sour smell

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ok, this happens a couple times a year,,, a start to get a sour smell in the coop,, Ive tried lime,, sawdust,, but, nothing "takes it away". Mostly happens around the waterers,, and sometimes the ground will rise up, like bread rising or something. Only thing I can do is dig down, and remove the "offending" area. My coop is on the ground, and the soil isnt very good. Mostly sand,,and things dont decompose well. Ive been waiting 2 years for my compost to work its magic. Alot of carbon, mostly oak leaves piled up. DOes anyone else get this "smell"? what do you do to get rid , or help it stay away?

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), August 11, 2002

Answers

Stan , I don't know if this would work , but you might try getting some earth worms and put down a layer of hay first. Than add the earth worms . This might work like a composting toilet .I 've never seen a composting toilet , but I've heard they are oder-less. Than because this is where your chickens are you would first need to build a frame out of 2 x 4 s , about 3 ft. square and attach some 1/2 inch caging mesh and put the waterers on top of them .The hay and worms would be under the mesh waterer platforms and would protect the worms from being eatin by the chickens. You could dig up the worms from around your place and use dry lawn clippings in place of hay .

-- SM Steve (Unreal@home.com), August 11, 2002.

The worms would have a tough time in the wastes and straw as they aren't precomposted and would migrate to a friendlier environment

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), August 11, 2002.

I think you should dig it down, a foot would be good but if you aren't that motivated, just dig the yucky stuff out and level it. Then backfill with chat. You do need at least..ohhhhhh, six inches, or so. It will really help. It makes things much easier to clean, and is an inexpensive "fix".

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow@aol.com), August 11, 2002.

Stan I get the same thing. I found that my stinky problem came from the feed that was apparently under or around the feeders. When the water & heat got mixed in we made a chicken version of home brew.:) I clean the coop every couple of weeks but in the heat I notice the smell will start to get strong after a few days. My chickens are vigorous 'scratchers' & toss feed everywhere so it gets near the waterers and then either molds or ferments causing an interesting sour/alcohol smell. I thought about putting some sand down around the waterer to absorb the excess moisture but I don't know if the chickens would eat it. Lime didn't work for more than a day. Grass clippings worked for about 2 -3 days but they are a mess to clean up. I now am trying something new;I put a plasitc lid from a storage container under the waterer to catch the excess spills. I empty it each day and I'm hoping it will help. I just started doing that last Thursday after walking into a coop that smelled like a brewery.

-- Kathy Aldridge (beckoningwinds@yahoo.com), August 11, 2002.

I didnt realize it was brewing,, but it makes sense. LAst winter I use alot of hay inside the coop, this year I was going to try sawdust, (another freebie),, the hay was heavy and by spring was hard to clean out,, but it composted well,, well enough for me to add it to the garden this year. Wondering how the sawdust will be to clean out,, since I only use the "poor mans backhoe"

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), August 12, 2002.


Gosh some of you folks like to work hard! :)

As for me, I usually take the easiest route!

I've pretty much raised every kinda critter there is, and with all of em', I found the best way for me was the deep bedding method.

My experience was, when there was a stink, there was a deficiency of carbon. Onliest thing I used most of the time was straw or hay; sometimes I used shavings if they were easy and cheap to get hold of. Have lots of straw/hay available; add it a couple times a week, there is absolutely no offensive odor. Smells great!!

I cleaned all my barns ONCE A YEAR!! Course it *is* a big job, but its only once a year, and the best set-up is if you can get a machine in there for that once-a-year cleaning!

Many a year I cleaned out all the pens with just a pitchfork and shovel; its very hard but honest work.........havin some children to do it for ya helps! In any case, its great natural exercise! And oh mercy, how wonderfully rich that stuff is that you haul outa there!

-- earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), August 13, 2002.


Earthmama , we all knew that , we were just pretenting we couldn't find a reasonable solution as to draw you out of hiding. It worked.

-- SM Steve (Unreal@home.com), August 13, 2002.

Haha, Steve! I'm not really hiding though; just didn't have anything to say!

I forgot to mention that the deep bedding method also helps keep the critters warmer in winter, cuz it gives off heat as it decomposes.

-- earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), August 13, 2002.


I use pine shavings that I buy at the feed store. I think it absorbs any moisture and helps with the smell. I still need to clean out the coop every couple of weeks, though.

I have a hen that seems to have gone blind. Has anyone heard of this and what may have caused it? Thanks.

-- Ed Capella (edcapella@direcway.com), August 19, 2004.


"going blind",, do you mean the eyes have "grayed" over,, or is she just banging into things? If its grayed over,, most likely its due to an injury of the eye,, stuck by a twig or something

-- Stan (sopal@net-pert.com), August 20, 2004.


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