Sand in the Chicken Coop — The Sand Litter Method
When we added chickens to our homestead, we decided to go with the deep litter method in our chicken coop. You can read more about that here. But, after a hot summer, we were having issues with flies and an ammonia smell that was just intolerable. We were definitely bummed because we had such hope for the deep litter method and the lack of having to constantly clean the coop out. Work smarter not harder, right?
This led to more research and coming across information about sand in chicken coops. Homesteading is a learning game after all. I’m sure the deep litter method works for many, we just really struggled with the deep litter method during the hot summer months.
Why would you use sand in a chicken coop?
I had that same question! But now I ask, why wouldn’t you? I’ve listed a few of our favorite reasons to use sand in the coop.
- Less smell
- Cleaner chickens
- Cleaner coop
- Cleaner nesting boxes
- Source for dust baths
- Natural grit
- Low moisture
- Low ammonia
- Less bacteria
- Easy cleaning
The type of sand is important!
It is very important to use a medium or coarse grain sand in your coop. Just think about what natural sand looks like. The grains are larger and there are usually tiny pebbles. Play sand, beach sand, etc. is actually too fine to use in coops and can cause respiratory and crop issues in chickens. It is also too fine to absorb enough moisture.
We found sand at our local home improvement store for around $5 for a bag. Not bad! You can find bulk sand at most landscaping companies as well.
You will want a depth of about 3 to 4 inches of sand in your coop. Determining how much sand you need might feel like it’ll be a bit of an upfront expense, but we feel like it is more affordable in the long run since we don’t have to add sand very often. We got to the point where we were having to add pine shavings almost weekly to help with the smell and the flies.
How to clean the coop
We purchased this handy little scoop. I would definitely recommend something with a larger scoop because this does take us a bit to clean with. We will eventually upgrade or make something to help make cleaning less time consuming.
We clean the coop every week. We just scoop the poo like you would scoop a kitty litter box and sift the sand. It is so simple and doesn’t take very long. Just a quick word of advice, we recommend making sure you have proper ventilation and potentially wearing something to cover your face while you scoop because it can get pretty dusty. We’ve learned this from a few unfortunate dusty moments…**cough, cough**.
Keep in mind, you might need to add a little sand as time goes on. You do lose a small amount of sand as it clumps to the poo. It is also important to do a deep clean and switch out your sand yearly.
Why we love the sand litter method
First of all, the smell! There is hardly a smell even when the coop really needs a good cleaning. We immediately noticed way less flies. It has also kept our chickens, the coop and their nesting boxes much cleaner. We do still use pine shavings in their nesting boxes, but the sand just keeps everything cleaner. Chickens love sand for dust baths and it is also a great source for grit. Sand keeps the coop moisture and ammonia levels down and there is less bacteria present in sand.
We feel like it also makes the coop really easy to clean! Yes, you do have to scoop it out every few days or each week, but it really doesn’t take much time.
Important reminders
- Sand bedding is only effective in covered coops that do not leak or have excess moisture.
- You do need to scoop the poop every week.
- The type of sand is important! Medium/coarse sand is perfect.
- A yearly cleaning to remove all old sand and place new sand is important.
- Be careful not to breath lots of dust while you scoop the coop.
When you use the sand litter method correctly, your hens will thank you….and I really think you’ll appreciate this method too. 🙂
