Best way to winterize small coop

[Legendchicken]

Hey guys as you all know not to much long until another long cold winter. Especialy if you live up north!

We have a small store bought coop. We were getting our first chickens and went with a small store bought coop. Lets say it went better than previously thought so now that there here to stay i need to prepare the coop for winter.

We live in new york so it usualy is below 30 in winter

What are the best ideas to keep out moisture and wind. Will tarps work or the deep litter method.

Heres a pic of my coopIMG_20170901_111812342.jpg

We have it inside a preator proof dog cage as well

 

[TalkALittle]

Are all of those birds living in that little coop? If so, your enemy is going to be moisture produced by your birds respiration.

Do not do deep litter. There won't be room for it to be deep enough and it just won't have enough mass to maintain the temps for composting to take place and so won't be able to keep itself from freezing much less generate any heat for your birds. I'd do sand in the coop and scoop out the poop daily in order to eliminate any additional source of moisture and the ammonia.

You will most likely need to add ventilation, which is difficult to do in those small coops. Ventilation should be well above their heads when on the roost so that cold air isn't blowing directly on them. You may want to search the forum for other threads about winterizing and "pre-fab" coops in general to see what others with them have done.

 

[TalkALittle]

Are all of those birds living in that little coop? If so, your enemy is going to be moisture produced by your birds respiration.

Do not do deep litter. There won't be room for it to be deep enough and it just won't have enough mass to maintain the temps for composting to take place and so won't be able to keep itself from freezing much less generate any heat for your birds. I'd do sand in the coop and scoop out the poop daily in order to eliminate any additional source of moisture and the ammonia.

You will most likely need to add ventilation, which is difficult to do in those small coops. Ventilation should be well above their heads when on the roost so that cold air isn't blowing directly on them. You may want to search the forum for other threads about winterizing and "pre-fab" coops in general to see what others with them have done.

 

[Legendchicken]

We have eleven that are all bantams we had more but the extra roosters have made it to new homes

 

[Legendchicken]

I could put tarps over the big run will they go outside or do they hate the cold?

 

[TalkALittle]

Yes, they will go outside even when it's quite cold if they can keep out of the wind. I would tarp the dog kennel on at least 3 sides where your prevailing wind comes from. If you can get the clear tarps they are best because they will let in the sunlight. I use them on all 4 sides of my run and my birds bask in the sun in the run on cold days.

Stock up on dried leaves this autumn. The birds won't like walking on the snow much but you can toss some leaves or straw down for them. It protects their feet from the cold snow and gives them something to keep busy scratching through.

You will probably need to shovel out the dog pen when it snows unless you can rig a tarp over the top. Look into the roof kits they make for the dog pens. They have a little pitch to them and may shed the snow. You'll still have to scrape the snow off if you get substantial snowfall amounts.

Have you thought about how you'll provide them with water when the temps dip below freezing?

 

[Legendchicken]

We are planning on purchasing a water heater is it ok to have the water and food outside i just dont want to risk any fires starting from electricity from the water heater

 

[TalkALittle]

Yes, water and food outside is good.

 

[Legendchicken]

Heres a pic of a few of my chickens

IMG_20170903_124102908.jpg

 

[Legendchicken]

Thanks for the help guys!