Heating chicken coop when power goese out?

[aart]

Quote: Agrees whole-heartedly......and also how you provide the heating.

 

[MeepBeep]

 

As I keep saying every situation is different, the answer is not black and white... Without knowing the individual's situation and the type of poultry they have as well as their birds health one should never jump to the 'no you don't need to heat the coop, it's bad' as that could be an ill advised answer in some individuals situations...

Perhaps you could share your particular situation requiring heat whenever you advise heat, so the reader could make a more informed decision.

There is plenty of opinions advising against it.

Agrees whole-heartedly......and also how you provide the heating.

I don't advise heat, I advise people that heat or no heat is not as black and white as many claim and that there are circumstances where heat is beneficial and that the proclaimed 'no heat needed' blanket answer isn't always the proper choice...

In every thread I have posted in, including this one I try to point out that the answer is simply not black and white, I'm not advising heating, quite the opposite, I'm advising that neither choice is absolutely correct or the right/wrong way for everyong... The reality is there are confined circumstance where no heat is beneficial while there are several unique instances when heat is beneficial... It's much easy for those saying 'no heat' to specify when it generally applies as it's a limited set circumstances... **see below**

It's also a two way road, maybe those who say no heat can be more specific and point out what circumstance it applies to instead of of the black and white proclamation that it's bad mojo to heat when they have little to no information about anyone's particular situation? The blunt reality is the answer is not black and white and making a blanket statement that you shouldn't heat without knowing the particular situation is narrow mined and potentially ill advised advice...

**The short of it, if you have cold hardy breeds of chickens (and/or other cold hardy poultry), they are in good health and your coop is well ventilated so that humidity is bellow 60% heat is generally not advised or necessary in a coop... But, when the three previous qualifiers are not met it very well could lead to a viable reason for supplemental heating and one should evaluate their own unique situation and make an educated decision based upon their specific situation weighing the risk and benefits...

Here is some of the main reasons I personally heat my coop these are my specific situation, so of course they are not universal, nor do they apply to everyone, thus the reason I'm no going around telling everyone to heat their coop (or not heat their coop) but instead advising and informing them that it's not a black and white answer and they should evaluate their specific needs and situation...

I want as near as 100% no frostbite risk as I can achieve for all my birds, keeping the temp above freezing grantees no frostbite risk
I have less cold tolerant peafowl in my coop, as well as some less cold tolerant chicken breeds
I have younger birds in my coop and personally feel they are not always ready for the extreme cold, feathered or not
I absolutely don't want to deal with the hassles of frozen water bowls or water nipples
My coop is fully water plumbed, I don't want frozen and/or busting pipes but don't want to shut the water off either and be forced to carry 5-10 gallons water back and forth every day to water the birds
I don't want to risk frozen eggs (my winter egg sales more than pay for all my heating cost)
I don't want to clean up frozen stuck to everything poop
I don't want any worries about frost build up in the coop walls or what not, or be concerned with humidity in general
I fully enjoy working and cleaning a coop where the cold bite is out of the air
Even though I disapprove my bantams insist on roosting on any metal electrical conduit they can reach so keeping it above freezing means no frozen toes or frostbite for the little guys
My young children go out almost daily and play with the birds in the coop, they enjoy the cold bite being taken out of the air just like I do
My three dogs share part of the coop as a their dog house, and they fully enjoy and benefit from it not falling to extreme cold temps
My coop is sunk about 2 feet below grade, and when we get the inevitable thaws and freezes water does leak in a bit, I don't want a winter ice rink on the floor
The heating promotes evaporation and dries the coop floor
Above freezing temps in my coop means no immediate worries or concerns about humidity levels
As I track in snow on my daily travels to and from the coop, it doesn't build up and make a compacted icy mess in the coop floor
I have a very safe and properly installed heating system (100,000 BTU force air furnace, same as in many houses) so there is little to no risk of fire as long as I change the air filter regularly (I check it every day)
I have a backup generator on standby and thus even if the power goes out the house and coop still have heat, as the generator will power the blower fans so no 'what if' worries about power outages
I get a TON of free 'day old' produce from a few local grocery stores for my birds as well as for my goats and llamas, I store this inside the coop and since the coop is above freezing it doesn't wilt/freeze turn to a popsicle or go bad, basically the coop acts a big refrigerator crisper
In the end it cost about $200 in propane for me to heat my coop to about 35°-40° (right now it's holding a steady 37°) all winter, and that is a small price to pay for the benefits and piece of mind I get out of it

All in all no one is going to convince me I'm doing my birds any harm by providing supplemental heat...

