• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Art of Doing Stuff
menu icon
go to homepage
  • HOUSE
  • COOKING
  • GARDEN
  • HOW-TO
  • EXTRA
  • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • HOUSE
    • COOKING
    • GARDEN
    • HOW-TO
    • EXTRA
    • Subscribe
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
  • ×
    Home » Keeping Chickens

    ADVENTURES IN SPRING CLEANING A CHICKEN COOP, AND OTHER CRAP.

    May 24, 2016 by Karen 44 Comments

    Pin420
    Share
    Email
    420 Shares

    Spring-Cleaning-Coop-1

    Last week, just before I got the gumption to clean up my backyard, I cleaned up the chicken's backyard. Because again ... apparently their backyard had been struck by looters.  And really weird looters.  The kind who don't take anything, they just make everything messy, probably jump around in their underwear for a while, and then leave.

    spring-cleaning-coop-2

    The chickens don't care either way.  Right here they were actually talking about the mess in a conversation that went something like this:

    "Hey Mabel, have you noticed the mess?"

    "Not really Cheez Whiz, things look fine to me.  Wait!  Unless you were talking about Josephine's new tail feather.  In which case, R I D I C U L O U S."

    "Hey do you mind if I peck at your eyeball?"

    "Not at all."

    spring-cleaning-coop-3

    Having decided I couldn't leave a clean up decision to a group of animals that peck at each other's eyeballs and look straight at you while they poop in their water, I took it upon myself to decide it was time for the chicken coop's Spring Clean Up.

    To fool myself into thinking this job was going to be a fun job, I dragged out my fun pants.

     

    spring-cleaning-coop-6

    Even though chickens love dirt, there's a distinction between dirt and dirty.  Dirt is good for chickens, they bathe in it to cool down and get rid of mites.

    Poopy dirty is bad.  Dirty chicken water, roosting areas and nesting boxes can lead to disease, respiratory problems for the hens and neighbours throwing rotten goldfish at you.  Or whatever stinkfest they can chuck at you in a friendly "Your coop is gross and you'd better clean it up" gesture.

    IF YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE CHICKENS YOU HAVE TO DO A SPRING CLEANING

     

    Spring-Cleaning-coop-4

    The first thing I did was pull down the plexiglass I had covering the coop to keep the winter wind and snow out.  I find the best way to do this is to walk in a very unnatural, knock-kneed way.  Yes it's definitely best to do it that way.

     

     

    spring-cleaning-coop-7

    This is the time to add all that winter poop and straw to the composter.  Now that the weather is a bit warmer, it'll turn into compost in no time just by adding a bit of water to it.

    Would you like to save this stuff?

    We'll email you this post, so you can refer to it later.

    I hot compost my straw and chicken manure into good, useable compost in less than 30 days just by adding a bit of water to it.  It's good shit.

     

    spring-cleaning-coop-5

    At least twice a year I completely scrub and bleach my waterers, then add a splash of cider vinegar to them when I fill them up again.  I'm not totally sure of why I do this, but rumour has it it's good for the chickens. I have no proof of this other than reading crap on the Internet.  If you don't want to use bleach just disinfect with white vinegar instead.

     

    check-list

     

    spring-cleaning-coop-8

    Done.

     

    spring-cleaning-9

     

    Hey!  See my clear hose wrapped around something hanging off the fence?  It's a bucket.  It's one of my favourite DIYs ever.

     

    spring-cleaning-10

     

     

    the-art-of-doing-stuff-coop

     

    Want a galvanized bucket to keep your chicken scratch or birdseed in? It's technically an ash can.  Get it here.
    spring-cleaning-11

     

    "Hey Mabel.  Do you notice anything different around here?"

    "Huh? No.  Wait!  Unless you're talking about Karen's red pants.  Are you talking about her red pants?  In which case ... R I D I C U L O U S."

