Cleaning & Disinfection - Poultry

How to clean your poultry stable in-between cycles?

Maintaining a low-pathogen environment for your birds is crucial, it directly influences growth, feed efficiency, and hatching rates. Cleanliness in the poultry housing and the hatchery is an important biosecurity measure that not only protects your flock but boosts performance.

Take charge to improve hygiene and performance

Clean your poultry house in 7 steps

Why is cleaning and disinfecting important?

Each step in cleaning and disinfecting reduces germ levels in poultry houses. This is essential for preventing diseases in poultry such as Salmonella, E. coli and Coccidiosis Eimeria.

Directly after removal broilers

50.000.000 Germs/cm²

After rough cleaning

20.000.000 Germs/cm²

After cleaning with MS TopFoam

100.000 Germs/cm²

After disinfecting with MS MegaDes

<500 Germs/cm²

The 7 steps to cleaning your poultry house

To achieve a 100% germ-free environment in the poultry stable, it is crucial to thoroughly clean and disinfect it. Start each new round completely fresh by eradicating all germs. You can follow this step-by-step guide or download the cleaning protocol. 

Safety first: Ensure your own safety when cleaning the poultry house by wearing the recommended protective clothing, including: coveralls for pressure cleaning, face protection, gloves, footwear and earmuffs.

Step 1: Clean-up before cleaning

A thorough cleaning prevents new chickens from encountering pathogens from previous rounds. Removing all organic material—manure, feed remnants, and insects—reduces infection pressure, which is the volume of pathogens and their disease-causing potential.

Remove dust and manure

Remove coarse dirt and manure from surfaces. In this way detergents will have a greater effect

Dry cleaning

Remove the old bedding. Mechanically clean the surface and use brooms, brushes and scrapers to sweep and scrape away loose organic materials and dirt. This initial cleaning reduces the amount of contaminants and prepares the surface for more intensive cleaning.

Collect items like boots, brooms etc. In the entrance of the shed

Remove all barn tools to make cleaning the surfaces easier

Lower the feed and drinking lines and prepare feeding lines for cleaning (detach hoppers etc.)

Internal equipment must also be cleaned effectively

Rinsing the poultry barn with a high pressure washer after cleaning with MS TopFoam

Step 2: Clean with water

After removing loose debris, the next step involves using water to further clean the surfaces. This stage aims to eliminate the remaining contaminants that dry cleaning couldn't remove.

Make the walls wet (slightly humid)

Remove all the remaining contamination with a high pressure cleaning until the area is 80% clean.

Step 3.1: Identify pollution type

Understanding the types of contamination present in your poultry house is crucial for selecting the appropriate cleaning products. Contamination in a poultry house is normally categorized into two types: organic and inorganic pollution. We recognize a third type: historical pollution, the results of ineffective cleaning over multiple rounds.

Organic pollution

Manure, feed residues, skin fats, and other biological wastes

Inorganic pollution

Water minerals, lime or calcium deposits, and iron

Historical pollution

A build up of multiple mixed layers of pollution, caused by ineffective cleaning over multiple rounds.

Step 3.2: Choose the right foam for the job

The detergent in foam cleaners breaks down the biofilm layers that are left-over after high-pressure cleaning. These layers can shield pathogens from disinfectants. Cleaning with a detergent is crucial for creating a low-pathogen environment as it exposes all pathogens for effective elimination during disinfection. Their are two types of foam cleaners:
Alkaline foam cleaners are the most effective against organic pollutants and can be effective against historical contamination in high concentrations.  
Acidic foam cleaners excel in removing inorganic and historical contamination.
Historical contamination can be organic or inorganic.A knockdown treatment is the most effective in resetting heavy historical pollution.

Determine whether alkaline or acidic foam cleaners are more suitable based on the pollution type and cleaning frequency.

Foams comparison

Characteristics
	MS Reset Alk - DetergentProduct information	MS TopFoam LC Acid - Foam cleanerProduct information	MS Reset Acid - DetergentProduct information
Cleaner type	Alkaline	Acid	Acid
Contact time maximum	-	30 min	-
Price	product.loading	product.loading	product.loading

Would you like to view the complete comparison?

Extensive comparison

Hybag topfoam power used on poultry feeders - close up

Step 3.3: Start cleaning with foam

Applying foam cleaner is a critical step that ensures thorough cleaning of surfaces by breaking down tough biofilms and organic matter.

TIP: To remove tough iron, manganese, and limescale layers from drinking lines or walls, incorporate an additional step into your cleaning process after foaming walls and inventory but before cleaning floors. Apply a concentrated acid foam/soap and let it soak for 10 tot 20 minutes, wash of the foam before it becomes dried out.

Foam walls, floor, feed and drinking lines

Apply foam to the walls, as well as the feed and drinking lines, to effectively remove any accumulated debris and pathogens. Wash of before it becomes dried out

Rinsing the lose contamination from the floor in a poultry barn after cleaning with MS TopFoam

Step 4: Spray off after 30-60 minutes.

After allowing the foam to sit for 30-60 minutes, thoroughly spray off all surfaces with water to wash away loosened dirt and contaminants.

Spray off the walls and lines clean

Spray off after at least half an hour, maximum one hour. Make sure to rinse before the foam is dry.

Spray the entire floor clean

After the foam has soaked, spray the entire floor clean to remove any remaining residue and ensure a hygienic environment.

Clean the area outside of the shed

Extend the cleaning process to the surrounding area outside the shed, covering at least a 5-meter radius around the door, to prevent external contamination.

Dry completely

Before you continue to the next step make sure the shed is fully dry, so when time is short between cleaning and disinfection, heat up and ventilate shed.

Step 5: Disinfect the poultry barn

Make sure that the whole program is done 2 days prior to new flock arrives. Take the right health measures for preventing health issues on short/long term.

Choose the right disinfectant

Determine wether you need an oxidising( MS MegaDes Kiemkill) or non-oxidising product (MS MegaDes Novo)

Make sure all contact areas are being disinfected wet,

Prepare the high pressure system for wet disinfection and check the dosage according to the label. Always start with wet disinfection.

Use MS MegaDes Kiemkill - 5 min

Apply this disinfectant according to guidelines, ensuring a contact time of at least 5 minutes for optimal germ-killing action

Step 6: Rinse again with water and dry

Rinsing post-disinfection removes any chemical residues, leaving the poultry house safe and clean.

Use a highpressure cleaner

Rinse thoroughly with high-pressure water, paying extra attention to areas that come into direct contact with the poultry.

Let the poultry house dry completely, apply a drying powder when the floor is completely dry.

A dry environments limits the growth of any new pathogens entering the barn. Drying powders can be mixed with the bedding for extra moisture control.

Hycare clean check poultry stable digital

Step 7: Inspection, monitoring and training

Ensuring that your cleaning and disinfection efforts are effective involves regular inspections and staff training.

Check the barn after each cleaning round

Perform thorough inspections to identify any missed spots or areas that require additional attention.

Train your staff

Educate your team on proper cleaning techniques and the importance of maintaining a clean environment. Emphasize the role of cleanliness in preventing disease and promoting animal welfare.