 

[aart]

Quote: Agrees whole-heartedly......and also how you provide the heating.

I don't advise heat, I advise people that heat or no heat is not as black and white as many claim and that there are circumstances where heat is beneficial and that the proclaimed 'no heat needed' blanket answer isn't always the proper choice...

In every thread I have posted in, including this one I try to point out that the answer is simply not black and white, I'm not advising heating, quite the opposite, I'm advising that neither choice is absolutely correct or the right/wrong way for everyong... The reality is there are confined circumstance where no heat is beneficial while there are several unique instances when heat is beneficial... It's much easy for those saying 'no heat' to specify when it generally applies as it's a limited set circumstances... **see below**

It's also a two way road, maybe those who say no heat can be more specific and point out what circumstance it applies to instead of of the black and white proclamation that it's bad mojo to heat when they have little to no information about anyone's particular situation? The blunt reality is the answer is not black and white and making a blanket statement that you shouldn't heat without knowing the particular situation is narrow mined and potentially ill advised advice...

**The short of it, if you have cold hardy breeds of chickens (and/or other cold hardy poultry), they are in good health and your coop is well ventilated so that humidity is bellow 60% heat is generally not advised or necessary in a coop... But, when the three previous qualifiers are not met it very well could lead to a viable reason for supplemental heating and one should evaluate their own unique situation and make an educated decision based upon their specific situation weighing the risk and benefits...

Here is some of the main reasons I personally heat my coop these are my specific situation, so of course they are not universal, nor do they apply to everyone, thus the reason I'm no going around telling everyone to heat their coop (or not heat their coop) but instead advising and informing them that it's not a black and white answer and they should evaluate their specific needs and situation...

I want as near as 100% no frostbite risk as I can achieve for all my birds, keeping the temp above freezing grantees no frostbite risk
I have less cold tolerant peafowl in my coop, as well as some less cold tolerant chicken breeds
I have younger birds in my coop and personally feel they are not always ready for the extreme cold, feathered or not
I absolutely don't want to deal with the hassles of frozen water bowls or water nipples
My coop is fully water plumbed, I don't want frozen and/or busting pipes but don't want to shut the water off either and be forced to carry 5-10 gallons water back and forth every day to water the birds
I don't want to risk frozen eggs (my winter egg sales more than pay for all my heating cost)
I don't want to clean up frozen stuck to everything poop
I don't want any worries about frost build up in the coop walls or what not, or be concerned with humidity in general
I fully enjoy working and cleaning a coop where the cold bite is out of the air
Even though I disapprove my bantams insist on roosting on any metal electrical conduit they can reach so keeping it above freezing means no frozen toes or frostbite for the little guys
My young children go out almost daily and play with the birds in the coop, they enjoy the cold bite being taken out of the air just like I do
My three dogs share part of the coop as a their dog house, and they fully enjoy and benefit from it not falling to extreme cold temps
My coop is sunk about 2 feet below grade, and when we get the inevitable thaws and freezes water does leak in a bit, I don't want a winter ice rink on the floor
The heating promotes evaporation and dries the coop floor
Above freezing temps in my coop means no immediate worries or concerns about humidity levels
As I track in snow on my daily travels to and from the coop, it doesn't build up and make a compacted icy mess in the coop floor
I have a very safe and properly installed heating system (100,000 BTU force air furnace, same as in many houses) so there is little to no risk of fire as long as I change the air filter regularly (I check it every day)
I have a backup generator on standby and thus even if the power goes out the house and coop still have heat, as the generator will power the blower fans so no 'what if' worries about power outages
I get a TON of free 'day old' produce from a few local grocery stores for my birds as well as for my goats and llamas, I store this inside the coop and since the coop is above freezing it doesn't wilt/freeze turn to a popsicle or go bad, basically the coop acts a big refrigerator crisper
In the end it cost about $200 in propane for me to heat my coop to about 35°-40° (right now it's holding a steady 37°) all winter, and that is a small price to pay for the benefits and piece of mind I get out of it

All in all no one is going to convince me I'm doing my birds any harm by providing supplemental heat...
So you basically have an outbuilding with full plumbing, electricity(and backup generator) and HVAC......that you happen to keep your birds and dogs in.
Not your typical chicken coop...nothing near most anything that 99% of the keepers here on BYC have.

That, to me, is pretty black and white....
......and misleading if you don't explain that you have an outbuilding with full plumbing, electricity(and backup generator) and HVAC in the one simple sentence it would take to explain.