    More Keeping Chickens

    • How to Fold a Napkin In the Most Elegant Way
    • How to Winterize a Chicken Coop
    • How to Care for & Keep Backyard Chickens.
    • What's a Broody Hen and How To Stop It.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      The maximum upload file size: 512 MB. You can upload: image, audio. Links to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other services inserted in the comment text will be automatically embedded. Drop file here

    1. Joan

      April 09, 2025 at 10:46 pm

      Hi Karen,
      I'm sorry if this is a touchy subject, but I'm not sure what happened to your chickens. I always enjoyed hearing about them, as I also enjoy all your other exploits, but I sort of just recently twigged to the fact that you hadn't mentioned them in years. At least that's what it seems to me. Did you decide to stop, or did something happen?
      Thank you
      Joan

      Reply
    2. Mandi

      June 30, 2016 at 11:31 am

      Those galvanized bins are great for a bunch of uses around a property. I used one when I had dogs, to collect poo bags after pickup or after a walk (I hate those in the house, blech.) On trash day, I'd dump them into a bigger bag of house trash, and walk it all to the big bin. (I live in an area that requires double bagged pet waste.)

      Reply
    3. Lindsay

      June 23, 2016 at 1:16 pm

      Karen,
      What do you put in your dust bath bin? I am getting my pullets in a few weeks and would like to try that strategy. Thanks!

      Reply
      • Karen

        June 23, 2016 at 1:21 pm

        Hi Lindsay! I used to put regular dry garden soil mixed with a bit of Diatomaceous Earth, but there's some controversy over D.E. now so I'm stopping with it until I learn more. Right now I'm using dry, dry garden soil, any leftover dry potting soil I have and play sand. The chickens love it. Have fun with your pullets! ~ karen!

        Reply
        • Lindsay

          June 23, 2016 at 3:30 pm

          Thank you!

    4. Lavues

      June 10, 2016 at 11:37 pm

      Must be a real adventure but its looking great. Hopefully the chickens love the clean coop.

      Reply
    5. Leslie

      May 30, 2016 at 1:36 pm

      I love your chicken updates. Your girls are looking great. Adorable scratch bucket (ash can) with the lid! I got the cutest metal scoop from Premier1, it's like your scoop except the handle bends backwards to make it easier to scoop down in a bucket, and it can hang from the side of the bucket. It's so handy now I want one for my bulk kitchen ingredients, too.

      Reply
    6. Flash

      May 26, 2016 at 3:10 pm

      love the look of your coop

      Reply
    7. Elen G

      May 26, 2016 at 12:38 pm

      I just love your chickens. I have no intention of raising any chickens myself, but love your chickens just the same.

      Reply
    8. Kristy

      May 26, 2016 at 4:17 am

      Man, even the gates to your coop/run are cool... Our coop was thrown together with scrap wood and it's cool and all (the chickens like it) but it's not pretty. We've only had chickens since February and I think it's already time for a spring cleaning. They really do poop a lot. Indiscriminately.

      Reply
    « Older Comments

    Primary Sidebar

    SHOP ON AMAZON

    Use it 👆 to support my work. LEARN MORE

    My name is Karen Bertelsen and I was a television host. In Canada. Which means in terms of notoriety and wealth, I was somewhere on par with the manager of a Sunset Tan in Wisconsin.

    I quit television to start a blog with the goal that I could make my living through blogging and never have to host a television show again. And it’s worked out. I’m making a living blogging. If you’re curious, this is how I do that.

    So I’m doing this in reverse basically. I’m the only blogger who is trying to NOT get a TV show.

    More about me 👋

    Seasonal Articles

    • The 2025 Dahlia Pageant: Meet the 21 Contestants
    • 5 Delicious Things To Make With Rhubarb
    • How to Replace a Broken Gas Grill Igniter.
    • The 5 Summer Projects That'll Make Your Summer Unforgettable
    • An Ice Cube Poppy Update 🧊
    • 🥔 How to Grow Cheatsheet - Potatoes in Zone 6

    Popular Articles

    • This Is Where I Try To Buy Your Love
    • Guaranteed Crispy Sweet Potato Fries & Sriracha Mayo Dip
    • A Year Full of Pots: Win Sarah Raven's New Book
    • The Difference Between People Who Eat Mayo & People Who Eat Miracle Whip
    • Your FIRST look at my new kitchen in Canadian Living Magazine.
    • How to Print an Image on Wood.

    Footer

    as seen in

    About

    • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Social

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    415 shares