Help Its Getting Cold

[LynneP]

It's exceptionally important to keep a coop from leaking, so deal with that issue first. Eliminate drafts that may chill your chickens. Then, if you still have moisture problems, it's an indication that venting humidity is an issue. Oh and when you seal up your roof and sides for rain, give the coop a clean down and provide extra bedding in winter.

Some ideas in the links below-

 

[Kovalciks Chickens]

Well I dont think I am going to be able to fix the drafts cuz there are soooooo many areas there can be drafts. I have 5 bantams, 9 standards that are the size of my bantams cuz of their age, and the rest...approx 15....are only 4months old so its not as many grown birds as everyone thinks. The moisture problem only occurs because we think the roof leaks but we do not know where.

 

[Ed62]

If the roof is leaking, here's a way to find out where it's leaking. When you get a day that's warm enough, have someone inside the coop to watch for the leak. When they are in there, begin running a hose at the lowest point on the roof that could possibly be leaking. If no leaks are observed, move the hose a little higher on the roof. No leaks yet? Move it a little higher again, and continue to do that until the leak is identified. That's the spot that needs fixing.

Ed

 

[patandchickens]

I'd like to help but I'm not really visualizing the structure of your coop, from your descriptions -- any chance of posting some *pics*? That would be really helpful and then we could doubtless make some specific suggestions that might help.

In general you will want to shut any vents or sources of draft that are on the upwind side(s) of the coop, relying on the downwind side(s) and/or vents into a very sheltered run (or outbuilding) for your main ventilation, during the really cold part of the year.

Ditto what they all said above about fixing roof leaks.

I'm not quite getting the 'don't roost' thing... silkies often don't (particularly if your only roosts are too high for them to get to), and obviously ducks don't roost, but none of your other breeds are particularly known for not roosting. If you *don't* offer a roost, though, make sure they have a good deep depth (1' is not too deep) of dry fluffy shavings or chopped straw or similar material that they can snuggle down into during the winter. YOu'll have to clean and re-fluff and replace bedding in that area pretty frequently.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Ema]

if you have too many drafty areas, go buy some tarps and secure them to the outside of the coop. make sure you leave some ventilation of course. but I agree with everyone else, if your coop leaks, you need to fix that first, wet cold chickens make for dead chickens :-( I really hope you can find a solution to all of this. keep us posted

 

[Kovalciks Chickens]

well, i think we can stop calling this a coop....maybe a shack. Well okay, hose idea....good idea except Id need ALOT of hose to get it to my coop. But I think then it rains the water is coming in from the windows because all signs of water come from the east side where the windows are. We do offer them a roost but the mille fluer d uccle doesnt, my japs dont, my marans do, the cochins dont, and the silver penciled rocks dont. The others are still babies so they like it under their lamp even though they shouldnt have one cuz Im sure they have outgrown it. I just realized that if the lights are on in the coop and im outside at night I can see light coming through each crack where the boards come together. So whoever constructed this coop....dad....didnt do so good of a job. So maybe if I buy a lot of tarps it could work.
Here is one pic of the front of my coop.

And a really bad one of inside

This is how big each little window is that compose the 20x6....quail wouldnt move

Ill get more pics tomorrow if I remember

 

[LynneP]

I see the quail are on wire, you could keep them warmer in winter by adding bedding. Are the others on wire? It makes for good predator protection but can be drafty. A temporary solution for windows is to frame vinyl sheeting and to screw the frame over the windows.

 

[patandchickens]

If you are seeing light between boards in a lot of places, that might be wise to do something about given that you live in Michigan (if you lived in, like, Tennessee I'd say who cares

). The ideal thing would be to staple in some vapor-barrier plastic, wrapping it *around* wall studs so it is one continuous piece adn taping over your staples, then insulate the wall with a peckproof layer (thin plywood or recycled panelling or something) to keep the chickens from eating the insulation. If you can't do that, at least consider stapling some vapor-barrier plastic in there, although it is possible that bored chickens may start doin' things to it where they can reach it so you'd want to keep an eye on it in case parts need to be covered over with something peckproof.

