The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

Justine,

They look like rose comb rir..
Buckeye have a black ring in the middle of the feather is you look right above the tail..you will know for sure than

He didn't have rose comb RIR.

I've posted on the Buckeye thread after asking here. They said they are for sure - both of them.

Aoxa, how old are they in the pics?

18 weeks

 

[Leahs Mom]

Aoxa - A FIRE QUESTION

I'm looking for a window fan for the hen house. Exhaust type fan.

In general I've tried to only use fans that have the heavy-duty motors for use in barn/workshop. This is because I thought that the regular fan motors could get overloaded with the dust and perhaps cause a fire.

What do you know about this? Is my thinking correct?

 

[aoxa]

Aoxa - A FIRE QUESTION

I'm looking for a window fan for the hen house. Exhaust type fan.

In general I've tried to only use fans that have the heavy-duty motors for use in barn/workshop. This is because I thought that the regular fan motors could get overloaded with the dust and perhaps cause a fire.

What do you know about this? Is my thinking correct?

Get a fan made for construction sites if you can. This would be your safest option, but I don't believe fans are much of a fire hazard anyway.

Just don't plug it into an extension cord and you should be fine

 

[aoxa]

Also, if you are buying it used, check to make sure no recalls have been made like this one.

 

[armorfirelady]

Leah I used plastic roof vents like this
https://www.google.com/search?q=roo...AA&biw=768&bih=900#biv=i|29;d|bNq0rCI4j7108M:
No motor but def dropped the temps inside. I used 2 in the coop. It's cooler inside the coop than outside most days

 

[BlueMouse]

On the subject of resting and brining... I have some experience with this as a cook. The resting allows the meat to age and become tender. Ideally meat should be rested for two days at least under refridgeration. The ice is to bring the body temperature down quickly, the resting to allow the natural decomposition of the tissues. Brining makes meat moister and more flavorful. It can be done at any time. I like to pull my bird out of the freezer thaw, brine for 24 hours, then cook. you could brine as you rested for a bird you wanted to eat more immedaitely, but the bird should still be allowed to rest until rigor has passed, which seems it be around two days (correct me if I'm wrong, I have less experience with that than with the gutting and cooking, oddly enough.) Brining is especially nice for a bird you want to roast, smoke, or grill. A bird that was going to be braised or cooked in a sauce it wouldn't be as beneficial for. I personally cool my chicken inside gallon bags submerged in ice, because I read a most interesting article in Cooks Illustrated (my husband buys me a subscription every year, bless him.) that found that the texture of air cooled chicken over water cooled chicken was significantly better. Chicken cooled in a water bath absorbed the water into the tissues and the breast meat tended to be more "spongy" in a side by side taste trial. Not everyone will (or should!) care about this. I happen to find cooking relaxing and enjoy it as a hobby... I get kind of geeky about it, I freely admit!

I have old barn exhauste fans..they are wind driven..no electric..I also have electric exhaust fans for really hot days.

You can find these if you call a local junk dealer or an auction place that does farms and farm equipment.

Thanks for posting these, they might be exactly what I was looking for on my shed. No Electric and I need better venting, especially with winter coming on. I'll have to have my friend look at the auction for me...

Hooray for Bulldogma's Coop of the Week feature!! (Still miss her.)

I saw it this morning when I came on and was like " I know that coop!" I miss her too.

 

[Leahs Mom]

AFL - I do have a roof vent. and gable wall vents on either side at the top but they're small.

It's still "suffocating" in there if I don't run a fan so I'd like to do something.

Maybe I can find some of the ones that Del showed above (wind driven).

 

[aoxa]

 

[Leahs Mom]

Fun video

 

[Leahs Mom]

On the subject of resting and brining... I have some experience with this as a cook. The resting allows the meat to age and become tender. Ideally meat should be rested for two days at least under refridgeration. The ice is to bring the body temperature down quickly, the resting to allow the natural decomposition of the tissues. Brining makes meat moister and more flavorful. It can be done at any time. I like to pull my bird out of the freezer thaw, brine for 24 hours, then cook. you could brine as you rested for a bird you wanted to eat more immedaitely, but the bird should still be allowed to rest until rigor has passed, which seems it be around two days (correct me if I'm wrong, I have less experience with that than with the gutting and cooking, oddly enough.) Brining is especially nice for a bird you want to roast, smoke, or grill. A bird that was going to be braised or cooked in a sauce it wouldn't be as beneficial for. I personally cool my chicken inside gallon bags submerged in ice, because I read a most interesting article in Cooks Illustrated (my husband buys me a subscription every year, bless him.) that found that the texture of air cooled chicken over water cooled chicken was significantly better. Chicken cooled in a water bath absorbed the water into the tissues and the breast meat tended to be more "spongy" in a side by side taste trial. Not everyone will (or should!) care about this. I happen to find cooking relaxing and enjoy it as a hobby... I get kind of geeky about it, I freely admit!
Quote: They still make 'em new:

http://www.lowes.com/Search=wind+tu...Id=10051&N=0&newSearch=true&Ntt=wind+turbine#!