Frost on windows?

[bhawk-23]

So it was the coldest it's been yet last night and we woke to frost on the windows in the coop and on the plastic covering the hardware cloth.

Coop is 30 sq ft with 8 sq ft of ventilation and currently housing 2 pullets and 1 cockerel.
The run (where 8 hens are roosting) is 16' X 5' and has hardware cloth on all sides with a metal roof. We placed plastic covering from the ground up with 4" to 6" ventilation all around the top perimeter. We covered 2 sides under the coop due to cockerels being housed there for a week and we have not removed it. How can we fix this issue, if it is an issue?

Please don't judge all the crazy modifications. We are learning about all the unexpected issues that arise when caring for a flock. I can already see what more permanent changes we need make this summer. It works for now.....mostly? Ugh...
Side note: all chickens seem happy, healthy and surprisingly faring quite well in this cold cold weather!

 

[aart]

Frost on inside of coop windows is an issue that needs to be addressed.
Why so damp in the coop....do you have an open waterer in there??
Was there a spill?
What kind of bedding?
Pics of coop inside and out, showing ventilation would help here.

Run is easier, take down some of the plastic.
Leave it up on the windward side (where the wind blows the most),
take some down on the leeward side (where the winds blows the least).

 

[bhawk-23]

We do have a vertical nipple waterer. I've notice it get wet underneath and have raked it over to help it dry. We will switch out waterers today. We will remove plastic from underneath the coop also. I will get more pictures when I head out this morning.

 

[SnootyHen]

We do have a vertical nipple waterer. I've notice it get wet underneath and have raked it over to help it dry. We will switch out waterers today. We will remove plastic from underneath the coop also. I will get more pictures when I head out this morning.

Is the water in the coop or in the run? Taking it out of the coop may help a bit. I'm not far from you (and experiencing your same weather) and though my water will freeze if I don't get out there every few hours, it's just easier to manage in the run. Helps keep the coop dry!

 

[bhawk-23]

No water in the coop, only in the run.

 

[bhawk-23]

@SnootyHen
Are you near the University?

 

[bhawk-23]

We scooped out the damp ground under the waterer and moved that one to outside. We placed the horizontal nipples with cups waterer in its place. We will get pine shavings to spread all over the run floor because the landscape yard is closed for a covid positive case and we are unable to get wood chips. Will the shavings be ok for the chickens? Here are pictures of the run where the 8 older gals like to roost.

 

[bhawk-23]

And here is the coop where the 3 others stay. They like to roost on the branch at the front of the coop. We set food on that platform but not water. The heater is from the spring when they were chicks. It has not been used since and really needs to come down.

Hubs says I am making a big deal over the very slightest case of frost dusting. But I say an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure, right?? Hahaha

 

[jreardon1918]

Lowering the humidity in the coop is step one. Assuming the chickens have access to the run, water there is probably all that is needed. Just make sure they have access for daylight. You might also remove some of the plastic as it my be preventing air flow. and open the windows. Of course you don't want it too breezy. Sort of a balancing act.

 

[SnootyHen]

@SnootyHen
Are you near the University?

No, I'm a bit farther north near the IL/IN border.