It’s a cliché you’ve probably heard annually from your mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers – and Mother Nature herself: Springtime is the season to give your farm and ranch a fresh start. Romanticists and optimists call spring a time for new beginnings. But no matter how you might idealize it, spring cleaning is essential and entails of lot of messy work. And the bad news is most barnyard best practice advisors say a single spring cleaning routine is not enough. They recommend two deep cleans a year. A good place to start is in the chicken coop and barn.

Why does a coop need a spring cleaning? According to Mike Fitzgerald, a farm and wildlife author and host of MeatEater, a Netflix outdoors series, a lot of chicken farmers use a deep bedding method that dispenses with large scale removal during the colder months. “Instead, new bedding is placed on top of the old stuff, and due to the body heat of the birds, the old bedding slowly begins to decompose.” It’s an invitation for pests like mites and lice to make themselves at home. And it’s an attraction for rodents, too. By spring, that bedding is ready for removal and repurposing as fertilizer someplace else on the farm. Giving coops a detailed cleaning can eliminate pest and vermin populations.

Cleaning the coop

Cleaning the coop takes time and effort. Adding another degree of difficulty to the chore, experts say coop cleaning should not be considered a springtime-only ritual. “It’s important to remember,” says Fitzgerald, “this is actually, at a minimum, a twice-a-year affair.” Shelly Wutke, an editor at Hobby Farms magazine, offers these 11 steps to thoroughly clean your chicken coop.

Get the right supplies –

• Rake, pitchfork, shovel and broom
• Cat litter scoop for droppings and cleaning out nesting boxes
• Scrub brushes of different sizes are essential for scrubbing walls and reaching narrow areas effectively.
• Stainless steel scraper
• Rubber gloves and mask
• Paper towel and cotton towels
• Natural cleaning spray for windows and roosts
• Plastic or paper sheeting to collect deep litter and droppings
• Hose

Blocking holes – It might be necessary to reinforce chicken coop and block holes to prevent rats and mice from entering it. That will require basic carpentry tools and materials.

Assess the situation– Check your roosts and walls for signs of mites, and examine your droppings board for signs of illness. Taking a good look around before you clean means you’ll stay on top of potential issues.

Muck out manure - To efficiently remove manure, consider using plastic sheeting placed beneath your chicken coop. This method ensures that all debris is collected in one location for easy disposal. Additionally, if your coop includes a droppings board with a plastic sheet, simply pull it down and transfer it onto the plastic sheeting outside the coop.

Rake out litter – With your droppings on the bottom of the coop or outside on your plastic, you can now rake out your entire coop. When employing the deep-litter technique, expect to handle a substantial accumulation of manure and litter. Utilize a litter scoop to effectively clear nesting boxes and scrape corners. Afterwards, employ a broom to sweep away any remaining debris.

Seal it up – With all litter removed, check for any holes made from rodents or predators. You have the option to mend them using wooden pieces or fill them with steel wool. Patching holes is important if you have vulnerable chicks under a heat lamp. Chicks are vulnerable prey for rats.

Turn a hose on it – You don’t need a pressure washer to clean out your coop. But if you have one, bring it out! A garden hose equipped with a reliable spray nozzle will do the job. Use it to wash down the walls, doors, windows, and nesting boxes in your coop, ensuring any remaining debris is dislodged.

Let the light shine in – After you’ve sprayed out the coop with a hose, throw open the door and let it dry out. Accelerate the drying process by utilizing one or two towels to dry off nesting boxes and roosts, as well as to absorb any moisture on the floor.

Wipe on, wipe off – Once your coop is dry, it’s time to wash your windows. Ensure to thoroughly wipe both inside and outside surfaces. A paint scraper can be handy for dislodging any stubborn debris. Utilize your natural spray cleaner to wipe down all areas once more. Now, reintroduce the existing bedding and proceed to add fresh bedding, taking advantage of this opportunity to rejuvenate the coop environment.

