Coop heater for COLD weather

[Hokum Coco]

@ JJackson You would understand my point more clearly if you lived a year in wind swept Churchill Manitoba on Hudson Bay.
You would be wearing every stitch of clothing you could put on for months.
A Toque and a balaclava are daily necessities.
You would not shut off your car for months because it would not starting up your Prestone could freeze.
Not just the kind of climate you and I share.
I do not heat and my coop and my birds do just fine. but climate in Manitoba can be BRUTAL TRUST ME!!! Nothing like what you and I experience Polar Bears cluster around the community (how many Polar Bears in your Area??).

 

[Heidi T]

I heat my cooop. My ladies are happiest at 20 to 30 degrees. It has been 0in the coop and -30 outside and they do fine. I have an oil heater on low in the coop blocked off so the ladies and straw can't get to close. We insulated the roof and some of the sides with foam board and straw along the nesting boxes. The main reason I keep it so warm is I don't like frozen eggs (and my ladies are spoiled) I've been told as long as they can cover their feet with feathers they are fine. Footless chicken don't live. I also decreased the laying mash and added meat bird mix and corn and oat mix from the elevator. And kitchen scraps. The ladies LOVE when the kids don't eat their veggies. We went from getting six eggs a day to one to two. Fine for winter.
Good luck and stay warm,

 

[jjackson-7]

@Hokum Coco

Quote: .This is what I was refering to when I said I didn't completely understand your comments. Why would Canadians have the advantage of warding off trouble? (and I'm Canadian) Believe me, I understand the cold. I know about touques and belclavas (long underwear and wool socks too by the way!), and leaving your tractor running so you can feed your cattle in the morning. I know how the cold snaps metal at those temperatures and hydraullic lines burst, and you have to watch the kids faces for signs of white frostbitten patches. I know the cold.

To each their own. I was just trying to provide information for the person asking the question. In my experience, they don't need a heated coop and we reach temperatures that the poster asked about. So long as you are providing other basics for those temperatures, and as always watching for signs of anyone who is not doing as well, you should be ok.

 

[Hokum Coco]

@JJackson:
I did not mean to insult your intelligence about cold I figure you are in the approximately the same temperate zone as I am or near about and for that I can see why you maybe defensive.

On the other hand I do not think you or I would run our vehicle 24/7 so the Preston or antifreeze in the engine block would not freeze. If you are in such a zone you definitely have more experience in cold than what I have.

I will therefore let your comments stand as superior to mine.

I just comment on the zone that I am familiar with. I met no offense to your knowledge or experience. I really thing we are on the same page in both our set ups. I do not heat my coop either, never have, and never lost a bird to cold. However if I thought my birds were stressed due to the cold and witness behavour that I new was brought on by extreme cold over an unusually long cold period. I would be the first to add heat and take corrective action is the point I wanted to make.

You strike me as an intelligent person I am sure you would do the same.

I have brought bird(s) that were stress in from the coop that needed attention because of maybe a combination of things pecking order, touch of frostbite, injury, not vibrant or vocal, in the winter time that would have not needed attention if the same thing had occurred in a milder season. I think you may have also at some point.

With extenuating circumstance or maybe prolonged cold chickens will suffer in my mind you have to be attentive to each bird every day regardless of season.

You have to pay due dilligence or you may suffer an unnecessary loss.
If you nip things in the bud shall we say.
It is that way on any livestock you raise.

Murphy's law states that if things are going bad and you do not address the situation immediately things will only get worse. .

 

[Candi1777]

TEN CHICKS, What do you use to provide heat? I was looking at infared or radiant heater but am not sure if they are fire safe.

 

[Hokum Coco]

My birds are cold hardy. My climate is only cold snaps of around -40º or lower for a couple days. Any stress bird(s) requiring heat I would set up (electric heater or 250 watt heat lamp) sick bay in my garage
(has yet to happen honestly).
I feed extra corn gives birds an extra defense against cold in my opinion. Others disagree with my methods. There are as many methods as their are chicken owners. What ever works for you, your breed of birds, and climate you endure.






.

 

[Candi1777]

I've been really concerned about the heat lamp in the coop falling and starting a fire. When me & Zack checked chickens this morning the lamp was on the ground. Luckily the bulb broke off and didn't start a fire, dodged a bullet there. So I made some adjustments to secure the lamp, an eye bolt and Carabeaner. I did add a rope to lower it about a foot lower than the picture shows, still well above the ground. It's about -20 and no sign of warming up soon and since I have already acclimated the chickens to having a heat source, I can't take it away at this temp.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Quote:Originally Posted by Candi1777
When me & Zack checked chickens this morning the lamp was on the ground. Luckily the bulb broke off and didn't start a fire, dodged a bullet there. So I made some adjustments to secure the lamp, an eye bolt and carabiner.

You were lucky not to suffer the full effects of Murphy's Law.
Do you run your heat lamp 24/7?
Most heat lamps have a wire cage to enclose the face of the bulb when it is housed in the light fixture ?
Depending on your demand that heat lamp could cost you as much as $20.ºº or more on your hydro bill.
What type of birds do you own?
What is you plan if you loose Hydro?
Your heat lamp looks quite secure to me now.
I would even have it so the light would suspend by the cord should your first line of defense fails...

 

[theabee]

This might be a silly idea, but if you live where it doesn't get to cold all the time, it might work at night. If you filled a waterer in the coop with extremely hot water and maybe even put gallon jugs filled with boiling water around the coop, would this produce enough heat (just for the night) to warm it on only the coldest nights? I guess you wouldn't want the water to be too hot in the waterer in case the chickies wanted a drink...

(thinking of chicken drinking boiling water). But gallon jugs could be filled with boiling water and placed after the chickies had gone to roost so they didn't bump into the hot jugs. It's like those water bottle heaters for bed to keep your feet warm!

I might try this when I get chickens... eventually... unless you think it could be dangerous in some way I haven't thought of.

What do you think? Would it work for a small coop for a few hours at night?