Thermal floor disinfection with a flaming device in poultry barns for better prevention of coccidian and bacterial infections

Thorough cleaning and disinfection between subsequent production cycles is a key management practice in broiler and turkey farming for disease prevention and lowering the infection pressure in the poultry barn. Still, in floor-housed production systems, the flooring can remain a reservoir of pathogenic organisms. Cracks and holes in the flooring can be difficult spots to thoroughly disinfect and remain a potential hide-out for pathogenic bacteria and coccidian oocysts and worm eggs. The eradication of coccidian oocysts can be especially challenging since these organisms are very persistent and largely unaffected by chemical disinfectants with the exception of ammonia.

An effective disinfection method, proven in practice, is thermal disinfection or disinfection based on radiation. Thermal disinfection is carried out with a machine with a heat of 750°C making contact with the flooring for only a few seconds during which the top layer of the floor gets heated up to 300 to 400°C . The limited contact with the floor prevents damaging the concrete flooring, but effectively kills pathogenic organisms. Some specialized poultry service companies offer this solution and are also able to disinfect the walls of the barn in a similar way, eradicating harmful pathogenic organisms from the poultry barn.

On-farm tractor-mounted flaming devices are available as well and allow for a cost-effective method for poultry barn disinfection.