Coop Door

[HenHouseV]

Hi everyone,
Just wondering, does everyone close their door to the coop every night? Then open every morning? My coop has a secure run that it leads to. I have never had any issues with predators. Just wondering for more warmth during these colder nights? What do you all do? I’m living in upstate NY so temps are starting to drop, just want to make/keep my flock happy!

 

[Sycamore Hill Chicks]

I would recommend it just as an extra layer of protection.

 

[DobieLover]

Hi everyone,
Just wondering, does everyone close their door to the coop every night? Then open every morning? My coop has a secure run that it leads to. I have never had any issues with predators. Just wondering for more warmth during these colder nights? What do you all do? I’m living in upstate NY so temps are starting to drop, just want to make/keep my flock happy!

I too have a predator proof run and I never close the pop door. But I do put tarps up on the run to block the wind.
I'm also in upstate NY.

But I have another line of defense. My setup is contained within an electrified poultry netted pen.

 

[Docdetective]

I close mine at night, but I do it because the sun isn’t secure.

**run lol.

 

[jreardon1918]

I think heat is really not that big of a factor. Leaving it open does allow a little more ventilation. It also exposes the chickens to more predator risk at their most vulnerable moments.

We leave our pop door open. We think the run is very secure. It does get a visual inspection every day for signs of attack. So far, so good. You will want to carefully consider your risk tolerance.

 

[black_cat]

We close ours at night because it's much easier for things to get through hardware cloth than it is wood. The safety of our run is also a bit questionable.

 

[aart]

Just wondering for more warmth during these colder nights?

Ventilation is way more important than "more warmth".
Temps and humidity should be about the same inside and outside the coop.

 

[Sycamore Hill Chicks]

Ventilation is way more important than "more warmth".
Temps and humidity should be about the same inside and outside the coop.

Yes the last thing you want in the winter is an airtight coop. If you are closing your door, make sure your coop has enough ventilation.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Whether or not to close the coop door because of predators is your choice. How confident are you that the run is truly predator proof. You have to live with your decision, I don't.

Your job is not to keep the chickens warm. Your job is to allow the chickens to keep themselves warm, much like the wild birds that overwinter where you are. You do that by keeping them dry and allowing them to get out of a cold wind.

Keeping them dry is mostly talking about the moisture in the air that can come from their breathing, wet poop, and maybe waterers. Moist air can lead to frostbite. You remove that moisture in the air by having good ventilation.

You do not want a cold wind blowing over them any more than you want to stand outside in a strong cold wind. Gentle air movement isn't bad, that can help get rid if excess moisture in the air. But a breeze that can ruffle feathers is bad.

There are different ways to get good ventilation and avoid cold breeze hitting them. My preference is to have all openings over their heads when they are on the roosts so any breezes are over their heads.

If leaving that pop door allows your coop to become a wind tunnel where it channels breezes over the birds I'd close it. That's going to depend a lot on where your other ventilation openings are and how your roosts are positioned.