Extension cord out to coop, pros and cons

[Bsmac]

Tippecanoe County, Indiana, about 150 miles south of Chicago.

I live in Lagrange Co N.E. In. I do have a couple Cozy flat panel heaters I turn on occasionally. They are more like a heating pad than an actual heater they will not heat the coop. That`s all I use, then only if it is very cold.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

How cold does it actually get there? It's likely they will not need the heater. I would not recommend a heater in that coop - it's much too small and the chickens wouldn't be able to get out of the heat if they wanted to. They may also not acclimate well to the cold with a heater on them all night so may not be able to tolerate being outside during the winter which they need, especially with a coop that small.

Also, the heated waterer must be placed outdoors or in an area with ample ventilation because they create a lot of steam that will collect on the walls, ceiling, and your chickens' combs and wattles and freeze.

Do you get snow? If so, raise the extension cord off the ground. I attached mine to fence posts with removable plant ties.

Ahh, the cord along the fence - what a great idea!

 

[Not-so Slick Chicken]

I don't have bantams, but I did get chicks last winter. So they were probably bantam-sized for the cold.

They had a heat plate longer than they needed (7 weeks?) Honestly, they didn't use it much and roosted on top for over a month (barely any heat on top. They can huddle for warmth, too)

We can get into the negatives (fahrenheit), but most nights were under 20f when the chicks were about 2 months old. Likely colder, I just didn't record that info.
They did perfectly fine without supplemental heat.

The important thing is a dry coop with adequate ventilation, and not letting breezes blow on them.
That coop is really small.
Their little bodies generate a lot of heat, so there's a lot of condensation that'll form above and around them.

I've personally looked into storage sheds for adapting into chicken coops, but they can be expensive. And the affordable used ones can be in poor condition.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I remind people that chickens are BIRDS. If sparrows, cardinals and blue jays can survive your winters outdoors in the trees, your chickens will certainly be fine inside an enclosed building. No heat needed, they have high metabolisms inside down jackets.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Other concern with your set up is how much snow do you get, and how will you manage it? Wet snow building up on top of that run can easily collapse it.