Tired of cleaning the chicken coop week after week? Are you afraid to buy garbage on a boat? Looking for ways to make your life easier and lighter and reduce your workload? Then the deep diffusion method is for you!
Farmers and businesses around the world use the deep litter method on the floor of poultry houses because it simply makes sense.
Read on to find out why thick litter is the best choice for your poultry house!
This article contains links to partners.
The deep diffusion method in short.
What is DeepLaval Litter?
This method starts with a few centimetres of manure on the floor of the henhouse. When the hens put on their nest, the litter is mixed and extra litter is added from above. The bedding is of course turned over by chickens rooting in the nest, and if they need a little help turning around, they can be turned over with forks every few weeks. By rotating the litter, the nitrogen-rich waste is buried in a carbon-rich litter, which makes it excellent for composting.
Why use the deep litter method?
With deep litter you only have to clean the chicken coop a few times a year and change the litter. If you buy manure for your chickens, you can save money with this method. Another big advantage is that it saves time and energy. We like to call it the lazy farming method because it greatly reduces the time and effort needed to raise the chicks.
10 Other good reasons to try deep litter for chickens:
- Clean and hygienic.
- A surprisingly unpleasant smell.
- Deep litter means that healthy chickens are less likely to suffer from coccidia.
- It isolates the chicken coop and makes it warmer in winter.
- This saves time.
- The deep diffusion method is much less effective.
- You’re getting incredible garden compost.
- Scratches give chickens something to do when they are raised.
- Microbes in the deep garbage prevent parasites and diseases.
- It’s no more than normal.
Use of the deep garbage method for the easy-care capsule
1. Put about 5 centimetres of waste on the bare floor of the chicken coop. Pine shavings are the best material for deep bedding, but shredded leaves also work perfectly.
2. If the first layer is dirty, stir it and turn it over to remove the waste. Depending on the size of your herd and the amount of time it spends in the barn, this step may already have been taken for you.
3. Add a few centimetres more at the top of the first layer.
4. If this nappy is dirty, turn it over and add another nappy.
5. Keep going until it’s time to clean up. Some deep litter users only clean the chicken coop once a year, about four times a year. In autumn we clean the chicken coop, and in autumn we clean the spring and the deep litter in between.
6. When it is time to clean up, remove most of the waste and leave a 1-2 inch layer at the bottom of the shed. This thin layer captures microbes and nematodes that help the next layer of debris to start composting. If you do it right, your chicken coop shouldn’t smell like ammonia. If so, increase ventilation and use more debris or turn around more often.
That’s really all there is!
Some more tips for making successful chicken litter from deep litter
– In spring, immediately after a good deep cleaning of the poultry house, start with the deep litter method. It is preferable to remove the waste deep in a chicken coop with a dirty floor, but this can also be done successfully on concrete or wood. Make sure there is sufficient ventilation in your shed before starting to dispose of waste in depth. This allows ammonia to escape from the chicken coop without poisoning your chickens.
– Never use cedar chips on the floor of the henhouse. This can cause breathing problems in chickens.
If your chickens are lazy, they may not take enough turns and you’ll have to fill them once in a while, but that’s definitely better than cleaning the cage every week, right? Treat yourself and your chickens to a method of deep shooting in your chicken coop. You’ll love it!
Have a look at our Deep Litter FAQ page if you have any questions about applying the deep litter method in your poultry house.
deep litter chicken coop design,deep litter method vs sand
Disclosure: We are a professional review company & our reviews are not biased towards any of the products we review. We test each product thoroughly and give marks to only the very best that is given by our author. We are very independently owned & the opinions expressed here are our own. However, if you purchase anything after clicking the links present in the articles then we get some commissions for it which help maintaining the websites expenses like servers, security etc.