Cold factor in coop?

[WindingRoad]

How can it be well below freezing and you still get rain?

I would keep everything open.

The rain is made high up in the atmosphere. Where it is warmer. and falls fast enough not to freeze. Although at those temps it would possibly be freezing rain.

 

[Acre4Me]

So recently we built a pretty a medium sized coop for our chickens enough room to walk around etc. and we have two doors on each side for roaming. But we did not add in a window because we thought that since it’s the winter we wouldn’t want any drafts. This weekend it’s suppose to be well below freezing and we are expecting freezing rain and snow. Should I keep at least one coop door open or should I leave them closed for warmth or just open one for enough ventilation? I’m new to chicken owning and this is my first winter any tips will be appreciated thanks!

Pics of your coop would be great! Also, your location is helpful - even just a general location. Ventilation is key, but no drafts. We have lots of ventilation under the eaves, rather than using soffit to cover under the roof eaves they are open and covered with hardware cloth. We also have a window that is currently open about 1/2". The window is set low, so the opening is maybe 6" off the coop floor, and well below the level of our ladder roosts.

 

[PirateGirl]

Confession time. I know I am often repeating myself on BYC assuring people their birds will be warm enough without heat and without insulation. Sometimes I need reassurance myself. I was out last night at 3:00am in a blizzard to check on my flock! I couldn't sleep listening to the intense winds and seeing the snow drifts growing deeper by the foot. Of course, they were fine, but there was a few inches of snow building up inside the duck house due to the direction of the winds, so I did close/lock up the door, but I'm really not sure the ducks would have cared either way. So yes, we all worry about our birds and weather at times, but in reality they are quite hardy and often we are worrying more than need be .

 

[wamtazlady]

Confession time. I know I am often repeating myself on BYC assuring people their birds will be warm enough without heat and without insulation. Sometimes I need reassurance myself. I was out last night at 3:00am in a blizzard to check on my flock! I couldn't sleep listening to the intense winds and seeing the snow drifts growing deeper by the foot. Of course, they were fine, but there was a few inches of snow building up inside the duck house due to the direction of the winds, so I did close/lock up the door, but I'm really not sure the ducks would have cared either way. So yes, we all worry about our birds and weather at times, but in reality they are quite hardy and often we are worrying more than need be .

I built my geese and ducks a beautiful straw house with raised pallet floor that was covered in plywood and then loose straw put over the flooring. Was so proud that they would have a nice dry place to sleep during the winter. Only bird that ever used it was the female goose to lay her eggs in the spring. They all preferred to sleep in the snow drifts no matter how far below zero it was.

 

[Alaskan]

And people put a cover over their bird cage at night usually even in the house. No draft.

Usually people put a cover over a bird cage to keep the bird quiet, it has nothing to do with drafts. Most people don't like a screeching parrot at 5 am.

The rain is made high up in the atmosphere. Where it is warmer. and falls fast enough not to freeze. Although at those temps it would possibly be freezing rain.

That would only happen when the air temp is close to freezing, not way below freezing.

Just toss a glass of water into the air when it is below zero... that water is gone before it hits the ground.

Probably my idea of "well below freezing " is different than yours? Perhaps you are thinking 25F? I consider 25 a nice warm winter.

When I hear "well below freezing " I think single digits. Rain is NOT possible in single digits.

 

[PirateGirl]

I built my geese and ducks a beautiful straw house with raised pallet floor that was covered in plywood and then loose straw put over the flooring. Was so proud that they would have a nice dry place to sleep during the winter. Only bird that ever used it was the female goose to lay her eggs in the spring. They all preferred to sleep in the snow drifts no matter how far below zero it was.

Yeah, they have a secure run. I used to herd them into their house and lock them up each night, but now I realize they genuinely seem to prefer sleeping on the ground in the snow half the time... I only bother when it's really blowing...

 

[WindingRoad]

Usually people put a cover over a bird cage to keep the bird quiet, it has nothing to do with drafts. Most people don't like a screeching parrot at 5 am.



That would only happen when the air temp is close to freezing, not way below freezing.

Just toss a glass of water into the air when it is below zero... that water is gone before it hits the ground.

