At what temp do I close the coop door?

[junebuggena]

Looks pretty secure. Should be okay to just leave that pop door open year round. It looks pretty sheltered. Just be sure you lock up all those latches so that you don't come back to a raccoon massacre.

 

[hlhutchinson]

Thank you everyone for your input

 

[lazy gardener]

If you are concerned, you might cover part of your run with plastic: at least to block prevailing winds, though with the picket fence, you may not get any wind issues. I'd not worry about it unless the temp gets below 10*F.

 

[cincyfarmgirl]

i have 4 gals and a 4x4 coop attached to a secure run (so far no problems with predators ) so far I have left the coop door open (I’m not a morning person ) this way my gals don’t have to wait for me to get up to go out of the coop, they just have to wait to free range
My coop has ventilation at the top of the coop.
I’m thinking I will need to start shutting the coop door to help keep warmth in at night any thought of what temps to start doing that? I was thinking anything below 32

It’s starting to get in the mid 20s at night I shut the door last night my hubby opened the coop door this morning and said they were waiting to get out despite the cold as though they did not realize how cold it is. Maybe I should tell them

Edit not sure if this helps but my chicken are:
Barbecue - Wyandotte cross
Blacky - Autsralorp
Princess Goldie - Gold Laced Cochin Bantam / Easter Egger
Chicky - Leghorn / Easter Egger

I also would like to know at what temperature should I lock my chickens up in the coop at night? We have a very secure covered yard attached to the coop and so they would be safe from predators even if I were to leave the coop hatch open. But how cold is too cold for a flock Of chickens?

 

[Wallygators]

I live NE Wisconsin. Temps now teen's but soon will be -20*F. I have 8 gals in my coop & they are comfortable. I do close things up when below zero & blizzard! They are waiting for me to open the door AM, can't wait to get out. But make an about face when they see White & wind. Don't worry to much Chickens are tough

 

[Crazy Camp]

How do you keep predators from getting in and killing your chickens at night? We used to leave ours open too, until the morning we came out to find 3 headless chickens due to a raccoon getting in the coop overnight

Elevated coop with walk in "enclosed run." Coop has a large front door stays open for warm months, a small side entry with ladder that I never close for coming and going 24/7, and a back entry for eggs. I only allow free range For my backyard chickens when I'm home.

 

[Mrs. K]

This time of year, people start worrying about keeping their chickens warm. They should not worry about that, what they need to worry about is keeping chickens DRY and out of the wind.

In an effort to keep them warm, people tend to want to shut the coop up tight. After all we have been told our entire life to shut the door we are letting the cold in.

As counter intuitive as it sounds, in the winter, ventilation becomes very important, but it lets out the warm moist air from breath and poop. This helps keep your chickens dry and warm.

Think about being in a car in the winter with a several people without heat, almost immediately the inside windows fog up. That is what you want to prevent. When your chickens are roosted, they need about 12-18 inches above their heads, or between the tops of their heads and the ceiling. This lets the damp air to move up and out of the coop if there is ventilation.

I think it is also good to have your roosts set up, so that birds are not next to the wall. (I still have this theory, even though I had rooster that always leaned against the wall, no matter how I tried to shift him). My reasoning, is a cold surface and a warm body is going to made for condensation.

If you have ever been outside on a cold windy day, and stepped out of the wind and were instantly warmer, well that is what you want in your coop. The air inside the coop should offer protection agains the wind. They will then puff up and keep themselves warm.

So as to your original question. Where is the pop up door? is rather a more important question that the temperature. If it is in the direction of the prevailing wind, then shut the pop up door, if it is on the leeward side, you do not need to.

Probably way more than you wanted - haha

Mrs k

 

[BigBlueHen53]

This is exactly what we need to know. Chickens are birds. Wild birds survive in all kinds of weather without our help. @Mrs. K is correct, it isn't the cold we need to protect them from, it's moisture.

ETA and of course, predators.