# Loft Floor



## ValencianFigs (Jul 10, 2010)

Hello,

I have finished some parts of my loft, and I was wondering what you guys use for the floor? I thought about using the rabbit wood shavings, but I wasn't sure.
Any Ideas?


Thanks,
ValencianFigs


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## Thunderbird Racing (Jul 24, 2010)

I just use bare plywood. I thought about adding sand, but decided not to, at the last minute.


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## ValencianFigs (Jul 10, 2010)

*hard cleaning?*

Isn't it hard to clean though with the wood as the floor? It has a lot of scraping to do, I guess. I might go with sand. Not sure though.


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## Pip Logan (Oct 6, 2009)

about a 3 inch sand floor and mine and LOVE it. just a lil rakeing and bam all clean!


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## atvracinjason (Mar 4, 2010)

My floor is all wood, and I've been using a wide scraper and w dust pan, once a week I go in with the shop vac and get it real good


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## rfboyer (Jun 18, 2009)

Where are you ValencianFigs? The humidity or aridity of the climate, and temperature ranges will help you choose. 
I'm in Pennsylvania, where it's generally too damp for sand to be successful, as the folks from dry climates use. 
Some folks have reported success with wood shavings, but I think there are certain kinds that are recommended and others recommended against, depending what the chemicals in the wood itself do when they meet pigeon droppings.

I'm planning to put down some kind of vinyl (?) sheet flooring that will be easier to scrape (and scrub) than plywood, when I get my new coop in a few weeks. 
I'm not sure whether I'll use litter or just floor dressing. 

Meanwhile, my birds are in an ancient coop with a plywood floor, and it's so uneven from age, "poop-patina" left from cursory scraping when the (former) corncob litter got forked out, and old leaks. I don't know whether it was ever painted or finished, but figure it must have been at some time. 
It's really frustrating to scrape, and I'm not at all confident about it being "clean enough" since it's next to impossible to get the schmutz out of all the nooks and crannies. 
I've not been using any litter, just floor dressing (and scraping/cleaning daily), because I need to be able to see the droppings well enough to monitor the birds' condition, at least until I'm confident they're all in good shape.
They're mated pairs and usually nesting, which produces some very "interesting" droppings.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

you can try different ideas and see what suits you best, for me I keep a wood floor, scrape it and sprinkle Stall dry on it to absorb moisture..it works great. sometimes in the winter I will add a bit of pine shaving to the floor and then offer bath pans in the aviary, after they bath they seem to like to lay on the floor inside where the sun comes in, so the shavings give them a nice place to lay, I do not use the shavings much in the summer as they sun themselves out in the aviaries at that time of the year.


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## ValencianFigs (Jul 10, 2010)

Ok, I live in northern Virginia, I might go with nothing durring the summer and wood shavings during the winter so they can be kept warm.


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

plywood is bad as urine and feces soak into it, and it never really cleans, i use a flat carpet, and i put dry straw in top of it and take my straw out once a week, and reaplace with fresh one, sand is bad, cause it gets on their noses when they fly, straw must be dry, not dusty, clean straw, thas what i use, concrete is bad on their feets lol, hard on the landing, can u imagine if u geta disease, and it get s on the plywood,. u have to change the floor, not cool, but thats just me.


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## ValencianFigs (Jul 10, 2010)

Yeah that is a good idea, I might do it your way. Thanks for the idea,

ValencianFigs


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

jeo73 said:


> plywood is bad as urine and feces soak into it, and it never really cleans, i use a flat carpet, and i put dry straw in top of it and take my straw out once a week, and reaplace with fresh one, sand is bad, cause it gets on their noses when they fly, straw must be dry, not dusty, clean straw, thas what i use, concrete is bad on their feets lol, hard on the landing, *can u imagine if u geta disease, and it get s on the plywood,. u have to change the floor, not cool, but thats just me.*





People can disinfect their floors.


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## rfboyer (Jun 18, 2009)

jeo73 said:


> i use a flat carpet, and i put dry straw in top of it and take my straw out once a week, and reaplace with fresh one...


How do you clean the carpet? I'd have thought carpet would be a worse disease hazard than plywood since it would tend to hold moisture (especially if it "rained in" through the aviary opening). My coop floor will be ~5 x 10 feet; there's no way I could toss a carpet that size into the washer & dryer...

Most of the wood floors I've seen have had some kind of a finish on them, and usually used with some kind of litter too.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

A carpet would breed bacteria.


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## ValencianFigs (Jul 10, 2010)

lol.... i am confused about what I am going to do, I might just keep the plywood.


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## Jaysen (Jun 21, 2010)

We put a epoxy sealer over OSB floor and about 8" up the side walls. Not as "smooth" as I would like it, but we can fill it up like a pool and it won't leak. We bought ours from Sherwin Williams, but you can get it any place. Look for "plastic coating".


