and we keep chickens on sand because that's all there is here:

View attachment 4085151

Chickens do just fine on it. They scratch their poop right into it so they break it down for you and mix it in. There's very little to clean up and no odor. They don't need additional grit and everywhere is a dust bath.

Sand is fine in the desert, but in a wet area it will have an odor and is not ideal.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

We get heavy rains and flooding and there's no odor. Now if you're referring to someplace that's perpetually wet, that may be, I wouldn't know about that.

 

[Farmgirl1878]

If you were a chicken, which environment would you want to be pecking around in all day - a "desert" made of sand, or a "forest floor" made of organic materials?

I'm in the "use organic materials" camp - so wood chips, leaves, straw, shavings, clippings, etc. Never have I been like "I wonder if this is the right kind of organic materials?" like I always see people asking about sand of all things, lol. There's no cleaning, the poops mix in and don't smell, you simply just let it all mix in with the native soil and keep adding more materials through the year, maybe water it on occasion in hot weather. It attracts small insects, microorganisms, LOTS of worms and actually improves the soil there. After time, it's a beautiful humus underneath the top layer, and can be used in the garden.
That's my on sand, lol

Except if you have a lot of clay in the, for lack of a better term, soil. We use natural, washed, coarse grain river sand from the Scioto River. We don’t even have enough “soil” to have a leach bed - we have to have our own personal water treatment plant for the house. So sand is perfect for our needs. It’s hot, humid, wet, sticky clay otherwise and the compost would never mix in.

Personally, I love the sand as I just use a long handled metal wok spider to scoop the poop. The sandy poo goes in the poop pile to mellow then gets tilled into the raised bed gardens. Works like a charm!

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Except if you have a lot of clay in the, for lack of a better term, soil. We use natural, washed, coarse grain river sand from the Scioto River. We don’t even have enough “soil” to have a leach bed - we have to have our own personal water treatment plant for the house. So sand is perfect for our needs. It’s hot, humid, wet, sticky clay otherwise and the compost would never mix in.

Personally, I love the sand as I just use a long handled metal wok spider to scoop the poop. The sandy poo goes in the poop pile to mellow then gets tilled into the raised bed gardens. Works like a charm!

We use a long-handled cat litter box scoop. It works perfectly on sand. Easy-peasy.