DIY chicken door cover for cold weather?

[chickachickayea]

Not sure why they need a flap?...Confused?...Do you have a pop door at all?....Two pens I have came with no Door..My Husband cut out plywood and made wood swivels like on a barn door to block off pop doors...I remove each morning...

Not sure what OP's reasons are but I would like one just as a wind barrier for the cold windy days, and as a bit of a rain buffer.

My coop door is a guillotine style, so I don't have the advantage of using it as an entrance/exit cover. My plan is (when I get the time) to build a little overhang connected to the coop for a bit of rain protection.

I bought half a yard each of 20 g (the thickest they had) & 12 g vinyl for a total of $7.50. I wasn't sure which would be more flexible once it was out in the cold, so I bought both.

Plan is to cut it into strips and overlap them, sandwich them between 2 pieces of wood and attach it above the door outside. I may or may not need to weigh down the ends of the flaps... We'll see how it goes!

 

[tigger19687]

I just did this with a free dog house, put on the outside to block wind.
I also have a pop door I open and close morning and night.
you can see in side to where the pop door is going into the shed/coop

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

I just did this with a free dog house, put on the outside to block wind.
I also have a pop door I open and close morning and night.
you can see in side to where the pop door is going into the shed/coop
View attachment 1208310

You and your free stuff! So lucky. I've scoured my area Craigslist and there is never any good free stuff - always asking for more than it's worth too!

 

[chickens really]

Our Dumps have a reuse area and many people drop off great finds...Also I have Kijiji on line and also great free stuff...

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Our Dumps have a reuse area and many people drop off great finds...Also I have Kijiji on line and also great free stuff...

What is Kijiji? We have freecyle too, but not much gets posted in my area.

 

[chickens really]

I'm in Canada....Kijiji is awesome....Google it for poops and giggles...Try Edmonton Kijiji as a look..

 

[tigger19687]

If you have a local "dump" refuse, not sure what they call them now, but some have an area for resue stuff like @chickens really said.
Also check out other towns. I have 3 other towns that have this area and it is great. My town has nothing

CL is big around here, I give as much as I take.

You could always get some Bales of Hay and out in front of the pop door. or a couple to make an entrance way

 

[Flock In Texas]

Cheap clear automotive floor mats? Clear to let light in and to make the learning curve easier.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

If you have a local "dump" refuse, not sure what they call them now, but some have an area for resue stuff like @chickens really said.
Also check out other towns. I have 3 other towns that have this area and it is great. My town has nothing

CL is big around here, I give as much as I take.

You could always get some Bales of Hay and out in front of the pop door. or a couple to make an entrance way

It’s definitely the area I live in. We had recycle dumpsters and people started using them for regular trash. And leftover stuff that was not reusable by anyone - dirty old mattresses, etc. So, unfortunately it was removed.
The CL I monitor covers two major cities in Indiana. If you’ve ever been to IN, you will get the gist of the word “major”.
But, I will continue to look.

 

[DaNi2010]

I am looking to do the same thing because my pop door is North facing. I'll be venturing out to JoAnn's today to see if I can find some heavy vinyl - I've used their lighter type for a table cover - so I'll update with my findings! If you don't have that option, I'd look around for a heavy PVC shower curtain to DIY.

I just read that when doing this to introduce your flock to the flap/curtain, to pin it up and gradually lower it over the course of a few days. Because chickens are chickens and can be quite confused by new things.

Good luck!

You could easily build a wind block with just a piece of wood running parallel to the front of the coop and with a cover so they have to walk in from the side(s) rather than straight in....the wind would significantly be cut that way