My story of finding and building the best heater

[South Dakota Guy]

Hello Danny and Welcome to BYC. I raise 6 chickens in our suburban backyard. 6 is the limit in my area and most surrounding areas. Our coop is 32 sq ft. (4ft x 8ft) Here is what I would like in a heater:

1) I would prefer a forced air heater which necessitates number 2
2) An easily removable, reusable and cleanable filter. This for the suction side of the heater to prevent down, feathers and dust from entering the heater and catching fire.
3) As most coops are naturally ventilated by openings near the top of the coop, A heater that allows for mounting low in the coop will do a better job of heating the air before it escapes through the upper vents of the coop.
4) Variable wattage settings. Many backyard chicken growers use an extension cord to their coops for a heated water dish of some kind to prevent the water from freezing. That wattage needs to be calculated into the max for the heater. I see cheap 25 ft and longer extension cords for sale in Walmart that are only rated for 13 amps. Some people will use them with the heater that you design. I probably wouldn't go over 1200 watts max and would shoot for 1000 watts max.
4) A remote thermostat that can be mounter easily four to 6 feet from the heater. Make a Wi-Fi app that lets us monitor and adjust the chicken coop temperature on our smart phones wherever we are.
5) Over temperature shut off.
6) A wall mount that lets us easily remove the heater for cleaning and inspection.
7) A cord that disconnects from the heater at the heater to facilitate number 6
8) A power on light and temperature setting display that is visible in darkness or low light.

I conclude by saying my needs as a backyard chicken grower will differ from others with larger coops. I live in South Dakota where we had temperatures as low -19 this winter. We used two radiant panel heaters and I felt like there must be something better that is also safe and won't burn my coop down.

 

[Dim2000]

Hello everyone, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone, who replied, liked and commented on my post, and special thanks to valuable feedback , which I am going take towards creations of the ideal heater! I am going to continue asking and gathering your feedbacks about how the ideal heater should look like and what features to your opinion are essential, and what features are less important. Please feel free to comment. Features that I figure from the community feedback, that has most significant importance are:
1. Safety - no fire risk and no hot spots- warm (not hot) air outlet.
2. Forced air heating.
3. Monitoring and control via App, to control from anywhere.
4. Light display that can be seen in the dark.
5. Lower range control in addition to higher range of temperatures.
6. Easy to install, hand on wall and fix to floor.
7. Adjustable (dimmable) power, that will be ok to use with long cords.
8. Even heating - and lower installation - so the heat cannot escape easily from vents.
9. Power enough to heat up sheds of about 500 cu ft, and yet adjustable to heat up smaller spaces.
10. Over temperature shut off (safety as well).

What do you think about the above? Would you add or remove anything? Please let me know. What do you think about abuse, mice protection and noise levels? What do you think about split air, like a micro home furnace with air registers? What do you think about compliance to safety standards, price range of such an ideal heater, etc... ?

Thanks again everyone, waiting to hear your thoughts!

 

[Dim2000]

Hello Danny and Welcome to BYC. I raise 6 chickens in our suburban backyard. 6 is the limit in my area and most surrounding areas. Our coop is 32 sq ft. (4ft x 8ft) Here is what I would like in a heater:

1) I would prefer a forced air heater which necessitates number 2
2) An easily removable, reusable and cleanable filter. This for the suction side of the heater to prevent down, feathers and dust from entering the heater and catching fire.
3) As most coops are naturally ventilated by openings near the top of the coop, A heater that allows for mounting low in the coop will do a better job of heating the air before it escapes through the upper vents of the coop.
4) Variable wattage settings. Many backyard chicken growers use an extension cord to their coops for a heated water dish of some kind to prevent the water from freezing. That wattage needs to be calculated into the max for the heater. I see cheap 25 ft and longer extension cords for sale in Walmart that are only rated for 13 amps. Some people will use them with the heater that you design. I probably wouldn't go over 1200 watts max and would shoot for 1000 watts max.
4) A remote thermostat that can be mounter easily four to 6 feet from the heater. Make a Wi-Fi app that lets us monitor and adjust the chicken coop temperature on our smart phones wherever we are.
5) Over temperature shut off.
6) A wall mount that lets us easily remove the heater for cleaning and inspection.
7) A cord that disconnects from the heater at the heater to facilitate number 6
8) A power on light and temperature setting display that is visible in darkness or low light.

