Coop FAIL!!

[3KillerBs]

(BTW, I realize I am commenting on a coop in a snowy area when I am from a place where the locals get out parkas when it is below 60 - but I AM very good at building things)

Yeah. Same here. My chickens get their sweaters out of storage when it drops below 70.

But the same sort of awnings that work for me during tropical storms ought to work for snow.

 

[Pippin quail]

Hinges are good -- especially if you have a way to prop them at different levels.

That way you can leave them barely cracked open during storms with swirling winds so that the snow stays out but at least some air gets in.

True. Having different levels would definitely be ideal. Though even if it was all the way closed its not like it's a sealed box, there's the gaps at the roofline and around doors. I know that's not adequate ventilation all the time, but I'm sure in a storm that only lasts a few hours and has the swirling snow, all the way closed might be ok for a short period. I'm not an expert though!!

 

[Pippin quail]

I don't think you'd ever want both of them completely closed off, since I think that is your only ventilation? But having a way to prop them all the way open or incrementally narrowed would be good.

(BTW, I realize I am commenting on a coop in a snowy area when I am from a place where the locals get out parkas when it is below 60 - but I AM very good at building things )

Edit: 3KillerBs beat me to it.

I'm so jealous.. Today was -16C which is like 3 degrees Fahrenheit!! And it's not even technically winter yet!! I seriously questioned my decision to keep chickens this morning when I saw their coop. I hope this winter isn't awful for them and by extension me!

 

[RubelliteRose]

We have hinged window awnings on our coop windows and love them. I would extend them past the length of the window to keep rain and snow from blowing in the sides. Ours aren't long enough so we now have sections of shower curtains attached over the corners. You also don't have a lot of room above the vent, so a chain may not work, but you should be able to attach some kind of rod/pole to prop them up(I'm thinking of the way RV awnings are propped up). Also make sure your roof extends over the top edge of the awning as there is a gap from the hinge. Whoever originally built our shed didn't add any overhang to the roof so we had to add flashing to keep the rain from leaking in the windows.

 

[Windrider]

I'm so jealous.. Today was -16C which is like 3 degrees Fahrenheit!! And it's not even technically winter yet!! I seriously questioned my decision to keep chickens this morning when I saw their coop. I hope this winter isn't awful for them and by extension me!

Aww, people keep chickens in sub-zero winters all the time! You should see DobieLover's pics of her coop after that mega storm hit the NE last year. I think your coop is pretty nice, which is why I remembered it enough to find the pics. It just needs minor tweaking, but I doubt anyone here built their coop and didn't tweak it at all after a season.

 

[Pippin quail]

We have hinged window awnings on our coop windows and love them. I would extend them past the length of the window to keep rain and snow from blowing in the sides. Ours aren't long enough so we now have sections of shower curtains attached over the corners. You also don't have a lot of room above the vent, so a chain may not work, but you should be able to attach some kind of rod/pole to prop them up(I'm thinking of the way RV awnings are propped up). Also make sure your roof extends over the top edge of the awning as there is a gap from the hinge. Whoever originally built our shed didn't add any overhang to the roof so we had to add flashing to keep the rain from leaking in the windows.
View attachment 2900539

Those look awesome. I will show to my husband for inspiration.

 

[aart]

Sorry lost my train of thought on the first part of that asking about hinged awnings. I'm wondering if it would be better to have them on hinges so I could completely close one side or even both in the event of another blizzard...?

Even if those baffles are up all they way they could still collect blowing snow....
..that would not be good.
Not sure what the solution is, with no roof overhang to protect soffit level venting.

 

[Pippin quail]

Aww, people keep chickens in sub-zero winters all the time! You should see DobieLover's pics of her coop after that mega storm hit the NE last year. I think your coop is pretty nice, which is why I remembered it enough to find the pics. It just needs minor tweaking, but I doubt anyone here built their coop and didn't tweak it at all after a season.

Thanks! I just have a lot of naysayers in my life telling me that I'm going to find frozen chickens on the roost one morning. Which after this morning I thought might be true! But you're right, after some tweaking it should be good.

Although I am wondering if anyone knows what would work well for heat? I don't plan on using it the majority of the time, but some people have said if it gets below -25C (-13F) they add supplemental heat, especially if it's a long cold spell.

 

[Pippin quail]

Even if those baffles are up all they way they could still collect blowing snow....
..that would not be good.
Not sure what the solution is, with no roof overhang to protect soffit level venting.

Hopefully once the awnings are up it will prevent most of the an snow from blowing in at all.. Though I am going to have to somehow get all the snow off the baffles and netting tomorrow before it melts and drips down and then freezes in the coop.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

The chickens don't care.

Mine do, they are a bunch of princesses