We built a new barn last fall, with a wood floor. Before letting the girls move into it, we poured 4 gallons of Chevron Log Oil on the floor and spread it around with an old broom. We then let it sit for two weeks...all of that oil soaked in. Then we covered the floor with shavings (DH works at a sawmill...gets it free) We clean the barn every two weeks, but shoveling out any saturated spots in between and replacing the bedding. Our barn smells fresh all the time and the floor sheds all of the urine, and the shaving soak it up well. We tried straw as well, but it didn't soak up the urine as well. I do lime the barn floor before replacing the bedding twice a month. All in all, I'm quite happy with how my barn smells Here's a link to photos of my new barn if y'all want to take a peek: http://www.firesidesoapworks.com/farm_happenings.htm
We had a plywood floor in our goat shed, and it didn't seem to stink. For them most part, we used straw as bedding and cleaned it out when it needed it. Try opening up the area, and cleaning it really well with soap and water. Let that dry out a bit, and spray it with a mix of 1 part bleach to 3 parts water. Get out of there and let it sit for awhile. If it still smells like pee after a few hours, spray again. If not, let it dry out completely for a couple days. Then you can use a good sealant like Spar Varnish. It's meant for marine use, but I use it on my turtle enclosure and it is WAY better than Thompson's water seal. Once the Spar Varnish is dry, you have a surface that is easy to spray off and disinfect.
Update... It's been about 4 weeks now and the Sweet-PDZ has worked great!! I'll be stripping their quarters out today for some fresh shavings... If I could just get all those nanny-berries out when I clean it would last much longer !!!
Any ideas on how to keep wood floors (goat house) from smelling so much? I'm stuck with the wood utill I can arange something else outside in their yard. thanks, Stacy
They are full of urine. Drying them out and bleaching them carefully, lots of air circulation! Then when dry, fill them with old oil, creasote used to be used, now we know it's a horrid thing! But old crank case engine used oil, of course then it probably has heavy metals in it! The point is you want to fill the wood pores with oil rather than urine, which will stink. Sorry I can't get this post to make any more sense than that Vicki
I dont have wood floors...I have dirt floors one of my wannahave's is a garden sprayer that I can put bleach in and spray down the stancions in the morning after I have milked, while I am filling water buckets anyway... I think spraying diluted bleach would help. Can you use Thompsons waterseal on it? or something similar? another thing might be the pet products meant for that purpose?
I did the Thompsons Wood sealer thing a week before I brought the goats home. Doesn't seem to have made a differance Tomorrow, I'll rake 'em out again and do the bleach thing, and I'd do the Thompsons again, but I'm worried that I'd be going from one bad smell to another.. 8O Any users of 'Barn Fresh" or 'Sweet PDZ'(sp?) ?? Would fresh oil work? If I put a tarp down and then the straw, would they tear it up?? dilemmas!! I am so praying to sell this house and move!!
I have found that using ashes from my woodstove have helped cut down on the smells in my goat barn tremdously.
I have wood floors and no odor problem. I lime my floors whenever I clean my barn (which I do about once a week or so) and I make sure I have a good deep bed of fine wood shavings. When I clean the barn, I let the floor dry before I lime it, and re-bed it. If the floor is wet in places that are not high traffic, then I know that I need to either clean more often, or (more likely) I need to use a deeper bedding.
you are talking about the goat house and not the milking room? I am always so far behind in my housework that I dont spend time scrubbing the goat house floor... we do have wood there and I keep it deeply bedded with straw...we pitch the straw and replace when needed... I do keep the milk area clean
Definetly listen to those who have the wood floors, but I will tell you NOT TO USE A TARP! I put a tarp down to protect my wooden deck, then with lots of shavings, I put infant kids on my front deck, usually 3 or 4 kids to a 4 by 4 collapsable pen. In just one week, the deck is swimming in urine, soaked through the tarp. If I don't clean it weekly, even the top shavings will soak through. And thats with just 3 or 4 infants! Vicki
Be careful if you use bleach. It will act with the ammonia in the urine and make clorine gas, VERY unpleasant, and it can kill you!! I use lots of straw and shavings, clean out twice a month, and dry it for a day after cleaning. Never really "stinks". You could also use lime on the floor.
