Ammonia smell in coop-first time owner

[PixieDust]

Just wondering how much Poultry Shield should be sprayed in them during a weekly clean, especially during cold winter months as the coop needs to dry out?

 

I don't currently have a spare coop. I intend to re - creosote the coop in the summer and house the girls in a dog crate for a few days. But this isn't suitable in the winter.

 

Advice appreciated.

[Beantree]

We never spray ours with anything inside unless we can be absolutely sure it has completely dried out before the chickens go back in PixieDust. A damp coop is asking for respiratory infections. We don't use Poultry Shield either and they certainly don't get a weekly clean. We poo pick every day and brush the dust out if it gets noticeable and basically that's it. Every year the coops are dismantled and painted internally with a 50:50 mix of traditional creosote and paraffin to protect from red mite (dries faster but just as effective). So we have one spare (plastic) coop that does the rounds while the panels are drying, which can take two or more weeks. Very important the fumes have gone sufficiently or the birds will be poisoned as I was once applying the stuff with insufficient ventilation. We don't creosote the perches on the top, just the ends and underneath.

[miller30]

Hi I drench mine in the summer but unless I need to I don't spray in the winter unless its a nice windy day and I know the house will be dry leanne