Every spring and autumn we stock the chicken coop floor with a truck load of sand. This replaces the sand that is lost during the cleaning process throughout the year. As we clean the chicken poo off the floor we scrape some sand away each time. That chicken poo sand is stored in the old chicken feed bags you see outside the coop. We cycle the chicken sand manure so that this summers stuff will get used in next springs garden as soil additive.
This all means that we get excellent additive for our garden soil for plants like corn and potatoes etc… but it also means we have work to do in the early spring and late fall.
So here are some pictures of chicken coop floor maintenance…
This is 1600lbs of sand (about 400lbs to much for my truck, will be more careful next time)
Here is the chicken coop floor just after Addie cleaned it but before the new sand was added. We clean the coop every weekend 52 weeks a year no matter what the weather is like. The chickens prefer it this way.
See the chickens are happier with a clean floor. Just look at their smiles 🙂
So now the shoveling begins. This took awhile and several trips with buckets.
After the truck is basically emptied into the coop we now have to rake it out and smooth it about throughout the coop.
So here you go! A new sandy floor in the chicken coop for the winter…
Look at all those happy chickens.
Have a CLUCKY day 🙂
Looks a great method, and the sand mix is never wasted. Good thinking! Cluck……
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The chickens like it. It doesn’t hold water so it doesn’t really freeze in winter and get to cold for their feet. Sawdust freezes and clumps and gets real hard to clean in winter. The chickens also enjoy digging and playing in it.
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Loading & hauling those buckets is serious work. Imagine your neck & shoulders got a workout. The coop looks immaculate–know darn well that’s temporary. Would using a tamper help out on packing the sand floor? Refilling the feed sacks & stacking them for the spring garden good idea & repurposing materials is great in lieu of being sent to a landfill this a good ecological working homestead practice-thanks.
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we don’t tamp it down so the water and bird mess is easily drained through it. also we slowly scrape off the top as we clean each week. this makes it really easy to keep it neat and provide a safe healthy environment for the birds and us. It also gives us great fertilizer for the garden once it cools after resting for several months in the old feed bags.
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That’s AMAZING! A PROPER clean of the coop and the chickens are HAPPY chickens! ‘-)
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We keep happy chickens here 🙂
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