# New Coop



## Hunty (Jul 26, 2020)

Had my four chickens for a month and doing a spring clean tomorrow what’s the best detergent ?


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Detergent? I'm not aware of anyone using anything other than a hose if things are really that bad. At a month just cleaning all of the shavings out, giving the place a good dusting for cobwebs and for more security against bugs using a premise spray to thoroughly wet all surfaces is about all you need. 

Does your coop have a solid floor like wood or concrete? If it doesn't you don't want to hose it down.


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## Sylie (May 4, 2018)

Robin is right, I don't think anyone other than the most obsessive uses detergent, just scoop out the old shavings, scrape up anything that needs scraping, hose it down and be done with the nasty chore haha!

Now if you are one that really does want to use detergent, dawn dish soap works fine.


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## Poultry Judge (Jul 15, 2020)

If you were to use Dawn dish washing soap, I would keep it fairly dilute. I like to put down the new chips and then sprinkle a little diatomaceous earth.


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## Sylie (May 4, 2018)

Dawn will be fine if followed by a rinse (it would be fine anyway, dawn is non toxic and rarely causes diarrhea or they wouldn't use it to wash all kinds of wildlife, I was taught that at the wildlife rehab training center when I was certifying to be a rehabber)

DE is great, i use it myself constantly, it works amazingly. Just have to remember that getting it wet renders it useless. It must stay dry to work. 
So many people try to use it as a natural worm medicine and I just shake my head lol. The mouth, throat, esophagus, stomach, crop etc etc is all wet! once DE gets wet it dissolves and is completely useless.


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## MadDojah (Aug 7, 2020)

For another natural detergent, I use Dr. Bronners on EVERYTHING! It comes as a concentrate, you dilute it as you like it and it has essential oils that help with smell and really get stuff clean. It’s safe to use on animals or humans. Certain essential oils react differently on certain animals, but the peppermint one doesn’t seem to bother the babies as long as it’s diluted.


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## Carol B (May 4, 2020)

50/50 white vinegar and water is a natural disinfectant and safe for chickens. Let dry and move birds back in coop.


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