Biggish coop, few birds, will it stay warm enough?

[chickens really]

I turn it on at -10C
It’s hung up over my water and yes my Birds enjoy the additional heat.

 

[Thesweetbirdsflock]

I'm beginning to think about winter, as here in Southern Alberta, Canada it is already beginning to get pretty chilly in the mornings. Though I'm guided by those who have already experimented with open air (Woods) coops in cold climates I can't help but worry that with only 4 chickens, they may not stay warm enough in my 6 x 10' coop.

They tend to roost all on one end of the 6' roost so are only taking up about 18" of the space, leaving an awful lot of cold air space around them. The coop is insulated but open. Ventilation should not be an issue, though yesterday morning we had an ambient humidity of 75% which extended into the coop. This is not normal, we are normally very arid. It sure felt cold to me...

Will they really stay warm? We are blessed to generally get somewhat mild winters - for Canada - but last year for example we got a solid 30 days of very cold (-22 F) weather. Yes, it sucked.

Should I be planning for emergency heat? Creating a roost divider to hold the heat? or just chilling the heck out and waiting to see how it goes.

#nervousnewbie

I live in north Texas. The summers here are pretty hot. Late July though all of August is 100 and high 90s degree weather everyday. Chickens do not do well in the heat, but they are pretty good in the cold. I know that when it’s -22 you need to be helping them stay warm and such and I really don’t actually have advice for you other than do not use hay or straw because you will end up with some serious mite problems, I just wanted to tell you that because it might give you some reassurance

 

[Thesweetbirdsflock]

Ok, never mind, I have some advice! First of all, heating pads on the walls are great, heating lamps that are close to the ground are also good but you have to be careful with those because if the chicken sits underneath the lamp for awhile and it’s body gets hot and adjusted to that temp and then walks away, they could become too cold too quickly they could get sick. There are some heaters (including some heat lamps) that could kill your chickens if the power goes out. Taking a clear shower curtain and hanging it all around the coop walls leaving some ventilation will sorta create a greenhouse effect and keep the wind out. It’s also great for the rain! A cozy coop heater is great because it heats the whole coop up and it won’t get the chickens too hot and get them sick. Also, “chicken sweaters” are very bad for chickens because they can’t fluff their feathers and that helps them stay warm. They also loose heat through their feet, combs, and waddles, so putting an un-scented chapstick on their combs and waddles is good. For the legs, I don’t know.

 

[aart]

I live in north Texas.

@Thesweetbirdsflock
Here's how to add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, (laptop version shown), then it's always there!

 

[Farmgirl1878]

Very nice pictures. Is your coop/run always that clean? I use wood chips in the coop and it looks, and smells, clean. I have not built a winter chicken run, but like the idea of enclosing it with plastic. I have my coop built on an old boat trailer frame, so it is elevated. I use a dry deep litter bedding, which is about 6 inches deep right now, so I don't know if I would need straw bales around the bottom of the raised coop. Do you think straw bales would be necessary for me? Also, if you think I could benefit from straw bales, do you repurpose the straw bales after winter? I try to think ahead of how to reuse everything I get for the chickens. Straw bales are not cheap here, so I would have to make good use of them.

Lol, yeah, I keep it pretty clean! It’s easy to keep it looking and smelling nice with the sand everywhere. I have two long-handled wok spiders (mesh scoops) that I use to scoop the poop, which then goes in the compost pile.

Not sure if you will need the bales of straw - I found that it really helped keep the coop warmer. My coop is about 16 or 18 inches or so off the ground, so the wind was going under the coop and right into the run. This year, I think we will just used boards to block the wind. The chickens LOVED hopping up and scratching through the straw when they were let out, but it’s a mess to clean up as I had no way to keep the bales dry.

 

[Manhen]

I don't understand....

 

[EggSighted4Life]

I will admit I live in California and don't know true cold.

But I want to put out and BUST a popular myth that "feeding corn keeps chickens warm"...

That is some major hogwash I have seen repeated over and over by people with good intentions but little actual thought put in.

Anyways... calories from any source provide energy for chickens to keep themselves warm. Corn, by itself, is missing too many key nutrients which are added into the corn based formulated feeds many of use. Scratch feed is more high carb (same amount of energy but not nutrients as protein) than high fat

The FAT drippings mentioned by the other poster is a bit different in that it doesn't significantly increase the volume of the feed but rather it's density... getting over all more calories (energy) into the animal... which *may* be important during decreased day light and it's being added to the formulated ration which does have correct levels of protein and amino acids in addition to vitamins and minerals. Per gram fat offer 9 calories while protein or carbs offer only 4.

I really don’t actually have advice for you other than do not use hay or straw because you will end up with some serious mite problems,

This may depend on your location and you have to choose the lesser of the evil's. I use hay and straw and don't have problems with mites... I deal with them if I do.

As always... lots of good conversation and input here!

 

[aart]

I really don’t actually have advice for you other than do not use hay or straw because you will end up with some serious mite problems

This may depend on your location and you have to choose the lesser of the evil's. I use hay and straw and don't have problems with mites

Ditto Dat^^^...(and corn info)

Straw can possibly harbor mites if you already have them,
and can possibly introduce mites to your coop if straw/hay has been stored in a barn where wild birds and rodents have access,
But it is not automatic that all straw and/or hay has mites in it.

 

[jas humbert]

I use a plug-in water bowl for outdoor dogs to keep my chicken's water unfrozen. They are cheap (occasionally under 10 dollars on sale- never more that $15), easy to find at farms stores or online and work well for me but we generally don't get below zero although we might get a few single digit nights. For winter treats my girls like black oil sunflower seeds and the small suet cakes you get for wild birds. I break the suet cakes up in little pieces and hand feed my dozen or so hens so everyone gets some good fats before bed or on cold mornings. Most of what they eat is their regular layer mash.

 

[BReeder!]

Last winter we had 7 hens in our 4x10 coop that is actually a sectioned off area of our 12x10 shed. The partition wall is mostly chicken wire, so air flows freely throughout the entire structure. The birds were just fine throughout the winter - and it was a COLD winter here in the Chicago area. We had -40 wind chill one day! I used a small (60W I think) heat lamp aimed at the roosts that day.
Also, your birds roosting together closely conserves heat. Don't think about the temperature of air in the structure, but their body temperature is what's important. By roosting close together they share body eat and insulate each other.