Chicken Coops for Sale in Blairstown, New Jersey
Chicken Coops for Sale in Blairstown, New Jersey
Sand Litter Bed In The Chicken Coop: An Experiment
We’ve been managing our chicken coop through a . This hybrid system has worked extremely well in . Briefly, how that system works is, the chickens roost over the sand, which acts like kitty litter to dry out their overnight poop, and in the morning the poop is raked to the lower area, where it composts-in-place with lots of straw and other high-carbon bedding.
Last year, fed up with the very real problems involved when you combine chickens and vegetable gardening, we decided to stop attempting to free-range our birds and instead fenced in a large, outdoor area adjacent to the coop. We confined the hens to this area (the ducks, less destructive, still get to free range) and this solved many of our chickens-scratching up-my-seedlings problems.
Too Much Of A Good Thing?
However, this confined run area led to another problem. This is a good problem, a problem I cannot believe I have, but it’s a problem nonetheless. In order to accommodate our flock in this confined area, we piled on the straw and woodchips in both the coop’s lower area, and the outdoor run.
This has led to, basically, more compost than I can use. Yeah, I have too much compost. Crazy, right? I didn’t know there was such thing as too much compost.
When I hauled out all the deep litter and piled it up, it looked like this.
And it’s not just dealing with storing Mount Compost Heap up there. The bedding was building up so deeply in both the coop and the run that we started to have problems just opening the door to the coop. The chickens weren’t super effective at scratching down to the lowest levels, and I’m embarrassed to say that some anaerobic ickiness was starting to take place in the deeper levels of the bedding.
Something needed to change.
Trying something new.
Is Sand A Solution?
In order to manage these drawbacks, we are experimenting with a sand bed in the run area of the coop. The fenced outdoor chicken area will still be managed as a deep litter system, with arborists woodchips and straw added as needed for carbon.
But inside the coop itself, I’m trying sand.
I had help raking out the new sand.
I see several potential upsides to a sand bed, and a few downsides as well.
Pros:
- Sand bed is lower profile, so we’re able to open the door without hassle.
- Seems drier in winter due to superior drainage.
- Spilled chicken food is less likely to get “lost” in the bedding. I’ve observed chickens pecking at the food that falls on the sand. Less food waste = less feed expense.
- Sand adds natural grit to a chicken’s diet and sharpens nails
- Probably less expensive in the long-term, since sand doesn’t require frequent additions or “top-ups” like a deep litter system.
- May allow for indoor dust-bathing. I have not observed my hens using the sand to dust bathe, but I’ve read that they will.
- May cut down on opportunities for Coccidiosis in chickens by providing an inhospitable environment for the protozoa.
- Easy collection of poop allows for a more dedicated manure-composting system, which might be of use to people looking at black soldier fly farming (hem hem, me) or related endeavors.
When the hens spill feed, they can pick it up now.
Cons:
- Cold. The sand does not add to the warmth of the coop like the composting bedding. The sand feels noticeably colder to me when I touch it, and I’m not even walking around barefoot like my chooks. Cold is a drawback here in January. However, to chicken keepers in hot weather climates, perhaps a non-heat generating litter option would be a benefit?
- Requires more regular dedicated maintenance. We’re already in the daily habit of scooping the poop from the sand covered upper coop area, so this doesn’t add a huge amount of work to that chore, but it’s definitely not the kind of job you can ignore for several
weeksdays. - Does not break down into compost. Unless your chickens already make more compost than you can use, less compost is a bad thing.
- The ducks don’t seem happy about the sand, but then ducks don’t like change, so I don’t read too much into this yet.
- Duck poop doesn’t scoop well. The front runner of Reasons I May Go Back To Deep Litter is wet duck poop on sand. Ewww.
- The poop has to go somewhere. In the prior system we just scrapped the upper poop onto the composting bedding. Now the upper and lower poop have to go somewhere. At the moment we’re scraping the poop out the door into the outdoor run area, but this experiment of sand-bedding the indoor run has triggered a re-evaluation of all my manure and compost management practices. So, simple change.
As of now, I have more questions than answers. I’ll let you know how the sand bed works out going forward.
Chicken Coop Kits Cheap in Blairstown, New Jersey
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Blairstown New Jersey" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Blairstown New Jersey chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Blairstown, New Jersey With the significant rise in poultry maintaining there has been a just as huge surge in the range of chicken materiel on sale. Poultry real estate is a case in factor. It's also a timeless example of the great old bandwagon being jumped on as various potential fowl housing professionals peddle an array of accommodation claiming to be the excellent option to your chicken real estate needs. Commonly the rate looks desirable, your diy-chicken-coop-planshome looks eye-catching, heck also the clean-cut family standing there feeding the chickens look attractive. Surely they know a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are many low-cost and awful cages swamping the marketplace. I recognize this as I've checked a variety of them in the field, as well as seen a ewe run straight through one when the feed bucket showed up. The result was nothing but a costly stack of firewood and also a small flock of bemused as well as currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop For 6 Chickens in Blairstown, New Jersey
More often than not these standardized models are constructed of fast grown up hardwood - come the first decrease of rain they swell, leaving you either fortifying a door that won't shut, or ripping the doorway furniture off in a vain attempt to release the squawking inhabitants. The initial cozy day means the wood dries out as well as fractures, the felt roofing system bubbles as well as boils, as well as come nightfall the hens refuse to enter. This is not due to their frustration at the decline of their once attractive residential property but due to the fact that the hovel is currently a sanctuary for, and most likely crawling with, the chicken caretaker's bane, red mite. Add the fact that it stated on the blurb that it would certainly suit 4 big hens when that stocking thickness was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and what are you left with? A couple of hinges and some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to 4 birds need to cost you around ₤ 300 though this can rely on whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run attached. Assuming you are varying your birds in a large space and the pop opening doorway allows sufficient for the type you keep, then the major requirements of real estate boil down to three points which will define the number of birds the house will certainly hold; perches, nest boxes and also air flow. Most breeds of chicken will perch when they visit roost in the evening, this perch should preferably be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off edges so the foot sits easily on it. The perch must be above the nest box entry as chickens will certainly likewise normally try to find the highest point to perch. A perch lower than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they generate one of the most poo) causing stained eggs the following day. They shouldn't nonetheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries can happen when the bird comes down in the morning. Chickens need regarding 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is clearly much less), plus if greater than one perch is installed in your house they should be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Preferably your house should have a least one nest box for each three birds and also these must be off the ground as well as in the darkest area of your house. The house ought to have appropriate air flow: without it after that condensation will certainly build up every night, even in the coldest of weather condition. Be aware, air flow deals with the concept of warm and comfortable air leaving with a high gap attracting cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a set of openings on opposite wall surfaces of your house and also at the exact same level, this is just what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run attached after that the factors above are still real, yet you must likewise consider the run size. The EU maximum lawful stocking thickness for a totally free range bird is (as well as let's encounter it, one of the inspirations for maintaining some chickens at home is possibly enhanced or much better welfare) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird each 4m made even. Take a close look at a few of the bargain residences - it could well be the house has the appropriate perches, correct ventilation and sufficient nest boxes for an affordable number of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to invest the day on? Therefore as the saying goes, "you obtain what you pay for". You might think you've got hold of a bargain, yet you as well as your flock could possibly rue the day you did. Acquisition the ideal house as well as it will last for a couple of years, if not longer offered the right therapy. In the end your fowl and also your chicken maintaining experience will certainly be considerably the better for it.coops chick
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