Omlet Eglu Coop - How to Keep it Warm in Winter??

[GlutenFree]

Deciding if you move it in the winter depends on how much snow you get. I bought my egglu in MT and have it in WY now. It's often not possible to move in the winter because it's snowed in or frozen to the ground. If you can move it, I would keep moving it to give them new stuff to peck.
Here, it's too cold to worry about parasites outside in the winter. Sure they could pass around mites or something they already have. That said, if you can't move the coop because it's snowed in I would put something that you can rake into piles for them to dig through. I've used straw before. Last winter I just kept dumping their bedding into the ground under the coop every week when I cleaned. I've been using hemp bedding lately, so that's what there was. While I have the tray out, I'll rake all the old bedding into a pile under the coop since they spend a lot more time under there in the winter.
I live in the 4th windiest city in the lower 48, and where I moved from in MT actually had a higher average wind speed, so I know some things about wind. At the minimum, buy the clear covers from omlet for the 3 sides of the run under the coop. They are very handy because they velcro together in the back (I use carabiners to hold the arms up so they don't rest on the tarps). My girls love it under there. Depending on your snow load, I would also buy the big clear tarp for the run. I didn't buy that right away and the girls were glad when I did. It makes a greenhouse effect on the run and keeps a bit of a snow free area. So even though the rest of the yard has snow, after a sunny day what little snow has gotten in the run that hasn't blown away melts and they get some open ground. For reference both here and in MT we see -20°F and at least one week where we stay below 0° all week and the snow still melts. You won't block out all the wind. You still want some ventilation.
Lastly, lay a 1x4 or 2x4 on top of the roosting area. Just one laid diagonal wide side up is enough for 4 chickens. This allows the hens to sleep flat footed and totally cover their toes with their feathers. They have all the other area to use the smaller normal bars if they want. Once I put the board in though, they all chose that. Even when it's -20 the only frostbite we had was some combs where the individuals chose not to tuck their head under their wing. Last winter they all learned from the first year and we didn't have any frostbite.

Ahh okay! This is VERY helpful! Do you have the jacket to put on the coop or do you keep it as is? I've heard mixed reviews.

Just so I understand correctly, you put their used bedding from the nesting box in their run? I've also been using hemp bedding in their nesting box this summer so that'll be what I'm using.

We certainly aren't as windy here as you are there but we typically get a week of consistently below zero temps. However, most of the time it's not too bad. I want to put them up in my garden to over winter so they can till the ground for me but it's the windiest part of the yard! Should I be concerned about wind coming in through the ventilation areas in the coop? The 2x4 in there is genius!

 

[Skacha23]

Ahh okay! This is VERY helpful! Do you have the jacket to put on the coop or do you keep it as is? I've heard mixed reviews.

Just so I understand correctly, you put their used bedding from the nesting box in their run? I've also been using hemp bedding in their nesting box this summer so that'll be what I'm using.

We certainly aren't as windy here as you are there but we typically get a week of consistently below zero temps. However, most of the time it's not too bad. I want to put them up in my garden to over winter so they can till the ground for me but it's the windiest part of the yard! Should I be concerned about wind coming in through the ventilation areas in the coop? The 2x4 in there is genius!

No jacket. I believe it blocks some of the ventilation holes. Condensation is a recipe for frostbite. We don't have any issue with wind through the vents, they are angled just for that reason. Be aware that inside the coop it's generally the same temp as outside (I have a thermometer). Wind and condensation are what causes problems, so it's not an issue.

On the used bedding, yes I put it in the run in winter. I pull out the tray and dump it through the hole that is created when you pull the tray out. A lot of people use deep litter in the winter. That doesn't work in an egglu. So this is sort of creating deep litter in the run.

I wouldn't worry about overall them being in the windiest spot in your yard as long as they have an outdoor location that they can get shelter. That's why I like the omlet brand clear tarps designed to go around the run that is under the coop. Like I said, my girls love it down there. In fact in the summer I just have one dark colored panel I replace the clear winter tarps with. It still gives them a windblock option and I put it on the west side so it helps with afternoon shade (I move the coop twice a week when we don't have snow, I tend to orient it the same way so that I can see the coop door from my back window.)

 

[GlutenFree]

No jacket. I believe it blocks some of the ventilation holes. Condensation is a recipe for frostbite. We don't have any issue with wind through the vents, they are angled just for that reason. Be aware that inside the coop it's generally the same temp as outside (I have a thermometer). Wind and condensation are what causes problems, so it's not an issue.

On the used bedding, yes I put it in the run in winter. I pull out the tray and dump it through the hole that is created when you pull the tray out. A lot of people use deep litter in the winter. That doesn't work in an egglu. So this is sort of creating deep litter in the run.

I wouldn't worry about overall them being in the windiest spot in your yard as long as they have an outdoor location that they can get shelter. That's why I like the omlet brand clear tarps designed to go around the run that is under the coop. Like I said, my girls love it down there. In fact in the summer I just have one dark colored panel I replace the clear winter tarps with. It still gives them a windblock option and I put it on the west side so it helps with afternoon shade (I move the coop twice a week when we don't have snow, I tend to orient it the same way so that I can see the coop door from my back window.)

Thank you. Sounds fairly easy, which is what I was hoping for.

My last two questions are; (this may sound ignorant, you put bedding on the poop tray? I just started doing that to help with the smell. How much are you putting on there? The amount of poop they produce on that thing is substantial, do they not get sick or bumble foot if you’re dumping all that poo in their run?

