Winterizing the chicken coop

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mrsjohnson0807

mrsjohnson0807

In the Brooder
7 Years
Mar 30, 2012
36
5
34
Marysvale, UT
This will be my first winter with my chickens and I am concerned about keeping them warm. I did install a flat 2x4 for their roost, sealed any gaps for drafts and have a large overhead opening for ventilation. My concern is I only have four chickens and their coop is very large so I can't expect their body heat to help warm it. My breeds are a Rose comb Leghorn, Sumatra, Polish, and a Silkie. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions without using heat lamps? The average temperature were I am located in the winter is 15 degrees, but occasionally drops bellow zero on some nights. Any suggestions would be so appreciated.




 
If it gets that cold that you need to use them, use either red heat lamps or ceramic heat emitters aimed at the roost bars, but not close like you would do for brooding chicks just close enough to keep em from freezing. Like clamp lamps up top aimed down to the roosts. Hope that helps :) -J
 
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There are a lot of reasons not to heat a coop. The important thing is the ventilation, to allow humid air to escape, as that is what leads to frostbite most readily. There are a number of threads and articles on BYC about why not to heat a coop and how to deal with cold weather.

With a few chickens in a large coop, you might consider an area with a lower ceiling and lots of hay below it for them to snuggle together.

Here is one very good article, a classic here, really. The author lives in Canada.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/winter-coop-temperatures
 
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mrsjohnson0807 said:
Thank you for the advice. Good thing the coop has power. Should I only use them on the really cold nights?
Click to expand...
I would. Honestly i would put a thermostatically controlled switch, or a remote temp sensor in the coop. If you have a bunch of chickens their body heat will warm the coop if you keep the drafts out during the winter months, but allowing for ventilation. Or if they happen to somehow get wet etc etc.
 

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