We finally are almost finished building our chicken coop - a triangle shaped one based off a plan for a chicken tractor, but slightly larger. Just a little too large to easily move.
The question I have is, we were originally planning on leaving the floor dirt (clay dirt with several years of mesquite droppings over it) with a heavy layer of bedding when we thought this would be a tractor. Can I still do this, and just replace the bedding regularly, or will I have a sanitary drainage problem? And how often should I replace the bedding (planning on using it in my compost after the chickens get done pooping in it).
My husband is a little shy about me posting a picture of the coop until it's painted and finished :) BTW - what type of exterior paint should I use on it? I want to give it a little more weather resistance!
Thanks in advance for your advice!
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Thanks! That answers alot of questions! And the test studies will make my husband happy :)
I kind of figured chickens would naturally pick at anything that looked like it might be a bug or seed - especially if they get bored or "peckish".
Great idea Chris :)
Turns out I am going to have to do some sort of floor after all - we seem to have a rat problem in the neighborhood. I think I will enclose the base in chicken wire under the litter since I don't have any handy political signs :)
That's great news Chris! It's got a completely closed section for roosting, and a partially sheltered section enclosed with chicken wire (1/2 roof for sun shelter-we can throw a tarp over if it rains) that they can use at will when they are not roosting. So I should be fine for deep littering. How deep? And is it allright to use leaves(fig) and lawn clippings? Or do I need to get hay or wood chips?
We need to at least shellack the outside for weatherproofing -it's mainly plywood (not particleboard) construction and the wood will warp and separate and we'll be doing this again in a year or two. The area it will be in gets plenty of shade- but we get alot of rain during the storms. We're fairly close to Camelback Mountain, and it "funnels" over us at times. So I'm doing everything I can to waterproof the exterior. We've already sprayed the interior with a clear, non drippy coat of spray "spar"paint. I've painted before - so we are not going to end up with many drips for the chickens to pick at.
So fun to get to a finished coop! I am sure someone much more knowledgable about chicken sanitation will respond, but you might really try to make it mobile - maybe put some type of bracket on the sides - front and back that you could slip some 2 x 2's or 2 x 4's under to carry it, aka rickshaw style. Or maybe put some wheelbarrow wheels on the back, and have the ability to roll it almost like a wheelbarrow. That would make it handy to move in the case of too much water, too much sun, etc.
When we first got into this venture, I remember reading that if you have a stationary coop, that the chickens are in all the time, the ground underneath it can almost become toxic due to the high concentration of uric acid and nitrogen - and they can get a little smelly, and attract flies. Good Luck!
We CAN move it - but it's not going to be a daily (or even weekly!) procedure. Between the weight, and our fear of pulling it apart, I don't expect us to move it more than once every 6 months. Possibly once a year.
What do folks who have stationary coops do? We COULD still add a floor if we need to at this point. Or I could layer the dirt underneath with fish tank gravel or something to help drainage. I do plan on cleaning the coop regularly.
FYI - the chickens will probably be "free range" in the back yard at least part of every day. We are planting clover and flax in the majority of the backyard for their enjoyment. :)