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Plywood is good for the floor, if you wash it with a disinfectant now and then. I'd use exterior plywood.
That epoxy sealer is supposed to be pretty good.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

ValencianFigs said:


> lol.... i am confused about what I am going to do, I might just keep the plywood.


carpet is bad advice and so is straw, both are not ideal use for a loft.. your doing fine with just a wood floor...the loft should not be sterile anyway, but clean enough to keep cocci in low numbers.. a bit of non clumping dustless natural clay cat little or what I use..stall dry for horse stalls sold at the feed store or farm store...it keeps things dryer which cocci does not like, and easier to scrape up. sand tends to hold moisture in humind areas..and havng to take it out and start a new batch of sand sounds like a pain in the arse to me... so you have a grate floor left.. I do not like those because it is open to the ground..perhaps in a hot dry heat area it would be fine..but here in va I just see moisture coming up from the ground..bugs coming up from the ground and snakes and mice getting in.. the grate holes would have to be so small for those critters not to get in so then what is the point if you want poop to fall through... so wood, up off the ground is good and safe and the most popular floor for a loft esp. small ones like our home lofts.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I agree with spiritwings, and for the same reasons. And you can buy Belgium White, or some other brand of loft dry to sprinkle on the floor and sweep in, anywhere it gets damp. Keeps it nice and dry, smells clean and looks clean.


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

Jay3 said:


> [/B]
> 
> 
> People can disinfect their floors.


if ur floor is not waterproof, treated, i assure u wont be desinfecting 2 much.


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

spirit wings said:


> carpet is bad advice and so is straw, both are not ideal use for a loft.. your doing fine with just a wood floor...the loft should not be sterile anyway, but clean enough to keep cocci in low numbers.. a bit of non clumping dustless natural clay cat little or what I use..stall dry for horse stalls sold at the feed store or farm store...it keeps things dryer which cocci does not like, and easier to scrape up. sand tends to hold moisture in humind areas..and havng to take it out and start a new batch of sand sounds like a pain in the arse to me... so you have a grate floor left.. I do not like those because it is open to the ground..perhaps in a hot dry heat area it would be fine..but here in va I just see moisture coming up from the ground..bugs coming up from the ground and snakes and mice getting in.. the grate holes would have to be so small for those critters not to get in so then what is the point if you want poop to fall through... so wood, up off the ground is good and safe and the most popular floor for a loft esp. small ones like our home lofts.


carpet is what i have, and yes, is worse than plywood, iam replacing it, but i like my clean straw, non dusty, it works for me, u have to do what works for u


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

jeo73 said:


> carpet is what i have, and yes, is worse than plywood, iam replacing it, but i like my clean straw, non dusty, it works for me, u have to do what works for u


my loft used to be 1 of those big houses thgat lowes sells for 6800, is a 2 story, they love it


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

everywhere in europe they use aluminun planks for flooring, they scrape it daily and powerwash with hor water once a month


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## jeo73 (Aug 1, 2010)

jeo73 said:


> if ur floor is not waterproof, treated, i assure u wont be desinfecting 2 much.


my point is if it gets soaked into the wood, them it will root, and bacteria will settle in, unless u are really in top of it, it may work for u guys. i just dont like it


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

jeo73 said:


> my point is if it gets soaked into the wood, them it will root, and bacteria will settle in, unless u are really in top of it, it may work for u guys. i just dont like it



If your loft gets good ventilation, wouldn't the floor dry fairly quickly if you disinfected it?


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## Guest (Aug 26, 2010)

jeo73 said:


> my point is if it gets soaked into the wood, them it will root, and bacteria will settle in, unless u are really in top of it, it may work for u guys. i just dont like it


my loft floor is over 5 years old and wood and hasnt rotted yet ?not sure what you are talking about here ??


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## sport14692 (Jan 3, 2011)

I'm so freaking confused man !!!!!!!!!!!!


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## RodSD (Oct 24, 2008)

No need to be confused. You can use different kinds as long as you maintain certain hygiene. The type of floor may also depend on your location. Successful fanciers have used all those stuff mentioned above such as wooden floor, cemented floor, grated floor, sand floor, wood pellet floor, etc.

Your goal basically is to have a dry floor as possible and that the birds don't get to eat food contaminated with their own feces.


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## honeyrobber (Apr 28, 2011)

Jaysen has the right idea. Use outdoor plywood because of any moisture coming up from under the coop and it is smooth. Then coat it with the right kind of paint. I used an epoxy garrage floor paint in chicken coop. I can wash the whole think out with a hose by shutting the coop runs door.


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## hankabus (Dec 3, 2009)

Here is another idea. I use this stuff call ABM Advanced Bedding Management. I am not trying to promote their product but I have been using it for years and I swear by it. It is compressed wood pellets that absorb moisture, amonia, keeps the birds clean, brightens up the loft clumps up and resists bacteria and bugs. Very easy for loft management but each to their own. A couple of times a year I take out the old stuff, fill up the old feed sacks with it and supply my friends and family with some of the best organic fertilizer that there is. If you want here is the website www.eaglevalleyabm.com 

Regards
Hank


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