Before I get this whole thing going, I'm trying to be prepared for absolutely every possible thing that can go wrong. (hahahaha)
I use vinegar and baking soda, etc., to clean my house. What about the coop? I really don't want to spritz it down with bleach! I do plan to keep it clean as far as mucking it out while the hens are running around the pen; it's not big enough for me to actually go in, but it opens up entirely in the front. Would straight vinegar ruin the wood? I believe it will kill the germs, but if it rots the coop out, well, hmmm... Anybody know? All suggestions are welcome.
Suggestions for coop cleaner?
Well, if I were you, I'd buy some of what they call "tile board" from the hardware store. It's about $15-20 a sheet. The sheets are 4 x 8 feet. Cut pieces of the sheet to size for the walls of the coop. Slide them into place and voila, you have a water-resistant, easy-to-clean surface. You could also use some in the floor. Again, very easy to clean. I used press-apply vinyl floor tiles for the surface areas. I got them at a yard sale for $2 for a whole box of 30 or so.
Then, you can use the vinegar/water solution, or any other type of cleaner that you want. The main thing with the tile board is you want to silicone the edges so that the water doesn't seep in from the side.
I have linolium in the bottom of my coop and tile board on the side walls most way up. I am not sure if that would soak into the wood and ruin it. I guess if you dont soak it and let it dry out really good it may be okay, but I would rather leave that to the pros. Is it pressure treated lumber? hmmm...
We have a box under our roost, That was the best advice anyone ever gave me in the beginning. I am so glad I took it.
We built a side door, just like the egg door only it leads to inside the box and dh has a piece of metal he used as a floor (it doesn't rust) we've had 2 days of 50s so I scooped it out, first time in more than 3 months.. aghhh, perfect timing.. it was thawed enough to come right up and not too dry to be cement. And still just cold enough for no smell.. just perfect to clean the coop out weather.
My advice to pay it forward.. is what I learned this year.. even if it's not spring yet.. take the time to clean the coop out right when the temps warm up and before they get too warm.
I did a partial cleaning today.. all the chickens wouldn't go back in with new clean shavings! LOL
So its TOO clean ZZ? hehehe
A box is a great idea. You could pull it right out. ;)
I've only seen pictures of this coop. It's the chick-n-hutch from randall burkey. I don't know if it's plywood or what. Tile board sounds like a good idea; it would add some weight in case we get a hurricane, too!
my coop has a wire bottom, DH built it. under the wire bottom is an oil pan to catch the droppings, so once a week, I go pull the pan out, dump it in the poop bin and just slide it back into place ^_^
I got this one and put it up. The bottom, where the chickens will come into contact with it, is mesh, and there is a slide-out tray underneath. I'll dump it in the compost bin and that should take care of MOST of it.