Maine

[buckabucka]

I confess we are sauna people. We have a big house but it is super-insulated and our masonry heater really cranks. We usually burn 2.5 - 3 cords of wood here.

The temperature of the house is best when the fire has gone out, but the stone is still radiating heat. We keep it in the 70's. If the fire is in progress, watch out! The living room has been 90 degrees, and everyone comes out of there carrying their clothes.

Izzy Bella, I keep two waterers out there, but I have a big flock. My smaller flocks have only one water.

My hoop house chickens were huddling in the wind too, Ash. One is molting badly and I did slap up the plastic on the west end after work today.

Mustard Tiger, did you catch your orp yet? How is your injured bird doing?

 

[dowgirl71]

I would look into a pellet stove. It has paid for itself already and I've only had it 3 years. I used to have to keep the house at 58 to afford the oil heat and I was quite uncomfortably cold. Now I use on average 1 bag on a moderate day and 2 bags of pellets on a really cold day. My living, kitchen and bedroom are now quite warm due to the stove, and it stays at a constant temp. I adjust it down when I leave for work, and then adjust it back up when I get home. It doesn't take long to heat back up, unlike a wood stove.
The downsides are:
1. Uses power so doesn't work when power is out unless you have a generator
2. Its tink-tink-tink of the pellet auger was annoying the first month or so of use, but it no longer wakes me up at night. I'm also so much warmer with it, that the annoying is overruled by the warmth.

I agree! LOVE our pellet stove!! Partly because I am always hot and my husband is always cold. It's in the living room opposite our kitchen, so he can turn up the heat, but I can be cooler where I usually am-in the kitchen. It has also really helped keep our oil costs down and does a great job heating the house!

 

[CoopChick719]

Powdered version? Same ingredients w/o the water? Share your recipe please! I didn't know you could use dry in a front loader. I have very hard water, so will probably stick with the wet, but options are nice, and I bet there are those readers who would love your recipe.

Didn't want to clutter up the thread so I just PM'd you the recipe. If anyone else would like the recipe, PM me. I used to make the liquid stuff in a 5 gallon bucket then transfer to old laundry soap jugs. It was entertaining when the kids were younger. They thought it looked like snot! I know kinda gross.

I would look into a pellet stove. It has paid for itself already and I've only had it 3 years. I used to have to keep the house at 58 to afford the oil heat and I was quite uncomfortably cold. Now I use on average 1 bag on a moderate day and 2 bags of pellets on a really cold day. My living, kitchen and bedroom are now quite warm due to the stove, and it stays at a constant temp. I adjust it down when I leave for work, and then adjust it back up when I get home. It doesn't take long to heat back up, unlike a wood stove.
The downsides are:
1. Uses power so doesn't work when power is out unless you have a generator
2. Its tink-tink-tink of the pellet auger was annoying the first month or so of use, but it no longer wakes me up at night. I'm also so much warmer with it, that the annoying is overruled by the warmth.

We've had our pellet stove about 3 years too. DH & I used to argue over the thermostat for the oil furnace. I told him, "I work too so I'm turning up my half of the heat!"

We average the same 1 bag a day, 2 if really cold. I adjust ours down at bedtime & during the day when only the animals are here. I had to laugh about your comment on the auger. When we first got ours, it took me forever to figure out what that noise was. Ours also squeals a little if there is carbon built up near the auger but nothing a small chisel & hammer won't fix.

 

[Widget]

On the subject of pellet stoves I love mine. It is a Lopi Leydon that I bought the year before all the tax credits. But I am so glad I did. My boiler died the Spring after I bought the stove and I have yet to find the funds to replace it. So the stove has been my sole main heat source for the past few years. One 40 lb bag will last about 24 hours on the low setting. Even on the coldest days, say below 0, the living room and kitchen will be about 60-62. Warmer days such as today I can get the house up to 70 or higher. I use a small programmable space heater in the bedroom at night to keep it about 62 in there. I use around 2.5-3 tons of pellets a year or somewhere around $600-$750 a year with the current prices.

 

[Widget]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/high-vis-chicken-jackets-domestic-2474937

Um. No.

No. No. No. No. No. Dont get me wrong I do like my birds but I can not see putting them in hi-vis jackets for hunting season or any other season. I do have an orange vest that I use and an orange colored attachment that goes on my horse when I ride this time of year but that is so any idiotic hunter who decides to hunt in the well marked no hunting area that is the land along the entire length of the road I live on might actually realize Gosi and Stefnir are not deer.

 

[IZZYBELLA]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/high-vis-chicken-jackets-domestic-2474937

Um. No.

No. No. No. No. No. Dont get me wrong I do like my birds but I can not see putting them in hi-vis jackets for hunting season or any other season. I do have an orange vest that I use and an orange colored attachment that goes on my horse when I ride this time of year but that is so any idiotic hunter who decides to hunt in the well marked no hunting area that is the land along the entire length of the road I live on might actually realize Gosi and Stefnir are not deer.

Haha!! You know what, I bet there's an untapped market for chicken clothing. I do admit to putting a coat on my greyhound when it gets below 40, but she doesn't have feathers to keep her warm! I've also been tempted to make her pajamas, so she doesn't wake me up at night when her blanket falls off and she's cold... it's a line I'm not ready to cross.

 

[Widget]

Haha!! You know what, I bet there's an untapped market for chicken clothing. I do admit to putting a coat on my greyhound when it gets below 40, but she doesn't have feathers to keep her warm! I've also been tempted to make her pajamas, so she doesn't wake me up at night when her blanket falls off and she's cold... it's a line I'm not ready to cross.

My Ibizan wears her fleece jacket most of the time now especially at night. She hates the cold. With the fleece she doesnt shiver and can sleep through the night warm and snug. The potcake prefers crawling under the blankets or curling up against one of the other dogs. One of my horses does have a heavyweight blanket but that is only used in the dead of winter when it is bitterly cold. Otherwise all three horses have a nice thick natural winter coat that they grew themselves.

 

[CoopChick719]

Widget--Haaaa one of my co-workers told me about this. What a riot!!

Izzybella--My friend's greyhound does have a pair of pj's that she puts on willingly. She gets all wiggly while they're getting her dressed.

The things we do for our animals....I was thinking about it this morning. The 2 kids are in college. I'm still getting up early to feed the flock and give pain meds to a newly spayed kitty.

 

[GrafixMuse]

Chilly morning. This was the first morning that both waterers inside and out were frozen. I have to remember to bring one waterer in the house when I close up the coop so I can take out fresh water in the morning.

My girls are 24 weeks now and one EE has been singing the “egg song” and checking out the next boxes all day. I hope she lays soon. I am so excited!

 

[anyasmifya]

This is so cute and funny. I had to share:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2478885/Meet-hensioners--OAPs-given-CHICKENS-company.html