Help Its Getting Cold

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How large is your coop, and how large/how many ventilation openings do you have??? When you say icycles were hanging down, are you talking in the run, or inside your coop housing??? Because that would indicate you might need to work on shoring up your housing a bit. Can you hang somewhat heavy pieces of cloth in front of the screened areas? That would allow for ventilation, but keep the wind from blowing in. Or can you cover the ventilation that's on the prevailing wind side(s)???
The light boxes (I'm not sure what these are)...although you have more chickens now, why can't these still be used???
 
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I'm not an authority on any of this, by any means. But I wonder how many chickens you have in the coop, and the size of the coop. Also how many square feet of ventilation do you have? If you haven't measured it, I'd like to bet that you don't have as much as you think.

If the rain gets in your coop, that is another problem that needs to be corrected. It would be very difficult to get rid of that moisture. That is the big problem when we're concerned about frostbite (as is very low temps).

I don't think seeing cobwebs moving is a problem if there are no drafts at chicken level.
edit: Follow Pat's links for a lot of good info.

Ed
 
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Read Pat's links, both of them. There is a wealth of information there. If you really want to help your chickens, get the needed information.

Ed
 
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Okay we have a door with a wooden frame and screen, we nailed a huge piece of plywood over it for drafts. Their is still air that comes from the perimeter of the door. There is a 3ftx1.5ft window that is screen that i boarded up with plywood. Along the top of the coop their is one long window that it 6inx20ft along the roof. Their is a back door that is wood that holds tight very well. It is still kinda drafty in there. The coop is 20ftx8ft, but each of my breeds are in sections 5ftx2.5 next to each other. The only heat that is in there is a red light bulb for my younger birds. The icicles are IN the coop I have no run as of right now. What do you mean by heavy pieces of cloth?
My boxes i built last year and it held a temp of 70F. They were a plywood box and I had a piece of styrofoam insulation somewhat snugly on the top and i had a light hang through with a 60 watt bulb. But they are 2ftx2ft.
 
From reading your last post, it looks to me like the only ventilation you have open is the 6" X 20' window. That equals 10 square feet of ventilation (6" = 1/2 foot. 1/2 X 20 = 10). Now you have the information needed to use the links from Pat's post. If you need more help, let us know. It's OK if you don't understand something.

I'm not familiar with some of the breeds you have, but it's possible that you might have overcrowding. I'm sure someone else will let you know more about that.

Ed
 
can you put a ceiling over their roosting board? something to keep the drafts off them... sort of like boxing them in so they can produce warmth and keep the drafts off them? that way there is air flow for moisture
 
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Well I dont understand the whole ventilation thing. Ill help you with some of these breeds if you help me with the ventilation equation thing.
And nope I dont give them roosts because most of them do not like roosting since they are oddly shaped.
 
I know the recommended starting point for ventilation is 1 square foot per standard size bird. This is only a starting point because there are so many variables, so if we start there, we can add or subtract some ventilation as needed. Some of yours are not standard size, and I'm not sure what the recommended starting ventilation is for them. Someone else can probably help you more with the needed ventilation. But if you have as many birds as your signature shows, you very likely don't have enough.

If you see condensation (water droplets) on your walls or windows, this is a strong indication that you don't have enough ventilation. Also, if you can smell ammonia or other bad odors in the coop, that is another indication.

Will someone who can help, please help her with the ventilation question? If we don't get any other help here, I'll start a new thread for you.

Ed
 
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I know that the Japanese breeders will tell you you have to have indoor housing in cold climates to prevent frostbite. Mine have trouble with circulation in their combs even when a little chilly. Since your's don't roost, I think I would try to go with heavy bedding under a low "shelf" they could get under, preferable with some heat source. The shelf would help to keep off drafts and retain heat, but still allow air circulation. No matter what anybody says, if you have as much ventilation as the gurus call for, your coop will be as cold as outside, except for right int the bird's "envelope" Still air is the key to help them maintain the integrity of that envelope.
 

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