Probably my idea of "well below freezing " is different than yours? Perhaps you are thinking 25F? I consider 25 a nice warm winter.

When I hear "well below freezing " I think single digits. Rain is NOT possible in single digits.

I live in Maine. Many times we are -40F. We do get rain when it is below freezing. Many times we are colder than Alaska. I've lived here for 67 years. How long have you lived here. I can go out right now and toss that glass up 12 ounces and it won't be gone before it hits the ground. Heck my water in the coop during the day below zero takes about 3 hours to freeze. You haven't figure in the humidity either in your little experiment. Water doesn't freeze instantly. Have you ever put ice cube trays in the freezer. Beside hot water freezes quicker than cold. The rain is made high up and it's warm water so when it falls it is still liquid. Now it can freeze pretty quickly on the frozen ground. Have your ever made a snowman. That snow is very wet and heavy. Why?

Because it's full of rain.

 

[WindingRoad]

How can it be well below freezing and you still get rain?

I would keep everything open.

Read for content. FREEZING RAIN by the OP. But it can rain below freezing as I said be fore.

 

[CindyinSD]

Chippy chick, you don’t necessarily need a window though it’s nice, especially if you have the means to shutter it in inclement weather (ie wind, rain, blowing snow, etc.). I made a quick move of my flock from their pretty coop to the (cleaned out) storage shed last fall, just before a big snowstorm. They were fine in their little coop but they were hardly ever in there except at night. With the impending storm and the likelihood they’d be all cooped up for a few days, that wasn’t going to work.

They’d been in the shed two days when I saw/heard them pecking at the metal walls. Little rivulets of water were running down all over. Oops! The move was so hurried (I literally got them in there just as the wind picked up and the snow started stinging) that the thought of condensation never occurred to me. Luckily I had some stray screened vents lying about. DH and I were out there with the reciprocating saw cutting holes in the still-icky weather. We just put two small vents: fore and aft. It was enough, tho. No more beads of water to amuse the girls.

Light is good. I wouldn’t want to sit in a dark coop all day in any circumstances, let alone with a scary storm blowing all around me. I run an outdoor-rated extension cord from the house. It powers a bucket deicer and an LED lamp on a timer, in a trouble light fixture. Our low this winter so far was -14, and it’s been below zero (Fahrenheit) with a fair degree of frequency. The girls don’t seem to care. They don’t like the wind, though.

Sunlight is the great natural disinfectant of the earth. Very helpful. My chicken shed has barn doors— a royal pain since the girls are always filling up the tracks, but they do let in the sunlight all day as long as the weather doesn’t come from the south (which is rare and usually means a serious, unanticipated blizzard). I’m planning to replace the existing doors with insulated greenhouse panel, top-hung ones in the spring, along with wood siding and a chicken-sized door for the side.

Anyway, I’m getting off-track here. If you want to cozy up the coop. I’d put in straw bedding—lots of it. Straw is hollow and holds some heat. You can get it at farm stores, feed stores, etc. Hay is good, too. I use a mix of both, plus pine chips, and fluff/turn it with a pitchfork or hoe every several days. I use deep bedding, so everything stays. Nothing smells bad. If it does, it just needs turning and another layer added.

Vents at the top of the coop are really vital. A way for a significant quantity of sunlight to shine in will help keep things healthy inside—you could use windows, see-through doors, skylights... whatever is easiest. I made my roosts from 2x4 lumber, broad side up. That way the birds can sit on their little toes to keep them warm through the nights. As everyone has said, they can take a LOT of cold so long as they’re protected from wind and drafts.

 

[WindingRoad]

Usually people put a cover over a bird cage to keep the bird quiet, it has nothing to do with drafts. Most people don't like a screeching parrot at 5 am.



That would only happen when the air temp is close to freezing, not way below freezing.

Just toss a glass of water into the air when it is below zero... that water is gone before it hits the ground.

Probably my idea of "well below freezing " is different than yours? Perhaps you are thinking 25F? I consider 25 a nice warm winter.

When I hear "well below freezing " I think single digits. Rain is NOT possible in single digits.

Some people have old houses and there are drafts especially when they turn down their heat at night.