Heat lamp & coop temperature

[backyardcelia]

an air cushion i will remember that, jack! thanks!
this makes perfect sense... (do you have any add'l interior photos?) most of all i want to learn by others experience & like i said, my skill level would not come close, and while there are certainly more than a dozen ways to skin a cat (heaven forfend!) some stuff seems to make more sense and some stuff makes more personal sense.
for example the can right in the coop... well, of course it makes more sense than carrying to and fro, but it could take weeks for that to occur to me!
and back to the topic at hand- sunlight, AKA heat...
that seems also the perfect design for maximum light. from my very limited personal experience, i am THRILLED to say that despite no real add'l artificial light, i am 5 eggs, for 5 days! (these are 'my' first eggs, ever).

 

[backyardcelia]

eggs are still consistent...and now we have two ladies laying (without light) and there are two barreds looking ready ... but that was not what i came to report. what i did come to report was temperatures........ we've been having some nasty frigid weather. cold AND windy!

wed was 1 degree and thurs. below zero here. in the coop, (we have a thermometer that records highs and lows, temperature and humidity)
it was 14 degrees and 17 degrees as the low...

so, it appears that when the temperature dropped 2 degrees, the chickens produced MORE heat making it 3 degrees warmer than the previous night inside the coop. what is that about?

 

[Hokum Coco]

It is -10F with a windchill of -37F in Canada today. These Arctic conditions will linger another week according to the weather forecast. I have 2 inch Styrofoam insulation in the hen coop however the temperature inside the coop is not much warmer than outside.


I will be going out directly to check on my flock they have been doing well so far (my 6 Golden Comet eggs production was down to 1 egg yesterday). That being said the girls are very vocal and active.

My squabs that hatched December 26 & 27 are coping well and I have eggs in another white homer nest.

My ringneck pheasants are enjoying my extra trips to the buildings and wondering what all my fuss is about. I shut up my ventilation ports yesterday because of the cutting wind but may open a few today if there seems to be vapour in the buildings. I open my double doors first thing in the morning that changes the air inside the building in about 5 seconds.

 

[Hokum Coco]

It is 0F January 26 with a wind chill of -16F. No heat; No light; Poop is frozen on my poop board I cleaned that off yesterday; No ammonia smell; On the lower level the poop is frozen in solid pancakes I can just pick up and put in my compost bin I usually wait until the pancake is substantial enough to pick up easily about 10 inches around or in length. The temperature inside my coop is for all general purposes the same as the ambient air outside. I have to do a variation on the deep litter method because of my raised coop floor and litter are so cold that the droppings do not get a chance to decompose it practically freezes on contact. I will be going out soon to check on my birds. I am not too worried about them. They are a healthy flock. I have been keeping my ventilation ports closed as of late and will not be opening until this deep freeze relents. I have been watching the coop to see if there is any signs of vapour however there has been none to date. The humidity is 66% in the ambient air. My water will be frozen harder than a brick. I will bring out fresh warm water and they all will congregate and enjoy their drink first thing.