We learn the weirdest things when we start something new. What seems completely obvious in hindsight can be completely missed in the start up phase, while there’s other things that we do stress about taking care of, that end up not being critical to success.
Damp bedding is a hygiene risk to chickens and other poultry.
The goats taught us that already, so we were not surprised when we learned that the chicken feeders and waterers are supposed to be outside the coop, that chickens don’t need to have access 24/7. Because, like most diurnal creatures, they sleep at night and get active with sunlight.
Obviously!
But it wasn’t until our new vertical bucket waterer created a wet patch underneath that we realized it mattered. The chickens aren’t messy enough with their first waterer to have made a mess so the coop didn’t get stinky; however, they chicks did throw a lot of feed around. In doing some research and asking questions, we found out that food and water goes outside, so all the assorted problems with having water leaks and spilled feed are kept outside in open air.
We had lined the coop floor with rolled vinyl in the hopes of making clean up easier and that worked as intended. I used an old snow shovel and had the old mess cleaned out in no time (the pile on the left, which is going to compost), new bedding laid, and set up the feed and waterers outside. They were fascinated with the fresh bedding! 
Now that the required location for the feed and water is settled, we’re finding that we don’t care for the vertical waterer. That it must be hanging is a real pain in the rear for moving it (like for cleaning), so we’re ordering the other style waterer nipple, called a horizontal nipple. Unlike the vertical style, which works using gravity and must be on the bottom, the horizontal nipple is spring loaded and can be placed anywhere on the side of a bucket or tube. Which means it will need to be elevated, but can rest on a block instead of hanging, and can also utilize a pan underneath to further reduce mess on the ground. Which we’ll also be adding to the feeder because even month old chicks are remarkably messy and wasteful!
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