Can you help me with winterizing my coop?

[AlleysChicks]

Awesome to get some input from someone else who keeps chickens in our crazy weather!

You suggest wrapping the entire run, but leave the top part open? I've seen some people do that around here, and I guess that'd help keep snow/chilly wind out too!

about 3” around the top on one side. You wouldn’t believe the temp difference it makes! Most of my birds decided to molt in the dead of winter last year. So I wrapped that coops run. Usually I don’t bother too much since they are big birds.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Awesome to get some input from someone else who keeps chickens in our crazy weather!

You suggest wrapping the entire run, but leave the top part open? I've seen some people do that around here, and I guess that'd help keep snow/chilly wind out too!

Good morning. We just had our first frost and I still have not got the coop winterized yet. I wore a coat to go to the coop and let the chickens out this morning because it was a bit nippy. They whole gang looked at me weird-like and strutted out the door like it was a summer day. I felt over-dressed. I found some awesome insulation panels at HD. Although they are only R-3 they are a Styrofoam panel that works well in humid places, like an outdoor shed or chicken coop. They're inexpensive too. With this and some scrap plywood sheathing to keep them from snacking on them I think they should be fine. The back of the coop face south so it gets warmed pretty good during the day. As far as wrapping the run: I'll hold off until the daytime temps drop some more. This way their bodies can adjust better to the cooler temps. Thanks for all the support.

 

[ash_en_em]

Good morning. We just had our first frost and I still have not got the coop winterized yet. I wore a coat to go to the coop and let the chickens out this morning because it was a bit nippy. They whole gang looked at me weird-like and strutted out the door like it was a summer day. I felt over-dressed. I found some awesome insulation panels at HD. Although they are only R-3 they are a Styrofoam panel that works well in humid places, like an outdoor shed or chicken coop. They're inexpensive too. With this and some scrap plywood sheathing to keep them from snacking on them I think they should be fine. The back of the coop face south so it gets warmed pretty good during the day. As far as wrapping the run: I'll hold off until the daytime temps drop some more. This way their bodies can adjust better to the cooler temps. Thanks for all the support.

R-3?

I had thought about doing the styrofoam too. For now I put plastic over the chicken wire portion of the door and the vent the runs the length of the coop and today the coop got up to 62°! Guess that plastic works kind of like a green house during the day! They were out and about in the yard, but from time to time one would go in there and just poke around.

This is their first winter so I'm sure I'm over thinking it a bit. But let me know what "R-3" styrofoam means so I have better luck finding what I need at the hardware store! Thanks in advance!

 

[ChickyNicky05]

Hello! This is my first winter with my 6 girls (3 black sex-linked and 3 RIR's) in Western MA. I am a bit worried about my RIR's because they are still young - about 10-11 weeks. They've been outside since they were fully feathered, but I think they are getting cold because they will not come out of the roost area in the mornings (maybe it's because they have recently moved in with the big girls and they still don't get along all that well yet?). It looks like we will be getting our first frost this week and I am a bit worried that I haven't winterized my coop yet.. We just bought this coop off of friends who have upgraded. My plan is to cover the bottom half with something, I'm not sure what yet... I have been trying to slowly remove all plastic from our lives, so I don't really want to use that, though it seems like that is what everyone is using. In the end I will probably use wood or glass, though glass could be dangerous if it breaks? We are going to attempt a deep litter on the currently dirt floor and put sand in the poop tray to make cleaning poop easier for myself when it gets really cold out. There is a small sliding door window on the roosting area (not pictured) that I don't think I should have open during the winter - it is at "bird level" and I worry it'll be more of a draft window than a ventilation window! I'm thinking of drilling some holes in the top portion.. Also I hope to maybe add an extension to the coop so they have more space to roam when the snow comes. I've heard chickens don't like to walk on snow, so I'm going to try to give them as much dry ground as possible. I think I'm going to have to detach and reattach the door so that it will open instead of out, that way I don't have to shovel in front of the door every time it snows. Does this sound like a good plan or am I over-doing/overthinking? I know chickens are cold hardy, but I worry about my girls! I check on them multiple times a day and at night to make sure everyone is okay. I really do not want to use a heat lamp - when we used one for brooding, our electric bill shot through the roof. I hope my plans will be enough to keep them warm when it goes into the negatives. Any thoughts?

*Side note- the coop pictured is a stock photo of one that looks exactly like ours*

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

R-3?

I had thought about doing the styrofoam too. For now I put plastic over the chicken wire portion of the door and the vent the runs the length of the coop and today the coop got up to 62°! Guess that plastic works kind of like a green house during the day! They were out and about in the yard, but from time to time one would go in there and just poke around.

This is their first winter so I'm sure I'm over thinking it a bit. But let me know what "R-3" styrofoam means so I have better luck finding what I need at the hardware store! Thanks in advance!

