[Helencus]

Went to clean out the coop tonight and for the first time ever we have red mites. It's only a week since I cleaned out but the whole coop was crawling with the horrible buggers. I wouldn't mind but I have diatom all over the place but seems to have made little difference. So spent the last 3 hrs cleaning out top to bottom and spraying red mite concentrate all over the coop and birds. I then covered the lot in diatom again and burnt the old bedding nest box covers and roosts. I also burnt the stand I used to hang the water on. May seem drastic but hubby is a carpenter and they didn't look dead to me so burnt them.

I dont know if it's enough as it's abad infestation I hope so. I must say I was staggered by how they can infest the coop like that in 1 week yuck!

If anyone can think of anything else I can do if not gone or recommendations for sprays then I'd welcome suggestions.

[Anke]

Get a second henhouse built, treat with Creosote (inside too, especially perches, and any nooks, corners etc) let it dry, then treat the hens again and move them in. Then paint the old coop with Creosote too. Use the old type Creosote, you can still get it from fencing supplies.

We also use plastic nestboxes, just get storage boxes from the supermarket, cut a hole into the front and put on a roof (better if you can get boxes with roof already fitting). the pop into the henhouse. Easily removed, cleaned, disinfected etc. We use some of the waste hay from the goats as nesting material in them.

No mites since we started to do it that way, in our first year we tried all the super new products with absolutely NO success whatsoever.

[Fleecewife]

Same thing here Helencus.  We have only ever had red mite once before in 15 years of keeping hens here and that was just a few, but we burnt the house to make sure we got rid of them (it was old and decrepit anyway).  Last week I lifted out the perch in one house and a small handful of the horrible things plopped onto the floor.  I use a weed wand to frazzle them, which it does with a satisfying sizzle. We painted the inside of that house with Cuprinol and I have been doing the perch ends and surroundings in all the houses every day since then but a few mites were present every day, so today we blitzed all three houses. I burn with the weed wand until the wood is scorched, but hopefully not quite on fire, paying most attention to anywhere there are tiny crevices they can gather in. I don't want to have to burn down these houses as they are quite new.  If the mites are still there we will use a liquid we bought (can't remember the name) as last resort.  
I know the mites don't live on the hens but I am wondering if just a few might hang on all day and be ready to breed again that night and that could be where they are coming back from?  You both say you treat your hens as well - what do you use?

[andy harris]

I was told that plain old cheep vinegar kills redmite on he spot just get a spreay bottle and do the coop .Ive not tried it yet but i was told it was dam good .Saves you paying out for new stuff.

[Sharondp]

And don't forget good old vaseline at the ends of the perches - stops them getting to the hens when they're roosting.

[Helencus]

Thanks all. Didn't see any this morning but that doesn't mean much yet I know. Trouble with alot of my birds is they don't roost they're ex bats so never did learn. That means they sleep in nest boxes or just on the floor so the mites can get to them anytime. If it comes to the worse I'll have to buy a cheap shed to keep them in and creosote the other one. Hubby is  busy building stables right now so can't ask him to do me another house that might cause a divorce 

[plumseverywhere]

we've got them at the moment aswell. I've pressure washed, steam cleaned, used some spray stuff from domestic fowl trust and enrolled my daughters in redmite squashing sessions but still they come back. in fact the pressure washer blasted extra 'nesting' holes in the wood for them to live in which I am gutted about!!
so far (thanks to Sharon and her vaseline tip!!) the birds are clear (phew!)
the fowl trust did say that the wild birds will just keep reintroducing the mites all through summer but it is really frustrating!
where do I get a weed zapper thing Fleecewife? that sounds fun!!

[Cinderhills]

I too love the sound of the weed wand.  I want one! 

[Sharondp]

Me too - does it do creme brulees too? 

[doganjo]

http://www.primrose-london.co.uk/ecoweeder-weed-wand-p-596.html?gclid=COD8sOyAiaMCFSCY2AodVBv3ZQ&source=googleads

Just google anything and you will find

[woodlandproductsfife]

Ive kept birds from the age of 11, Canaries and Australian finches mostly. Ive never had red mite. This post is a touch scary. I was always under the elution that no matter what you do, If theres going to be mite. there will be. The creosote will work wonders though. I'm now on red alert. The fact that they were there to see, obviously in day lite hours is unusual? I thought they were a creature of the nite. Good luck and hope you eradicate them quickly.

    Craig

[Fergie]

Ive kept birds from the age of 11, Canaries and Australian finches mostly. Ive never had red mite. This post is a touch scary. I was always under the elution that no matter what you do, If theres going to be mite. there will be. The creosote will work wonders though. I'm now on red alert. The fact that they were there to see, obviously in day lite hours is unusual? I thought they were a creature of the nite. Good luck and hope you eradicate them quickly.

    Craig

Red mite is nocturnal - it suck blood during the night, then leaves the birds during the daytime, when it can be found under the perches.  If infested, running your hand under the perch will leave it bloodstained as you squash the engorged mites.  Individually they are like spots of dust.

After feeding, the mite crawls into cracks in the wood to lay eggs, and the offspring emerge after two or three days.  If they get into a wood & felted roof they are very difficult to remove, without completely refelting the roof.  Hence commercial henhouses have an Onduline roof rather than wood.

John

[doganjo]

If you see them in the day are they really red mite - could they be red spiders instead?  I haven't seen any, but I'm not terribly observant, but just in case have been out with the vaseline and the vinegar.  I'm scratching just thinking about the horrid things. yuk.

[Fergie]

If you see them in the day are they really red mite - could they be red spiders instead?  I haven't seen any, but I'm not terribly observant, but just in case have been out with the vaseline and the vinegar.  I'm scratching just thinking about the horrid things. yuk.

They could be.  However, the only time you'll see red mite  will be during the day - at night time they'll be on the birds and they're too small to see anyway in the dark.  They appear a bit like grey dust, in the corners of the perches, or underneath if you run your hand along the underside of the perch.  They're easy to kill, but almost impossible to get them all since they can live dormant for months without feeding.  Creosote, Jeyes fluid, vaseline, steam cleaners, flame guns, insecticides etc all work well - you just need to do it regularly.

John

[woodlandproductsfife]

The old man along the road from me at the time, Said "If you look in at nite by torch light then you will know" However I cant say that it works or not, As Ive never experience it!