I conclude by saying my needs as a backyard chicken grower will differ from others with larger coops. I live in South Dakota where we had temperatures as low -19 this winter. We used two radiant panel heaters and I felt like there must be something better that is also safe and won't burn my coop down.

Big thanks for your reply - South Dakota Guy! Truly valuable and detailed feedback! My wild guess , that you are coming from engineering and/or very technical field and looking for better solution indeed. .Feedback seriously taken

 

[DobieLover]

I would never heat the entire structure. Birds were never intended to live in a heated structure. What happens when you lose power and the birds are suddenly plunged into the much colder ambient temperatures? The stress can kill them.
Birds are designed to acclimate to cold temperatures, within reason. If the temps are regularly much below -30F, I personally would reconsider keeping fowl. Those are the only conditions under which supplemental heat may be required.
The only things I heat in my climate are their fount waterer and fermented feed (using a heated dog bowl) both of which are kept outside in the solid roofed predator proof run.

 

[triciayoung]

Hello from Canada! My name is Danny, and here is my story: I am Looking to join this community, share ideas and find solutions . It all begun with a journey to find adequate heater (that would plug in standard 120VAC outlet) for my dog , who loves to stay outside even in cold Canadian winter. I literally went through a voyage, starting with looking in market available heaters (lamps, ceramic, specific dog heaters, etc..), adding additional controls and features, and so on.. My journey took me to communicate with farmers and hobby farmers and chicken owners - I wondered: "how all these people keep their animals warm enough, especially in backyards and farms". I started to meet with very interesting people and hearing them out, gaining my interest not only in dogs wellbeing, but in other animals. I got involved in the farmer's community and started to think seriously about my own keep. Further I digged, I undesrtaood there was a serious problem: with all the great technology out there - the niche of safe and monitored heaters for animals was overlooked, mainly because (from my research) of safety and fire risks, lack of temperature monitoring and control. I understood that this was not just my problem, but entire communities of hobby farmers and dog owners talked about it. I was not ready to start my own hobby farming and even keep my dog safely warmed. Being an engineer and inventor I decided to design my own IDEAL Heater. I have done a lot of work so far, however being practically new in raising animals I need your advice" - if you had an opportunity to get the ideal heater - what features would you include? What features would be extremely important for you, and which features would be less important? I am planning to create a focus group on this discussion, and come up with the best Canadian product for our community, shaped by your vision! I would very much appreciate your advice and whoever might be interested in participation of such a focus group discussion, please let me know, since I am planning to set couple of sessions to discuss the subject very soon, so stay tuned and let me know your thoughts!

Oh, I thought I did give my opinion of what features I wanted in one but if there's a group you made or are a part of one, that is peaceful about heating coops and doghouses L

Love it. @Debbie292d is correct about peaceful. There are some in this large group that are...lets say... overly passionate about not heating coops.

 

[triciayoung]

Welcome. I am late to the party. My coops are insulated, except of course, a lot of ventilation up high, covered in hardware cloth. My main coop is 2-feet off the ground, 18x8x8.

As most things in life, I believe there is truth on both sides. I agree that our chickens need to acclimate, however, I believe there are times for heat. Chickens are endothermic. This is a double-edged sword. The endothermic process requires a lot of energy. If a chicken is sick and/or old, it is wise to allow the chicken to use his/her energy to heal.

I heat below freezing, I have an alarm on my phone if I have a power outage. I also have a thermometer mounted on the wall at 4-feet and can monitor temperature on my phone, I have a sweeter heater, but use a standard oil radiant heater in the coop. For the past 5-days and the next 10-days, I am keeping the coop around 45. I also have a space heater outside - for chickens that need it. I am treating for IC.

I really need something more creative for cooling in the summer.

