All-Weather Millennium Feathernet Alternative For 50 Birds

[comish83]

I plan on scaling up my operation later this year to 50 layers. I like the Millennium Feathernet that Polyface has, but I want something where I can keep the birds in a Northern Virginia winter as well. I plan on rotating 50 layers every week through one of 18 different 100' x 50' pasture paddocks and utilizing poultry netting (as I have been with current birds). Here are my requirements:

1. Houses 50 layers
2. Suitable for summer and winter
3. Minimizes daily work (cleaning up shavings, filling water and feed, nest boxes, etc.)

The only thing I could think of is to build something on running gear like what is shown below. I could have flaps on the side to "winterize" the coop I can keep open or closed. Not sure if an open air bottom would need like a piece of plywood that can slide out to clean in the winter so the birds are fully enclosed? I think I would want a 55 gallon rain barrel and a gutter setup to catch rainwater that runs into one of two hanging bell waters would seriously cut down on maintenance time. Some sort of food trough setup and storage would probably do that too?

Curious to see what folks have done, with the goal of minimizing daily upkeep.

 

[NatJ]

Northern Virginia winter.....Not sure if an open air bottom would need like a piece of plywood that can slide out to clean in the winter so the birds are fully enclosed?

If the chickens are walking around inside the coop while they are awake, yes it probably would be better for them to walk on a solid surface or some bedding in cold weather, rather than walking on bare wire mesh.

When the birds are sleeping, they do not need a solid bottom below the perches. You don't want a big wind blowing up underneath them, but I don't think that would happen with the style in your illustration (the ground underneath and the side panels would probably cut the wind enough to avoid problems).

 

[NatJ]

I plan on scaling up my operation later this year to 50 layers. I like the Millennium Feathernet that Polyface has, but I want something where I can keep the birds in a Northern Virginia winter as well.

Why do you say that will not work in your winter? What weather conditions are a problem, and how long do they last?

For example, if you have months with snow-covered ground, you will need enough space for the chickens to live indoors during those months (which usually means a coop too large to easily move around.) But if you get just one week-long snow event each winter, you may be able to arrange something temporary for that time, and not deal with an extra-big coop all year long.

 

[comish83]

Why do you say that will not work in your winter? What weather conditions are a problem, and how long do they last?

For example, if you have months with snow-covered ground, you will need enough space for the chickens to live indoors during those months (which usually means a coop too large to easily move around.) But if you get just one week-long snow event each winter, you may be able to arrange something temporary for that time, and not deal with an extra-big coop all year long.

I have similar winter weather conditions as Polyface Farm and they move their layers from the Millennium Feathernet to hoop houses for a few months of the winter. So I assume the Millennium Feathernet would result in me having to have a second coop. That is why I want a year-round option.

 

[NatJ]

I have similar winter weather conditions as Polyface Farm and they move their layers from the Millennium Feathernet to hoop houses for a few months of the winter. So I assume the Millennium Feathernet would result in me having to have a second coop. That is why I want a year-round option.

Ah, that does make sense. I haven't paid much attention to how Polyface manages their flock, so I wasn't aware of that.

 

[Penpal]

I don't know why your chickens can't go outside in the winter. Mine do. As long as they have shelter to go to, they will be fine.

 

[comish83]

I don't know why your chickens can't go outside in the winter. Mine do. As long as they have shelter to go to, they will be fine.

Maybe I was not clear. Chickens of course go out in the winter, but the Polyface Millennium Feathernet has no walls or way to keep the birds warm, which is why they do hoop houses for chickens in the winter. Looking for a solution that is all-season, but minimal overhead.

 

[Penpal]

Well, you could put plastic walls up in the winter. Dairy farms around here use a heavy plastic to create walls on their loafing sheds during dire weather. You either take it down or roll it up in good weather. Leave enough opening at the top for ventilation.

 

[NatJ]

Maybe I was not clear. Chickens of course go out in the winter, but the Polyface Millennium Feathernet has no walls or way to keep the birds warm, which is why they do hoop houses for chickens in the winter. Looking for a solution that is all-season, but minimal overhead.

Chickens do not actually need to be kept "warm" in the winter in most parts of the US. They just need shelter from wind, rain, and snow.

They are fine down to freezing (32 Fahrenheit), and often for quite a few degrees below that if they have gotten used to the temperatures gradually (which naturally happens during the fall and winter.)

So putting up plastic or something (as suggested by @Penpal ) might be all they really need for shelter at night.

Daytime could be a different matter. During the day, they need room to move around. In bad weather, they need room to move around inside (or at least somewhere sheltered.) That calls for a much bigger pen in bad weather, as compared with the size pen that is big enough for just sleeping in the summer.

The bigger the pen, the harder it is to move. Personally, I can't see any good reason to move four times as much pen, every day of the year. That is probably part of why Polyface puts them in hoophouses for the winter. That would overlap with the time the grass is not growing anyway, so they don't get as much benefit from being in the pasture at that time.

I poked around online and found Salatin's blog, where he explains about the winter hoophouses, so now I understand better what he is doing.
https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/blog/10/30/2019/preparing-for-winter-part-1

Sometimes it really is easier to have separate housing for different times of the year. If you plan to raise a new batch of pullets each year, the "winter" housing for the adult hens could maybe be re-used during the summer to raise the next batch of chicks that will be layers.

 

[Krugerrand]

Ah, that does make sense. I haven't paid much attention to how Polyface manages their flock, so I wasn't aware of that.

I had to look up Polyface:

https://polyfacefarms.com/about-us
In 1961, William and Lucille Salatin moved their young family to Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, purchasing the most worn-out, eroded, abused farm in the area near Staunton. Using nature as a pattern, they and their children began the healing and innovation that now supports three generations. Disregarding conventional wisdom, the Salatins planted trees, built huge compost piles, dug ponds, moved cows daily with portable electric fencing, and invented portable sheltering systems to produce all their animals on perennial prairie polycultures.

Today the farm arguably represents America’s premier non-industrial food production oasis.

Interestingly enough, Mercola just had a post today attached for your convenience):
Diverse Agriculture Benefits People and the Environment at the Same Time