Good morning. Finally caught up on morning chores and had to finish picking the last poblano peppers off my giant bush (we've had frost 2 days in a row now). I wish I could feed them to the chickens, I must have raked in about two pounds more from plant. But enough of the spicy stuff. Insulation is "labeled" with a number to let you know how well it will insulate. The bigger the number, the better it insulates. R-3 is not that great, however, you can double the layers to increase it. I like this Styrofoam insulation because it is in 14 1/2 inch by 4 foot panels so it s easy to install. I'm planning on using some of stockpiled cardboard wrapped in plastic then cover that with plywood sheathing so my chickens don't snack on that (chickens are worse than goats). I'll put the Styrofoam sheets higher up where the little peckers can't reach. As far as buying the insulation, I found these at Home Depot just going through the building material section. I'm on a tight budget and can't really afford the higher R factor sheets and these sheets were more budget friendly. If you insulate your coop make sure your brood can't reach the insulation regardless of what you use - they will eat it if they get their little beaks on it. Good luck and stay warm!

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Hello! This is my first winter with my 6 girls (3 black sex-linked and 3 RIR's) in Western MA. I am a bit worried about my RIR's because they are still young - about 10-11 weeks. They've been outside since they were fully feathered, but I think they are getting cold because they will not come out of the roost area in the mornings (maybe it's because they have recently moved in with the big girls and they still don't get along all that well yet?). It looks like we will be getting our first frost this week and I am a bit worried that I haven't winterized my coop yet.. We just bought this coop off of friends who have upgraded. My plan is to cover the bottom half with something, I'm not sure what yet... I have been trying to slowly remove all plastic from our lives, so I don't really want to use that, though it seems like that is what everyone is using. In the end I will probably use wood or glass, though glass could be dangerous if it breaks? We are going to attempt a deep litter on the currently dirt floor and put sand in the poop tray to make cleaning poop easier for myself when it gets really cold out. There is a small sliding door window on the roosting area (not pictured) that I don't think I should have open during the winter - it is at "bird level" and I worry it'll be more of a draft window than a ventilation window! I'm thinking of drilling some holes in the top portion.. Also I hope to maybe add an extension to the coop so they have more space to roam when the snow comes. I've heard chickens don't like to walk on snow, so I'm going to try to give them as much dry ground as possible. I think I'm going to have to detach and reattach the door so that it will open instead of out, that way I don't have to shovel in front of the door every time it snows. Does this sound like a good plan or am I over-doing/overthinking? I know chickens are cold hardy, but I worry about my girls! I check on them multiple times a day and at night to make sure everyone is okay. I really do not want to use a heat lamp - when we used one for brooding, our electric bill shot through the roof. I hope my plans will be enough to keep them warm when it goes into the negatives. Any thoughts?

*Side note- the coop pictured is a stock photo of one that looks exactly like ours*

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

WoW, I'm a little east of you and we've had frost 2 days in a row, of course I'm almost in New Hampshire. This is my first winter too. Looking at your coop (very nice btw) I think you need to put up some wind breaks. That should warm the coop and run a bit. I'm not all that crazy about plastic either but you do what you need to take care of your brood. Good luck.

 

[ChickyNicky05]

WoW, I'm a little east of you and we've had frost 2 days in a row, of course I'm almost in New Hampshire. This is my first winter too. Looking at your coop (very nice btw) I think you need to put up some wind breaks. That should warm the coop and run a bit. I'm not all that crazy about plastic either but you do what you need to take care of your brood. Good luck.

Wow two days in a row already?? That's crazy! It's still to early in my mind for cold! I'm not ready for it yet!!!!! Ugh, I really don't like the cold..... Anyways, I hope your girls are holding up well! I just had someone email me about a few 3x5 pieces of plexiglass that she is giving away for free - I think I'm going to give in and use that for wind breaks- if I take good care of it I can use it for years to come and once I can no longer use it for my coop I know my fiance and I can find other uses for it around the yard/house. Winter is coming! I am going to do my best to get (almost) everything done before Thursday when it's supposed to get down to 30 degrees - the extension will have to wait until I have more resources and time. Are you going to use a heating tray to keep the water from freezing? Right now we hang our waterer, I'm going to have to figure out a new place for it...

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Wow two days in a row already?? That's crazy! It's still to early in my mind for cold! I'm not ready for it yet!!!!! Ugh, I really don't like the cold..... Anyways, I hope your girls are holding up well! I just had someone email me about a few 3x5 pieces of plexiglass that she is giving away for free - I think I'm going to give in and use that for wind breaks- if I take good care of it I can use it for years to come and once I can no longer use it for my coop I know my fiance and I can find other uses for it around the yard/house. Winter is coming! I am going to do my best to get (almost) everything done before Thursday when it's supposed to get down to 30 degrees - the extension will have to wait until I have more resources and time. Are you going to use a heating tray to keep the water from freezing? Right now we hang our waterer, I'm going to have to figure out a new place for it...

I'm not comfortable putting electricity anywhere near my gang, I'll probably just try to give them fresh water frequently and see how that goes.

 

[jreardon1918]

South east mass here. Our girls had no problems with our tough winter last year. There are a few pictures of our coop last winter. We did wrap the run in plastic, it kept out most of the snow. I don’t think there were any days that the chicks stayed in the coop. Except during storms when the wind was howling. We keep the two windows open year round. Last winter our chicks were less than a year old.