Official BYC Poll: With Winter Upon Us, What Preparations Have You Made For Your Chickens?

[3KillerBs]

When I get home this afternoon I'm going to have to do some actual winter prep.

I'm going to trade my DH the rest of the tarp I cut up for the outdoor brooder to use to cover his outdoor workbench (aka, plywood on sawhorses), for the tarp he was using which is rather holey.

Then I'll fasten the old tarp to the wire on the downhill side of the open air coop in order to provide a little wind protection on that end. That will come off by mid-March.

 

[Iluveggers]

When I get home this afternoon I'm going to have to do some actual winter prep.

I'm going to trade my DH the rest of the tarp I cut up for the outdoor brooder to use to cover his outdoor workbench (aka, plywood on sawhorses), for the tarp he was using which is rather holey.

Then I'll fasten the old tarp to the wire on the downhill side of the open air coop in order to provide a little wind protection on that end. That will come off by mid-March.

Dollar store clear plastic shower curtains are great too and very cheap!

 

[Brooks_]

Due to my climate, I'm disqualified from the poll. I continue to monitor the hoop coop to make sure I didn't build a wind tunnel. Just hasn't gotten cold enough to know if it's a problem.

 

[SkiboJeff]

I live in MN and it was -25 the other night. I have ten young hens and most of them have small combs and wattles. So far only one has had frostbite and that was before I discovered Mushers Choice (a beeswax based coating). I rub in a fresh coat once a week. The stuff really works.

My chicken Taj Mahal is 8’x 20’ with 8’ walls to the west and 6’ walls to the east. It has a slanted steel roof and the soffit is vented with 1/2” hardwire. A portion is shed /nursery in 8’x 5’, the coop is 8’x 7’, the hardwired run is 8’x 8’. The roost in the coop is a three walled 4’x 4’x 4’ insulated cube that is three feet above the floor. I use two pull-out poop boards underneath the roost. I hung a timed electric radiant heater on chain above their heads in the roost. It’s just enough heat to take the edge off of the deep cold. The coop floor is 6” of deep litter consisting mostly of wood shavings. Three hen boxes are 15” off the floor. A second radiant heater hangs from a side wall vertically on chains. It also sits in front of a three gallon heated water dispenser.

The run is completely hardwired and has two man-doors. One screen door to come in from outside and one steel door to go into the coop. I use removable CDX panels that slide in or out over the hardwired RUN walls. I move them around depending on weather and storms. The run floor is gravel covered with loose straw. I have multiple food and treat dispensers that the chickens use at will. They use a big tub full of loose dirt as a spa.

We’re new to having chickens but my wife and I love our girls and I think we’ve stumbled on how to keep them protected and safe in this frigid climate. If it wasn’t for frozen eggs, they could easily survive unattended for a week. I pay a neighbor $10/day + eggs to check in on them when we are out of town. I guess this article got a little long but I hope to let folks know what has worked for us.

 

[3KillerBs]

Dollar store clear plastic shower curtains are great too and very cheap!

I wouldn't want to create a greenhouse on the days when it gets up close to 80 -- which are as common in winter for me as days that never break freezing.

I use removable CDX panels that slide in or out over the hardwired RUN walls. I move them around depending on weather and storms.

Photos, please?

That's a great idea that I'm sure people would want to copy.

 

[SkiboJeff]

I wouldn't want to create a greenhouse on the days when it gets up close to 80 -- which are as common in winter for me as days that never break freezing.



Photos, please?

That's a great idea that I'm sure people would want to copy.

I took rebar, electrical pvc brackets, and the plastic foot you might put on a stool or cane. My run is made of salvaged 5/4 cedar or 2 x 8 deck material. I mounted the bottom pvc bracket with a foot inside the bracket so that the rebar doesn’t fall through. Then I used thin cdx or paneling to cover the screen area. The easily removable rebar just holds the cdx up without screwing it all together permanently. I easily take panels up or down and I can put the whole thing in storage for summer, except for the brackets. Here’s some pictures that might help.

 

[3KillerBs]

I took rebar, electrical pvc brackets, and the plastic foot you might put on a stool or cane. My run is made of salvaged 5/4 cedar or 2 x 8 deck material. I mounted the bottom pvc bracket with a foot inside the bracket so that the rebar doesn’t fall through. Then I used thin cdx or paneling to cover the screen area. The easily removable rebar just holds the cdx up without screwing it all together permanently. I easily take panels up or down and I can put the whole thing in storage for summer, except for the brackets. Here’s some pictures that might help.

That's great!

You should make an article about it. I'm sure a lot of people in places with HOT summers and COLD winters would want to know how to do this for their coops.

 

[3KillerBs]

When I get home this afternoon I'm going to have to do some actual winter prep.

I'm going to trade my DH the rest of the tarp I cut up for the outdoor brooder to use to cover his outdoor workbench (aka, plywood on sawhorses), for the tarp he was using which is rather holey.

Then I'll fasten the old tarp to the wire on the downhill side of the open air coop in order to provide a little wind protection on that end. That will come off by mid-March.

So, it didn't actually get done tonight. I didn't get home on time and didn't get out.

Tomorrow morning, however.

 

[Farmgirl1878]

We do get cold and snow, but we get mostly cold and icy rain, so my run is mostly roofed. Hubby, genius that he is, developed a “hoop roof” for over the part of the run that doesn’t have a metal roof. It’s a 2”x4” frame, bent 1.5” PVC piping, and a reinforced clear tarp. It stays up year round now.

There’s a gutter at the end of the metal roof, so that keeps the sand dry, even when it rains. The biggest winter prep for me is wrapping the run in plastic wrap. I do use clear shower liners on the front two sections and the door, but the rest is 6mil clear plastic that comes on 100’ rolls from Amazon. Love it!

Other preps include heated bases for the galvanized waterers, emptying the drip waterer, cleaning the Grandpa’s Feeders, and shutting the windows. If I’m really feeling good, I’ll rake up and bag some dry leaves to throw into the run during bad weather to give my girls something to do. I also just bought some parrot feed cups to hang in a few places in the run (just from the fencing) to fill with their chow. Also just something “new and exciting” for those really bad weather days when they can’t get outside. (My Flockers don’t free range without adult supervision because of all the predators.)

 

[Cryss]

We do get cold and snow, but we get mostly cold and icy rain, so my run is mostly roofed. Hubby, genius that he is, developed a “hoop roof” for over the part of the run that doesn’t have a metal roof. It’s a 2”x4” frame, bent 1.5” PVC piping, and a reinforced clear tarp. It stays up year round now. View attachment 2959093

There’s a gutter at the end of the metal roof, so that keeps the sand dry, even when it rains. The biggest winter prep for me is wrapping the run in plastic wrap. I do use clear shower liners on the front two sections and the door, but the rest is 6mil clear plastic that comes on 100’ rolls from Amazon. Love it!

Other preps include heated bases for the galvanized waterers, emptying the drip waterer, cleaning the Grandpa’s Feeders, and shutting the windows. If I’m really feeling good, I’ll rake up and bag some dry leaves to throw into the run during bad weather to give my girls something to do. I also just bought some parrot feed cups to hang in a few places in the run (just from the fencing) to fill with their chow. Also just something “new and exciting” for those really bad weather days when they can’t get outside. (My Flockers don’t free range without adult supervision because of all the predators.)

Wow! I’ve been thinking about doing a hoop house over the uncovered portion of the run. I’m glad to see it’s doable! Can’t wait for spring now.