Maine

[lizakn]

Ok...so I'm not from Maine...but I live on the border of it. I am in New Brunswick....but I do all my shopping & my daughter takes Dance & Baton Twirling Lessons in Maine {Caribou & Presque Isle}
I am getting 12 chicks in 2 weeks....and we are starting to build the coop now. I was also wondering about insulating the coop. Since our winters here in NB are pretty much the same as in Maine {Canada isn't as 'snowy' & 'cold' as everyone makes it out to be!!}
What are you using for insulating?.....and should I do it now while we are building it?....or perhaps wait & do it before winter? We plan on wrapping plastic around the run outside, that way not alot of snow will get in & they can be outside on those 'nice' winter days.

 

[kinsey228]

Don't forget about the Skowhegan swap on the 19th. We had a great turnout last month, and there were a lot of people there. If you are going, let us know what you are bringing and what you are looking for. Here's the link : https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/646266/skowhegan-maine-tractor-supply-may-19th-chicken-swap

I am bringing 6 white silkie chicks about 10-12 weeks old, and a Marans cross that is ALWAYS broody. If anyone is looking for a broody, let me know.

 

[TayFray!]

Ok...so I'm not from Maine...but I live on the border of it. I am in New Brunswick....but I do all my shopping & my daughter takes Dance & Baton Twirling Lessons in Maine {Caribou & Presque Isle}
I am getting 12 chicks in 2 weeks....and we are starting to build the coop now. I was also wondering about insulating the coop. Since our winters here in NB are pretty much the same as in Maine {Canada isn't as 'snowy' & 'cold' as everyone makes it out to be!!}
What are you using for insulating?.....and should I do it now while we are building it?....or perhaps wait & do it before winter? We plan on wrapping plastic around the run outside, that way not alot of snow will get in & they can be outside on those 'nice' winter days.

Mine is not insulated but I hang secure heat lamps with cages so if they fall they wont cause fire I also completely block their outdoor run and coop them in with lots of warmth!

 

[henney penny]

Mine is insulated,and do it while your buildiing and then you will be done with it.We used rolled insulation because it was cheaper,make sure you have lots of ventilation up near the eves so the humidity can be kept under control.Ionly use heat lamps with my silkies if it gets really cold and the wind is blowing.The big girl orpingtons are fine with the cold.

 

[ashandvine]

Thanks for the help and I can see it now, I hadn't really thought of that breed being an option, but I see it now! Thanks! The White Bantam rooster I am not sure what he is, same with the chick at the bottom!

I'm pretty inexperienced but the chick looks like a partridge cochin pullet to me. Very pretty.

 

[sailorchick]

Just thought I would pop in and say hi. I dont have any chickens yet, but I have 12 coming in about 3 weeks, and I am so excited. I just bought a house in Enfield Maine, and we have a quite a bit of room so we figured we would give chickens a try. I have found all the post on here extremely helpful in planning. I think I would have built a coop with a wood stove in it before reading that they can do just fine without all the extra heat.

 

[ashandvine]

Everything I have read suggests that if you pick birds suited to cold weather-- especially feathered feet you don't have to insulate. They will generate body heat and adding a 60 wtt bulb to their coop, which generates a lot of heat anyway, is enough. I plan to insulate the roof with foam boards, give a bit more hay in their nest boxes and a wind break- ie plastic or a board panel against the run. That way if we have a power outtage they aren't unprepared for the cold and become shocked. I also planned ahead in the ordering, as I stated at the beginning. I figure chickens in history survived without pink panther insulation for hundreds of years so mine can too Goodluck-- and anyone, correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[ashandvine]

I just went to MotherEarth News to check out what their advice was. This is the URL for the succinct article there on whether or not to heat a coop. I thought that the bit about the water was very informative. I will have to look into building a float for my waters in winter now. I remember having chickens we let out of a barn shared with other animals that was not insulated-- in central Maine. We did shovel them a path through the snow and they used it. These were just BRocks and RIRs, so chickens with feathered feet would be even more capable.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/ask-our-experts/chickens-and-cold-weather-zb0z10zblon.aspx

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I was also wondering about insulating the coop. Since our winters here in NB are pretty much the same as in Maine {Canada isn't as 'snowy' & 'cold' as everyone makes it out to be!!}
What are you using for insulating?.....and should I do it now while we are building it?....or perhaps wait & do it before winter? We plan on wrapping plastic around the run outside, that way not alot of snow will get in & they can be outside on those 'nice' winter days.

I would insulate the coop, and we did. We used rolls of r-13 and some 1.5 inch styrofoam, whatever would fit. You want to make sure to have plenty of ventilation though in either vents and/or windows. Too much humidity in the winter is a killer. My insulated coop is usually 10 to 20 degrees warmer than the outside even with all the windows and vents open.

I don't wrap plastic around the run, it's too big, but I do shovel it so they can go outside. They love to be outside in the winter.

I avoid heat lamps for many reasons, but you may want to check out the thread entitled "Think it's too cold for your chickens? Think again" that discusses why to not use a heat lamp so you can make the best decision for yourself.

We have a lot of different types of birds here and I found that surprisingly the white leghorns and my small banty didn't seem to notice the cold whereas the big birds did. The feather legged birds get clumps of ice/snow stuck on their feet, so they don't like going out, although I still have them and continue to hatch them out. The only birds I would not consider at this time for the area would be the weird feathered ones, like frizzles or sizzles - I think Hoppy has some and not sure if they're outside in the winter or not. My showgirls will be outside this winter (they're new to the flock), and my turkens (they have about half the normal amount of feathers of a regular bird) are always outside and they do fine, too. So get what birds you want. They'll acclimate. Heat is deadlier than cold as long as you have a place for them to go inside to get out of the wind.

I'll get off my soapbox now.

 

[hoppy]

I have metal roofing tin on the sides of my run to block the wind, hardly any snow in the run this winter (I know, we didn't have much snow this winter but it was better then in the past)
warning on those 60 watt light bulbs, the government is fazing them out and the compact flors, don't give off much heat at all, so you may want to stock up if you plan to use them.
I use a compact flor so they lay all winter long.

I sprained my ankle on sunday, then since I thought it was better, I decided to walk 3 miles the next day (mind you I normally run 2-3 miles/day on my recent health kick). not looking so great today, very swollen and tender to the touch. keeping it elevated and iced. I'll be at the swap this weekend but I may have to sit for most of it - hopefully it will be all better and I'll be back to running soon.