Official BYC Poll: How do you keep your flock warm in the winter?

[Hrseluvr]

This is my first winter with chickens. So far the cold nights we did have worried my husband more (he wanted to put a ceramic heater in) I say just wait and see how they do without.

 

[chickenlittle21]

I'm in Florida so...

 

[RLockhart68]

I wind proofed the coop with plastic and tarps leaving a 4" gap between it and the solid part of the built wall for ventilation. I have 2 heat lamps secured to the roof of the coop on a temp controlled plug that turns on at temps below 32 and off at 45 (they literally don't click on until it gets down to 32) The floor is cement with about 3" of wood bedding. I'm in western New York just off lake Erie.

 

[Leelynn]

When I was a child we had chickens in Seattle and San Francisco area. Here in La Pine Oregon I know this may be a challenge. Hence I’ve decided on Faverolles chickens. The snow is already here this year so that’s slowed my coop building efforts for sure. This should be a great spot, as the shop wall is the north side. My green house got too much sun here. Going for a lean to style covered run 12x9ft- metal roofing. And a walk in coop 8x8. Fully insulated/ might put radiant heat flooring in a wall behind their roost for those -20 nights we occasionally get. Thoughts?

 

[Folly's place]

Having a good coop with upper ventilation is fine. They shouldn't need extra heating! Just heated waterers, and no wind over the roosts.
Favorelle roosters do have single combs, which might have issues with frostbite.
Mary

 

[Artichoke Lover]

I’m in the Deep South so it very rarely dips below 20 and almost never below 10 so there’s really no need for extra heat or insulation. The focus is more on keeping it cool in summer!

 

[AntiqueB]

I've never had outdoor pets before; we've always kept them inside, so it's really a cultural shift for me! BUT I plan on keeping them with minimal supplemental heat (a heating plate for those 10° nights), and a lot of ventilation.

 

[OrpiLorpe Lady]

I do not heat or insulate in winter. I only worry about keeping the flock out of direct direct cold air.
Due to an increase in flock: This year i went from a great 2 story wood coop that had run on ground level and roosts & boxes on 2nd floor. With a larger roofed exterior run. Poop and food mess in coop was never a major issue because they only laid eggs and slept in there. Now I have a large covered hoop coop with unroofed exterior run. Wow has my work load increased!
Now I fight coop heat/cold, humidity and ammonia, and preditors in outside run! I found proper ventilation is vital now! In the summer the coop cover sides will be rolled up and this first winter sides down with bottom half of large front and back doors uncovered for airflow. The roosts are set high & back away from doors.
I built the new coop over part of the deep bed large run. That proved to create too much ammonia. So i leveled the floor, lined it with chicken wire, then added sand. Every morning I let the flock out, collect eggs, food & water, then scoop poop ( i wear a mask). This is working ok so far, but is way more work. I may have to go back to a smaller flock and reopen the wood coop

I would love to hear safer, cheaper better ways to keep a flock in a hoop coop, if there is any.

I have a suggestion for the predators- I use wildlife netting over the chicken wire. Make sure you have a couple of feet laying on the ground also around the coop and run. I put long planters on top of 2 x 4's to keep the critters from peeling up the netting and getting under it. Once you get your shoe tread in the netting you will undstand why it works so well while muttering a few expletives.
I have and 8 x 8 shed for my flock and a wildlife netted run for them. No break-ins in 8 years since I made it.
Goodluck.

 

[Rivendell Chick]

My first winter with chickens who are around 7 months old now - in Georgia. They have a compact elevated coop with plenty of ventilation options. My breeds are mostly cold hardy, like marans, cochins, and wyandottes that I was more concerned about this past summer. We've had 3 frosts so far and it hasn't seemed to deter them a bit from running out every morning! I am getting more eggs laid in random places now, like the coop floor during the night/early am or in the run during the day. Switching up their preferred nest boxes too. 10 hens, still getting 4-5 eggs a day even with shorter days.

 

[RoosterWhisperer]

It does get TOO cold here, so I just let their feathers keep them warm.

I saw your sig, do you have pics of the EE roo?