Deep Litter System

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dianefairhall

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Forgive me if I've missed it but I've searched the FAQs and found nothing. I'd like to hear about this system from someone who uses it/has used it , please. I've read a lot but the online accounts are full of 'ifs and buts'. I think it might be a method that would work for me. :)
 
I use it in my two big sheds - and it works very well as long as you have very good ventilation so that the litter stays dry. As to whether it could be called a true deep litter system I'm not sure.

My bedding goes down in October, and is then kept turned over by the birds and me, with fresh litter being put on top. There is no smell, the litter is dry (if it starts to get damp, usually because of rain blowing in through the mesh door - I just add more dry litter) and I clean it out come April. If there are big bits of damp litter under the perches, (I don't use boards under the perches) I just lift it out and dump in the compost bin. I also sprinkle Stalosan F on the floor when I first put the bedding in, and every so often a light sprinkling when forking over, to keep it all sweet.

The birds come through winter looking good, and because they are quite large sheds, it keeps them a lot warmer too. The upside is that the litter that comes out of there is usually well broken down and almost ready to go on the garden. The downside is that the little looks quite dark and dirty, so it doesn't reflect light like new litter does.

The bedding I use is Rapport. There is also a small amount of straw in there, as I do sometimes put some in to give the girls an incentive to scratch around in the litter and keep it open. It breaks down into quite small pieces and while straw is known for red mite and being damp, it is in such small quantities in comparison to the rest of the litter, that I have not had a problem.

I've been using the system over winter for the last three or four years. My smaller coops operate on a similar system, but are cleaned out every five or six weeks.
 
I have used a system like Philcott describes for years, using shavings which are topped up when they look a bit jaded and I clean out any damp patches regularly. If it gets a bit matted, I run a fork through it, put more shavings in and the birds do the rest. I don't use any other additives. It lasts for months when a big clean out occurs. This is my definition of deep litter and it's a well tried system used for other forms of livestock as well.

I think you can only do this with large sheds, though it could be tried with smaller coops. as an experiment.
 
In a small coop, I think you need to be sure there is good ventilation. A build up of ammonia fumes will not be good for the health of the hens.
 
I agree with chuck - but Stalosan will help keep the ammonia down in the litter. BUT you must bung your face in the coop of a morning, when you first open it up and make sure that it is not smelly or fuggy - those are warning signs! You also have to be very careful about checking for red mite too don't forget! They can live in the litter if they get a hold on the coop!
 
Are we talking about covered sheds here, such as Chuck or Philcott might use to shelter large numbers of birds in bad weather or over winter, or 'coops' as in the small box- like places where a few hens such as Diane's would roost overnight?
With up to about 8 hens it would be easier just to keep a coop clean on a daily basis I should think, rather than let it build up. Also if they're roosting over the litter, they don't need it to pile up to keep them warm and comfortable as they're not in contact with it. And especially in summer you'd need to constantly check the coop for redmite so couldn't leave it for long.
Or maybe Diane was actually asking what was best to put on the floor of the run? This partly depends on whether the run is going to be dry and covered, of course, because if so it would possibly be suitable for deep litter, but I'm not sure if this would be so good in an open-topped run where it would get wet and soggy quite fast.
 
Marigold, I use deep litter in both my big sheds, and my smaller coops (housing trios). I don't have time to give a daily clean to my coops (I've got 30 odd) so use the deep litter system as the poop from overnight piles up under the perch and I just pick it off every three or four days and pop some clean litter in to keep the 'floor cover' deep enough. This gives me time to enjoy my chickens, my own life and without feeling I have to be cleaning on a daily basis. As I am sure you know, chickens can take over your life leaving you no time at all for oneself.

As I said in my original post, I only use deep litter in the coops and sheds over winter, cleaning out in March/April for just the red mite reason! :) The warmth given off from the bedding breaking down does make a huge difference in the ambient temps in the sheds and coops. Ventilation is very important, because you need the warmth without the fug!

When asked about the deep litter system, and as no mention was made of runs, I took it too mean undercover, as straw yards are usually used outside to keep static runs clean in the wet. I've not heard of deep litter systems in outside runs.

As always, what works for one, does not necessarily mean that it will work for another. :)
 
Entirely agree with you, Philcott, and it's interesting, as always, to see how different solutions can work well in different circumstances. What takes me a maximum of 5 minutes a day to change the top layers of newspaper below the perches in my coop would obviously be quite a different task if I had more than 4 hens to look after, let alone as many as you. It's just that sometimes we aren't always c;lear about what terms we are all using, especially when talking about 'runs' and 'coops' and i wondered exactly what Diane was meaning in her enquiry.
 
Marigold is correct, I did actually mean a covered run, sorry. I don't have an awful lot of room so can't keep moving it, and read about this and thought it was a solution. It is my intention that the birds will be let into the garden during daylight hours and will only be in the run when feeding or if it's raining. The roost coop has a pull-out tray so should be easy to clean regularly but I thought that if I could put down something like bark in the run this would prevent the ground from becoming a mud-bath. I apologise again - "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing". :oops:

This is the coop/run I've chosen:

http://www.chickencoopsdirect.com/chicken-houses.htm
 
I have a covered run and coop for 8 chooks. Coop used to be meticulously cleaned out every day of Poop but Winter came and dark evenings and no time. There was weekends but Talking to my Uncle that used to run a chicken farm- he told me to try putting lots of shavings in the coop and just turn them every few days. He warned me about the Ammonia smell but that it would go after a few weeks. It did. The floor is now covered in a deep rich brown covering that does not smell and gets turned by the chooks. I Clean it out in October and April and the Litter goes on the compost heap for about 3 months before being used in the garden.

The run is Just soil. Once a month I turn over half the run with a fork and next month the other half. Rain ingress does happen but it only flooded once last winter when we had 2" in 2 hours and the water table rose dramatically. Even then I forked it over next day and it dried completely within a day or so. The chickens love the soil and dust bath's can appear anywhere that I have dug over recently. The soil level does raise a bit and this is put on the compost when it gets too high.

My concern was the possibility of smell and it did happen for a couple of weeks but since the "Enzymes" got working it no longer happens.
 
Must clarify too. When I answered, I was talking about roosting areas, coops or sheds. Even a covered run such as the one illustrated will not suit deep litter because it is not rain proof and if rainwater blows in as it wiil or soaks in from the bottom, it will create a wet and smelly mess. It needs to be on grass and moved regularly or concrete or slabs.
 
Agree with the others, outside covered runs are no good for deep litter. I use straw in my covered runs and the chooks love to have a good scratch through it. This is over dry earth so the whole lot gets turned over by the birds. They make huge dust baths in mix and have a whale of a time! :)
 
dianefairhall said:
Looks like a rethink is necessary. If I put the pen on hard standing, do I have to put straw or bark on the floor of the run?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't suggest you use bark as it stays damp for a long time and can get a fungus which could affect your birds. My suggestion would be hard wood chips on hard standing. Some folk have used rubber chippings too. If your pen is covered you can get away with straw, easibed etc. but it would need to be changed quite often.
 
We use coarse wood chippings outside in the fixed runs. When they rot down we add more. Usually English hardwood from a local landscape contractor. Have some to collect this month.

We considered making our own chips, but the little machines rotate quickly aand produce fine chips which are no good, they rot down too fast. The £2000 + machines produce big chips.

We have one coop and run where we put the old aubiose bedding. But that goes soggy first rain and rots down in weeks.
 
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