Bring back the existing bedding – It’s time to add new bedding, and this is the best time to kick off a new cycle using the deep-litter method. With this method, you simply add to your existing bedding and stir it up. Having deep litter sit for a few months will result in compost you can use all over your farm. The sole exception to this rule is in the event of a mite infestation. In such cases, the most effective method to prevent mite spread is by incinerating the bedding.

Create a compost pile – This is where the plastic sheeting at the base of your chicken coop comes in. After reapplying the bedding and completing your tasks, simply fold up the sheet and transport it to your compost pile. While deep litter contains beneficial microbes, chicken manure is classified as "hot" manure. To utilize it effectively as fertilizer, ensure it is thoroughly composted before application rather than using it immediately after removal from the coop. While it takes about six to nine months for chicken manure to be used as fertilizer, deep litter may be used in less time as its been sitting throughout the winter. As a precaution, you may want to have a sample tested for nutrients before applying.

Cleaning the barn

This is crucial to the health of all types of animals living there. If a barn is not kept clean, bacteria and viruses will spread, resulting in sick animals. Disease carriers can live in barns for a considerable amount of time. Regular cleaning – not just spring cleaning – is critical.The following tips are helpful for practicing good barn hygiene and keeping your animals healthy.

Personal Hygiene – Often overlooked, personal hygiene is a means of preventing the spread of diseases in barns. For instance, in the poultry industry, employees are required to “shower in and shower out” before entering and upon leaving the facility. On horse farms, however, people commonly go from barn to barn with little concern for transmitting the bacteria and viruses they be carrying.

Wash hands – All barns should have hand washing facilities located around the facilities. Antiseptic soaps or betadine scrub should be available at all sinks, and disinfectants outside of each stall to allows handlers to disinfect their hands before working with another animal.

Cleaning the barn and stalls – Cleaning means getting rid of dirt, manure and old feed. Next, thoroughly scrub the barn using detergent and hot water, ensuring all surfaces are cleaned. After rinsing, apply a disinfectant according to the instructions on the label. Thorough cleaning is necessary for removing contamination so disinfectants can penetrate surfaces. There are many types of disinfectants; so some research is advised to determine what is best for your operation.

Clear out unneeded winter equipment – To begin the cleaning process after a prolonged winter, start by either removing or storing items not required for warmer weather. This entails unplugging and cleaning bucket heaters and stock tank heaters. Windows can also be washed. While storing and cleaning unnecessary items, also take some time to dust and knock down any cobwebs that have accumulated in the barn.

Cleaning the tack room – If you’re cleaning a horse barn, straighten up the tack room, clean and oil leather, polish hardware cleaned and oiled. Wash and repair blankets. Get rid of any items that are not used and taking up space. Numerous horse clubs and organizations organize tack sales, providing members with the opportunity to sell items they no longer require. Also, horse rescue organizations will happily take tack donations.

Clean the hay room – By springtime, hay stored for winter feeding can go bad and get mixed with ‘good’ hay. Separate the two and get rid of the bad stuff. Sweeping out the hay room reduces dust, dirt and chaff. It is easier to stack new hay if the floor is clear.

Survey equipment – Make sure all equipment is working properly. This includes lawn mowers, tractors, bale elevators, and any other equipment necessary to keep your barn and surrounding areas clean and organized.

Clean Horse Trailers – If you have horse trailers, give them a thorough cleaning. Even when stored indoors, trailers are susceptible to accumulating dirt, debris, and potentially even mouse nests. Trailers with wooden floors should have their rubber mats removed to inspect the floorboards for any signs of damage. In addition to cleaning out the trailer, tires should be checked as well as hinges, wiring, and lights.

Sources:

Fitzgerald, M. (2023, March 6). Stable Management. EquineNetwork. Boulder, CO.

Bernau Jr., A. (2024, January 21). MeatEater Magazine. MT.

Alan's Factory Outlet. (n.d.). Emergency Preparedness Storage Guide. Luray, VA.

Alan's Factory Outlet. (2024, January 31). Barn Hygiene and Cleaning Tips.