Illinois...

[cavemanrich]

The attached file should be separate from previous post. Still don't know how it happened.

Look what I just saw on the HOME PAGE.. I believe her name is TROUBLE...
View attachment 1227231

 

[Julie Baker]

Welcome... and our Illinois thread.
Insulation is not as important as a draft free coop. Ventilation is most important. Ventilation (definition) means free air movement that removes moisture and ammonia from coop interior, but does not cause draft action that would ruffle chickens' feathers. Insulation such as you describe can also be bad, in such that chickens may pick on it as well as eat it.(don't think that would be Ideal.) If it is sandwiched between plywood, then chickens would not have access to eating it. Insulation not properly protected, can harbor moisture and mold.
MAIN thing is PROPER VENTILATION.. There are many articles here on BYC about that subject. You can ask any specific question here also.
What breed of chickens do you have? If they are the COLD HARDY VARIETY.. than you should be fine. Even with the best efforts sometimes chickens do encounter frostbite on their wattles and combs. They will recover on their own in due time.
Some peeps do add heat to their coops. Problem with this is multifaceted.
1. Makes chickens dependent on the heat and do not grow enough own down. Have a power outage long enough and your chickens suffer.
2. Can lead to premature molt in winter, which is anything but good.
3. Expensive utility.

We are adding a solar panel to the roof of the coop to power the coops needs. I was planning on plenty of ventilation and placing a denim insulation material that is 100% cotton. I would ideally like to use wool batting and if I can find it at a decent price that is what I will go for. The nice thing about wool is it absorbs moisture, doesn't mold, and breathes well. I am building a draft-free well-ventilated coop. I was just wondering what people thought/had experience with up here. My backyard butts up against an open field and there is quite the wind that whips through our yard. I need to make sure that I do not allow that wind to seep into the coop where it can hit the birds. The coop design right now places our storage area for coop needs on that windy wall so I am hoping that will help with the cold as well.

 

[Faraday40]

The attached file should be separate from previous post. Still don't know how it happened.

Look what I just saw on the HOME PAGE.. I believe her name is TROUBLE...
View attachment 1227231

Yes! That's our little "Trouble." Her pic was used a few years ago as BYC's "Pic of the Week" - before she became a Youtube star. LOL She's a little Sebright chicken but has a BIG personality. Thanks for letting me know. (I don't often visit the BYC homepage.)

 

[Faraday40]

@Julie Baker


It sounds like you're off to a great start with your coop planning and BYC is a great place to get ideas. One of the best tips I can give is to always get a coop just a little bigger than you think you'll need - because of Chicken Math. If you do not know what that is, you soon will. LOL Chickens are very addictive, and you can't have just 1,.... or 4, or 8, or ? The numbers always add up! My DD became a chicken math expert at a very young age. She's the one who talked me into keeping Trouble (our Sebright) because she's so small, she really should not even be counted in our chicken number.
How could I argue with that?

 

[Faraday40]

Yesterday the kids & I were talking about DD's beloved & 1st silkie, Gilfie. We miss her so much and poor DS began crying. My little boy cried for about 30 min. over the loss of Gilfie - who was technically his sister's chicken. After some discussion with DH, we decided to let DD hatch some "useless bantam chicks" this year. Her birthday is next month, and if she hatches them soon, she can show them this summer. I tried talking her into some fun looking modern game, Dutch, seramas, etc. but silkies are still her #1 choice. Does anyone know of any good sources of fertile silkie eggs - near the Chicago-land area or within an hr drive of DuPage Co.? Any color (but white) is the preference.

Also, please know that these silkies will be beyond spoiled! Each got daily cuddles. When not broody, they spent more time inside the house than outside.

 

[cavemanrich]

If DD does hatch Seramas. put my name on 2 hens.

 

[Faraday40]

Great, but not sure if I'll be able to talk her out of silkies....

Because DH is a thin 6'5" man, I sort of want to hatch some Modern Game Bantams. (Not that I have a type or anything. ) I could just picture a few of these running around our backyard!!! I'm sure DH would like the breed and he'd relate to them right away. After all, tmy DH chose a Whippet as his 1st dog!

I think the Mod Game would make the perfect contrast to our big, round, fluffy orps - my favs of course!

 

[cavemanrich]

I had one like the one on the right. Seller told me I was getting OEGH. Probably a mutt mix since it was a purchase at Kankakee Swap. She had longer legs than my other OEGH. I named her Shannon, and would jokingly say "Shannon is a Paris Runway Model"
FYI these banties are very good at spotting hawks and they can seek cover very well. Talking from experience.

 

[Faraday40]

It sounds like Shannon was a very lovely bird. Maybe I should get some Mod Game bird eggs & just say they're supposed to be very rare & unusual silkies. Think she'd fall for it? LOL

BTW- The kids are feeling better, so we finally took a few Christmas pics. Guess which bird DD had to pose with?

Of course we had to include her chicks

My fav pose:



Then DS had to pose with his Chizzy & Poof-Poof

 

[cavemanrich]

Glad your household overcame those nasty Strep, and Flu issues. The Christmas break is less joyous when people are sick. Are they all back in school now??? How many silkies do you have left now? How did the cold affect the silkies?