How cold can it be before chickens get cold

[Danny188]

Just wondering how winter/cold heardy chickens are. Last year in iowa it got to -20 wind chill even colder. So how cold can chickens be before I need to find a heat source for them, also any cheap (under $25) ways to heat a coop besides heat lamps we have power in the coop. Breeds are buff Orpington RIR's and then 1 austrolorp and 1 sapphire gem.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I'm in Wisconsin. I've never provided heat here. It's gotten below -25 here for the temperature. Chickens look cold, and will huddle but otherwise are fine.

 

[aart]

Keep them dry and out of the wind,
but with plenty of ventilation,
and they will be fine.

 

[Matilda Belle]

I’m in Minnesota. It got in the -20s last winter. I know I didn’t have to, but I did give them heat during that really cold spell they looked miserable. I used an oil radiator.

 

[Ninjasquirrel]

Indiana here. We had a polar blast last year(of course the first year raising chickens) and it got to -35 degrees with an even colder wind chill. Since that was very abnormal I gave my birds a light bulb in a concrete block. It made the coop 10 degrees warmer than outside. I also applied vaseline to their combs throughout the day to prevent frost bite. The following day was 10 degrees warmer but still -25 degrees. The next morning it creeped up to -15 and eventually got to zero. During those days I did not let them out of the coop. Once it got to 0 degrees I let them out. They all lived and were fine. I only had 1 small case of frostbite. Shes missing about a centimeter off her comb where it fell off. They can get used to the cold no problem but if temps are abnormal for your area you might want to provide a heat source. I also use thick plastic to line my run to protect them from the windchill. My best advice is that if you are really worried; provide a heat source. Put it on a thermostat to control the temp.