Flossieflipflop Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I have an Eglu cube, a WIR and I’ve had my four chickens 2 weeks today. I’ve been emptying the poop trays every three days or so, putting in fresh newspaper and dusting them with red mite powder. I’ve poo-picked the run and replaced the bedding a couple of times (again with some red mite powder). Today I took the roof, back and divider out and scrubbed it all inside and out with hot water (with a bit of Ecover). I cleaned the perches and the poop trays the same way. I sprayed everything with a poultry disinfectant and left it all to dry in the sun. I sprinkled red mite powder over the perches and in the new bedding before putting the back and roof back on. Sprinkled some hygiene powder on the ground in the run and some mite powder in the 2 dust baths they have. I was going to do this every 2 weeks. Is this ok or should it be every week? Is there anything else I should be doing as part of a regular clean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat tails Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 My plan was to wash my Go every week too... But especially in winter, this wasn't going to happen. It just takes to long for everything to dry and I don't want to put things back damp. I also don't have a water point outside, so getting the hose out, is too much of a hassle. I took the (slightly silly sounding) advice from one of the other Omleteers here and clean my roosting bars and poop drawer with wet wipes twice a week. Works like a charm. It's not incredibly wet so takes very little time to dry, even in wet weather. (And it smells nice too! ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PixieDust Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I have a wooden coop and have been advised not to clean the coop with any water during colder weather as the coop will get too damp. However, I clean out the slide out tray every day and because of the damp issue I wipe the roosting perches with anti bac wipes. To be fair, my girls don't make a huge mess of the coop. The pop hole is always clean. Before I got the girls I was warned they would poop all over the walls and probably never make a mess on the floor lol. Anti bac wipes are a life saver! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckmum6 Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I do my two cubes and Go up once a week. I wash the roosting bars, swap them with the spares I have in the shed, this means no drying needed. Empty, wash if needed the poop trays, refill with sawdust. I brush out the insides and spray with V1, a disinfectant. Empty and refill the washing up bowls I use in the cubes for laying and put them all back together. I say I, I do enlist now unwilling teenaged owners to help too! They are just waiting for their hens to die off!!!!! Gone are the days of them cuddling their chickens, they are more interested in xbox than egg box! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I think everyone has a regime that suits them, here goes mine....when letting the girls out in the morning in poo pick the trays and wipe over the roosting bars with baby wipes, it takes two minutes and keeps them nice and fresh In the winter I do the following every two weeks or so and in the summer I do it weekly. I remove all the bedding , wash with hot soapy water then rinse, spray with poultry shield, I leave that for at least an hour, rinse and dry and put everything back together. I use auboise in the trays and nest box, it's very absorbent, I wouldn't use newspaper personally, I puff DE literally everywhere, especially all the little nooks and a big dollop in the nest box and sprinkle ground sanitiser in the litter trays, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickabee Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Sounds like your doing a fine job. Maybe over doing it with the red mite powder. It's a good idea to put some in the dust bath. Diatomaceous Earth is probably a cheaper alternative. I don't put newspaper in my pull out trays, as I find the poop doesn't dry. I just use a wallpaper s"Ooops, word censored!"er to remove the droppings, they then go straight into my compost bin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Sounds good to me. I empty the poo tray of my Go most days, clean and Nettex the run weekly, and pressure wash and disinfect the Go every 2 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rosecork Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Sounds very thorough. In my Go I change the paper in the poo tray twice a week, poo pick the run once a week, and only pressure wash it every 4-5 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat tails Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I don't own a pressure washer, so ladies will have to do with a bucket and a brush. If only I could find chicken sized brushes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mimi5 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 You'll find your own routine One thing I can recommend is a spare set of roosting bars for the cube. It makes cleaning really quick in bad/cold weather! I empty the poo trays more frequently in the winter months, as with the long dark nights they spend more time in the coop I love my cube It is Soooo easy to clean Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flossieflipflop Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 Thanks for that, everyone. Really interesting to hear how each of you have your own regimes. It sounds as though what I'm doing will be ok to keep my lovely girls happy and healthy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