Lastly, have you done anything about extending daylight? I know the opinion of Eglu makers is not to but I’m curious what real people do. I’m not necessarily inclined to since the eggs are just going to freeze and be gross anyway.

 

[FrostRanger]

Lastly, have you done anything about extending daylight? I know the opinion of Eglu makers is not to but I’m curious what real people do. I’m not necessarily inclined to since the eggs are just going to freeze and be gross anyway.

Some do and some don't. I don't as I believe in letting them have a break and will happily accept what they give me. Really depends on what your goals are whether you provide light or not

 

[Skacha23]

Thank you. Sounds fairly easy, which is what I was hoping for.

My last two questions are; (this may sound ignorant, you put bedding on the poop tray? I just started doing that to help with the smell. How much are you putting on there? The amount of poop they produce on that thing is substantial, do they not get sick or bumble foot if you’re dumping all that poo in their run?

Lastly, have you done anything about extending daylight? I know the opinion of Eglu makers is not to but I’m curious what real people do. I’m not necessarily inclined to since the eggs are just going to freeze and be gross anyway.

Yes, I cover the slide out dropping tray with bedding. Makes it much easier to clean (though my friend swears by using a spatula to scrape her's). I cover the whole thing with bedding enough so there is no plastic showing and it will be below but mostly not touching the roosting bars. I have 5 chickens and change the whole bedding weekly. With that there's still more bedding than poop. It it's cold here in the winter when I'm doing this and the poop is frozen. It's also arid, we get snow for the most part and when it does melt in the sun the bedding helps keep the run dry. Though our ground is also dry and soaks up a lot, plus with sun and wind some of the snow sublimates (goes from solid snow to vapor).
So yeah, fingers crossed, we haven't had bumblefoot.

I don't extend daylight. The chickens are more for weed/bug control and pets for me than eggs. I also personally think the girls deserve their natural seasonal break.

For as cold as it gets, I don't get a ton of frozen eggs. Between them not laying as much and them laying during the warmest part of the day, unless it stays sub-zero all day the eggs aren't frozen when I get home from work. Eggs with broken shells I compost. Frozen eggs in general are fine if stored in the fridge and used for baking (I used to live in a place where the roads weren't plowed and you could only snowmobile on them in winter. We stocked a lot of food to prepare in case we couldn't get out. Many of us froze eggs to use for baking, though we would crack them into ice cube trays to freeze on purpose.)

 

[GlutenFree]

Some do and some don't. I don't as I believe in letting them have a break and will happily accept what they give me. Really depends on what your goals are whether you provide light or not

Yeah it seems like people try to play the no light equals healthier chickens card but I’m not seeing a lot of evidence that it makes that much of a difference. That said, as a female with kids I can understand why a break would be helpful for the mental health of the hens! Lol

 

[GlutenFree]

Yes, I cover the slide out dropping tray with bedding. Makes it much easier to clean (though my friend swears by using a spatula to scrape her's). I cover the whole thing with bedding enough so there is no plastic showing and it will be below but mostly not touching the roosting bars. I have 5 chickens and change the whole bedding weekly. With that there's still more bedding than poop. It it's cold here in the winter when I'm doing this and the poop is frozen. It's also arid, we get snow for the most part and when it does melt in the sun the bedding helps keep the run dry. Though our ground is also dry and soaks up a lot, plus with sun and wind some of the snow sublimates (goes from solid snow to vapor).
So yeah, fingers crossed, we haven't had bumblefoot.

I don't extend daylight. The chickens are more for weed/bug control and pets for me than eggs. I also personally think the girls deserve their natural seasonal break.

For as cold as it gets, I don't get a ton of frozen eggs. Between them not laying as much and them laying during the warmest part of the day, unless it stays sub-zero all day the eggs aren't frozen when I get home from work. Eggs with broken shells I compost. Frozen eggs in general are fine if stored in the fridge and used for baking (I used to live in a place where the roads weren't plowed and you could only snowmobile on them in winter. We stocked a lot of food to prepare in case we couldn't get out. Many of us froze eggs to use for baking, though we would crack them into ice cube trays to freeze on purpose.)

I see! Thanks for this! I’m feeling a lot more confident about getting them through the winter.

 

[FrostRanger]

Yeah it seems like people try to play the no light equals healthier chickens card but I’m not seeing a lot of evidence that it makes that much of a difference. That said, as a female with kids I can understand why a break would be helpful for the mental health of the hens! Lol

The only real consideration that might be a con is hens only have a certain number of eggs they can lay so making them lay through winter will have them use that up sooner, however hens drop off after 2 years no matter what you do or don't do and there are many who only keep their birds for a few seasons (and some breeds often have health issues past that age because of genetics) so it really is of negligible benefit to health for some hence why it really just comes down to how you manage your flock overall and personal preference whether you make them lay or let them rest. Me personally my birds are petstock and these ladies at least will have the privilege of living however long their natural lives are (for future birds it will depend on if/how my goals change), I am the main one who ears the eggs and I don't eat a ton of eggs and while fewer hens will supply my needs I enjoy having a medium sized flock so I am usually up to my ears in eggs and thus lighting makes no sense for my goals (besides, there's the issue of rigging up a lighting system that I don't want to bother with). If I needed to focus on production for some reason and if I had production breeds (or I live in Alaska where days are shorter for much of the year) I might opt to use lights. Neither way is more right or wrong, it just depends on one's needs