 

[RonP]

Agreed!!

Thank you for listing your parameters. Lucky birds.

Before I ever recommend heat, I'll compare their coop with yours in mind.

 

[MeepBeep]

Not your typical chicken coop...nothing near most anything that 99% of the keepers here on BYC have.

I don't fully know anyone's setup besides my own, and I certainly don't claim to know anywhere near even 1% of the members specific setups and their birds let alone the 99% you claim to know...

Thus the reason I continue to caution black and white answers on heating and promote an educated and informed decision based on individual setups... What do you really have against one promoting an educated and informed decision process over a blanket answer that doesn't address ones particular situation, is it the fear that your blanket statement might not be correct?

Yes, I have a large coop, but that is not the sole reason or even the main reason I heat, I would heat regardless of coop size for my several other reasons...

To be very blunt, providing a moderate temperature (above freezing environment) is simply not harmful or detrimental to poultry in any way or form, that is a cold hard fact...

That, to me, is pretty black and white....

I fully beg to differ, it's simply not black and white no matter how many times your repeat that it is, everyone's setup is unique and thus a black and white absolute answer will never fit everyone... Instead unique situations result in a very gray answer... There is simply no blanket black and white answer on heating, it's not a one sized fits all answer and to keep insisting their is is nothing short of being obstinate... Instead one should use an educated evaluation of their specific setup and weigh the pros/cons based on their unique setup... Then they are in a much better, educated and informed position to make a decision specific to them..

One should start with answering these three SIMPLE questions as a foundation to build upon in their choice to heat or not...

1. Are all your birds cold weather hearty?
2. Are all your birds in good health?
3. Is the humidity bellow 60% in your coop and is your roosting area draft free?

If you answered yes to all the above the answer is a lot more black and white, but still not fully black and white but one could certainly suggest that heat is generally not advised or need in that situations... BUT, on the other hand if you answered no to any of those questions your situation is no longer anywhere near black and white and supplemental heat might very well be beneficial and should not be disregarded as a possible option...

......and misleading if you don't explain that you have an outbuilding with full plumbing, electricity(and backup generator) and HVAC in the one simple sentence it would take to explain.

Even if I had a small coop for my peafowl (and less cold tolerant birds) I would still provide supplemental heat for for them, the size of my coop is hardly the reason I heat it! It certainly adds heavily to the pros of me heating but it's far from the only reason... I have heated my peafowl coops since day one, and those coops have been all different sizes over the years...

The top reasons I heat my coop (that are 100% removed from coop size and thus could apply to many) are because I have cold intolerant birds (this is the absolute main reason and the only reason I need for me to choose heat in my coop), to fully avoid frostbite risk, to avoid frozen water, and to avoid frozen eggs, for those reasons (or just the single fact I have peafowl) I would heat my coop no matter what size the coop was or is...

 

[EagleEyes]

I'd love to see a picture of your coop. Sounds amazing.

 

[ladyearth]

same here... would like to see pics of your fabulous coop... I am jealous... somewhat... LOL
Hubby says he "chickened out"...... I would be happy with a chiicken sunroom hoop house. I have the materials.. but Hubby has more imp things to do....
Put the Barr Rock teenagers ,The gang.. of four, in the garage last night in a TSC chicken coop extension I bought in the spring.....
The one coop is partly insulated. Unfortunately Hubby used that blankety blank white styfoam siding with alunium foil backing..and all is not covered.. The crackheads keep finding un sided parts of the coop and exposed edges of the strofoam junk.. RAH....
We should have used the foil Reflective stuff.......the will jump thr hoops to get that white styofoam

Just commenting yall

 

[MeepBeep]

I'd love to see a picture of your coop. Sounds amazing.

It's far from glamorous, it's a 100 year old as they called them back then a 'Hen House Coop' that has been re-purposed and added onto over the years as well as being used for obviously many other purposes over the years, and it's showing it's age... It's currently a work in progress as I clean it out (many decades of junk storage still in there) and convert it back to a full time coop, winter came too soon and now work is kinda stalled, had to devote the last few months to driving fence poles, so the coop took a backseat...

 

[peanutbutternje]

When it is negative 15 I need to do something when the power is out.

 

[mrchicks]

It would help to know what kind of birds that you have, and how your coop is set up. We get that cold here, but I don't heat the coops. We keep Polish, mixed layers, and Jersey Giants. Even the polish do well in sub zero temps. I do put plastic shower curtains around the runs to keep the snow from drifting in too badly.