By "screened windows" do you mean the thing shown in the pic with the quail, a narrow slot (with hole-saw holes thru the siding, I thnk?) that is on top of the low wall, in between rafters? Unless you are in a windy location, they should not be a big problem draft wise. If you had to you could block some off but frankly it sounds like you have a LOT of chickens in there and already have moisture problems and i'd be cautious about shutting up ventilation. Just seeing cobwebs gently move is not a problem per se.

I would suggest investigating more closely how water is getting in there. And make sure whether what you're seeing is *water* or whether it is *frost*... high humidity can cause sometimes quite a lot of frost to form on vent screens.

But you said you have "icicles hanging from the ceiling", too? So either your roof really DOES leak; or they are frost icicles (can be identified because they hang from protruding nails and nowhere else); or water is tracking under from the roof overhang of the building the coops' built against, and from there getting under your roofing and coming in to cause leaks.

If they are frost-sicles (again, look closely, you would see that each icicle is hanging from a protruding nailhead or nailpoint and all (or nearly all) the protruding nails *have* icicles) then the solution is to insulate your ceiling well. Which frankly in Michigan with birds you're concerned about cold with, I would suggest doing ANYhow. And then also increase your ventilation, because if you're getting THAT much frost in such relatively mild temps (yet) it means your humidity is real high and that will cause lotsa problems later on.

If they do not follow the correct pattern for frost-sicles, you need to investigate more closely whether it is the COOP's roofing that leaks, or whether water is tracking in from the eaves of the overhanging building. I know that is hard to do, and may not be easy to fix either, but if you do not fix your leak problem I think you may very well lose a number of birds this winter so it is really important to go the extra mile. (And then, once the roof has been leak-free thru a coupla rains, insulate it)

Are you really keeping those birds inside all the time without sunlight, btw? Could we possibly talk you into some proper windows, at least as a project for next spring? That's a kinda grim way to live a life, even for a chicken.

Pat

 

[Intheswamp]

....put some caulking along the tops of those windows where the added plywood meets the walls, maybe even a little "flashing" at the tops of the windows to create a drip-edge to divert the water away....

....a staple-gun and some freebie cardboard stapled over the cracks in the wall (could use some tar-paper or whatever...) would be a cheap way of blocking those cracks, but be aware that the chickens will eventually peck through the cardboard but it might get you through the winter. Also, use a "pressure fit" for the lower section and use the staples for areas out of the chickens reach (like Pat said, the shiny staples might make them want to peck more so out of reach is good)....a pressure fit could actually be used without the staples if you cut and measured the cardboard fairly close... (on a sidenote: I've seen cardboard nailed to the single-walled walls of many old farm houses in my area...)

...drafts up high aren't necessarily really bad, the concern is drafts down low that the chickens might be in...you don't want the chickens in a draft....block the lower drafts with the cardboard, tar paper, or what-have-you covering the cracks in the wall/windows...

...a hover-type of boxed area above where they roost (as several folks have mentioned) will help keep some of their body heat close to them and will help block off some drafts, you don't have to have a heat-source (lamp) in the hovers for them to help...

....remember, come spring, you'll be wanting to increase your ventilation so I would plan accordingly...don't do anything permanent like nailing the plywood over the windows with ring-shanked nails or something.

What kind of roof has it got? Metal? Shingle? ????

The lean-to looks like a pretty decent structure...just needs some tweaking and attention given to it.

Just some thoughts...

Best wishes,
Ed

 

[Kovalciks Chickens]

Quote:
Alright well heres the deal....Im a High School Student and stapped for cash like most kids so im thinking tarps around it shall be okay. I let my birds out one group of them at a time but my father has a big Comet that likes to chase all my bantams. I tried making a run early fall and I had to reconstruct it. And by the time I got it almost good to go, My uncle gave me a coop for my duck that had to go where my run was. So for now they are okay inside at least for the winter but I will most likely take them out and let them see the snow.... especially the young ones that have never seen it. Ill check tomorrow for leaks because we are supposed to get an inch of rain so ill see what happens.

But no my birds are not kept on wire. Gives their feet blisters and thats bad for show. But the quail are on a ledge by one of the windows. I have wooden floors with a good 1-2in of shavings down.