Caroline, this is actually part of my chicken coop that they're in. I didn't get to clean it out like I wanted to, I forgot I had a seminar to go to and didn't get back in time enough to let it dry out. I'm going to have to do that early tomorrow. (and now I'm worried about the bleach!! 8O ) I'm going through a ton of straw and would like to try shavings, but I heard that goats will eat them (??). Ok Vicki, no tarp.. did yours soak through or did they tear it? Everyone, thanks for all the advice, not only do I appreciate it, but I'm sure the girls will too!!
Just like they would normally nose through the straw they will also do the same to the shavings. Neither will cause them any harm, remember shavings are just ground up trees. Vicki
Well, I booted the girls out of their yard (they are so in to helping!!) to graze while I tackled their living quarters. I striped all the straw out of there, opened wide all the doors and let it sit to dry. After 2 hours it was still smelly, so I mixed some Clorox with a bit of water, scrubed it down and let it air out for 2 more hours. I picked up a bag of Sweet PDZ, used in horse barns to get rid of ammonia, and put a bunch of that stuff down.. one thing I liked immediately about it was that it went down and didn't puff up in the air like most powders - it comes in powder an granular form, I got the powder - then I covered the place with shavings.. When the girls finally got home, they were more curious about the shavings than anything else and one of the doelings immediately peed! 8O , gee thanks! This morning the place still smells nice!! and I just LOVE the shavings!! all the pee stays in one spot instead of covering the whole entire floor, like it did with the straw!! much easier to clean Scoop it up, a little S-PDZ and we're done! The girls and I thank you all for your input!! it's so nice to have a place to stay that smells nice.. especially today with storms on their way!! Thanks again for all your help!!! Stacy
I am so glad you found this stuff. Now tell me, does it say clay on the bag at all? Tractor Supply sells this stall stuff that is made with clay, thinking of putting it down before shavings when I move the little girls to the junior barn. Gal said it was just a knock off of the Sweet PDZ. Would you tell me in a week if it really is helping, not only with odor, I don't really have alot of that, but wetness underneath. When I clean the stall, 10 by 20, I am digging it out deep because I SWEAR that I have a water leak running under it from the water tank or water line...something, because that pen has a soaking wet spot, and certainly the 6 yearlings living in it did not all pee in the exact same spot! They are all out in the woods pen LOVING IT! Thanks! Vicki
it sounds like you got it solved...do keep us updated! thanks our 4-H kids in CA, had to keep thier goats on asphalt for the 10 day fair. That was a big mess. the fair board decided to put sand down for them and that was a bigger mess because it didnt have anywhere to drain to...the sand would have been wonderful if goats didnt pee... so the kids spent hours shovelling and hauling wet sand out... after a few years of that, the board finally let the child dcide whether they wanted sand in thier stalls or not... What finally worked best is if the child brought shavings from home and put that on the aspahlt and then the fair provided straw on top of that. change out the straw every day and the shavings every 2nd or 3rd day. 10 days is really too long for a fair during the school year (Fair is in Sept).
This morning all I could smell was fresh chicken poop, and while not the best smell in the world, sure beats the tar out of ammonia.. Vicki, I looked the bag over and no where does it say clay. They do have a website.. www.sweetpdz.com that tells all about it. I don't think it does any 'soaking up', so to speak, but it sure takes away the smell!! I'll let you know by the end of the week how it's going.. gotta run to church!!
I just built a goat house and I chose to put in a wood floor because I would need a building permit for a pole shed with a dirt floor plus it was simply easier to build and level the goat house with a wood floor (I have a sloping lot). I used pressure treated plywood for the floor, I soaked it in the green wood/fence post preservative, and I covered the floor with fence paint (it rained on the painting step), but I intend to repaint it. If it stays dry, I figure it should be good. Anyone care to comment about my plan? I don't mind a smelly goat house. The shed does look quite attractive.