 

[South Dakota Guy]

Hello everyone, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone, who replied, liked and commented on my post, and special thanks to valuable feedback , which I am going take towards creations of the ideal heater! Unfortunately the system has blocked the link to my focus group - I was not aware that I cannot provide links here, till I figure it out with the administrator hopefully . Until then, I am going to continue asking and gathering your feedbacks about how the ideal heater should look like and what features to your opinion are essential, and what features are less important. Please feel free to comment. Features that I figure from the community feedback, that has most significant importance are:
1. Safety - no fire risk and no hot spots- warm (not hot) air outlet.
2. Forced air heating.
3. Monitoring and control via App, to control from anywhere.
4. Light display that can be seen in the dark.
5. Lower range control in addition to higher range of temperatures.
6. Easy to install, hand on wall and fix to floor.
7. Adjustable (dimmable) power, that will be ok to use with long cords.
8. Even heating - and lower installation - so the heat cannot escape easily from vents.
9. Power enough to heat up sheds of about 500 cu ft, and yet adjustable to heat up smaller spaces.
10. Over temperature shut off (safety as well).

What do you think about the above? Would you add or remove anything? Please let me know. What do you think about abuse, mice protection and noise levels? What do you think about split air, like a micro home furnace with air registers? What do you think about compliance to safety standards, price range of such an ideal heater, etc... ?

Thanks again everyone, waiting to hear your thoughts!

Thank you! I have spent a lifetime doing electrical and mechanical repairs and service, which does give me some insight. The choice to heat a coop or not is a personal one. Much like the round roost bars vs 2x4s debate. Some people choose not to heat and some do. When it gets to 10 degrees Fahrenheit and lower we use heat. We avoided comb frostbite but 2 of our 6 hens got a little frostbite on their waddles as water froze to them while drinking. Best of Luck with a new improved heater!

 

[South Dakota Guy]

I really need something more creative for cooling in the summer.

After the long hot summer of last year, I considered putting a window air conditioner in the coop. Many of those also have a heat setting and sometimes you can pick up a small one cheap at Walmart. You might get laughed at, but you will have peace of mind. You will see definitely see your electric bill go up!

 

[RoyalChick]

Hello everyone, I would like to express my gratitude to everyone, who replied, liked and commented on my post, and special thanks to valuable feedback , which I am going take towards creations of the ideal heater! Unfortunately the system has blocked the link to my focus group - I was not aware that I cannot provide links here, till I figure it out with the administrator hopefully . Until then, I am going to continue asking and gathering your feedbacks about how the ideal heater should look like and what features to your opinion are essential, and what features are less important. Please feel free to comment. Features that I figure from the community feedback, that has most significant importance are:
1. Safety - no fire risk and no hot spots- warm (not hot) air outlet.
2. Forced air heating.
3. Monitoring and control via App, to control from anywhere.
4. Light display that can be seen in the dark.
5. Lower range control in addition to higher range of temperatures.
6. Easy to install, hand on wall and fix to floor.
7. Adjustable (dimmable) power, that will be ok to use with long cords.
8. Even heating - and lower installation - so the heat cannot escape easily from vents.
9. Power enough to heat up sheds of about 500 cu ft, and yet adjustable to heat up smaller spaces.
10. Over temperature shut off (safety as well).

What do you think about the above? Would you add or remove anything? Please let me know. What do you think about abuse, mice protection and noise levels? What do you think about split air, like a micro home furnace with air registers? What do you think about compliance to safety standards, price range of such an ideal heater, etc... ?

Thanks again everyone, waiting to hear your thoughts!

Personally I would not want the forced air. For two reasons:
1) I do not want to heat the whole coop - I just want something that chickens that are molting or feeling poorly can get near to take the chill off. The flat panel heaters already available meet many of those needs
2) My chicken coop is very dusty - chickens seem to be able to turn everything they touch into dust - the last thing I need is something blowing that around more than they already do!

 

[triciayoung]

After the long hot summer of last year, I considered putting a window air conditioner in the coop. Many of those also have a heat setting and sometimes you can pick up a small one cheap at Walmart. You might get laughed at, but you will have peace of mind. You will see definitely see your electric bill go up!

I do have a window air conditioner in my coop. If you get one, the filter has to be cleaned everyday - chickens are very dusty.