The Old Folks Home

[ozexpat]

The combs will freeze it is too cold and too humid.

If you can keep the air above 0oC/32oF, The humidity wont make it freeze?

 

[ronott1]

If you can keep the air above 0oC/32oF, The humidity wont make it freeze?

Yes, I think that is true.

I do not have to worry about frost bite here in Woodland, CA.

 

[insanity]

I thought prolonged humidity could cause respiratory problems. The weather isn't supposed to break for at least a month. But I don't know a solution maybe I can find a dehumidifier to put out there.

 

[ronott1]

I thought prolonged humidity could cause respiratory problems. The weather isn't supposed to break for at least a month. But I don't know a solution maybe I can find a dehumidifier to put out there.

Humidity would not be the culprit--too much ammonia build up is though.

 

[insanity]

That's good to know. I was way worried about it. Ammonia hasn't been a problem yet. My coop is big and I did a full clean out right before the storm. It should hold for a while. Thanks.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

After 50 years of working with the Federal Government. call me if you need more material.

For or with? I'm at 6.5 years directly for, and I don't know how I could do 10 let alone 50.
By the way, the construction people delivered and installed my new counter top today. I've been waiting 2 years for it. It was only about 3 feet short and warped on one end. They told me I needed to accept it or start yelling at someone. I still have some fight left in me, but I'm tired of almost everything being a fight.

I'm afraid to ventilate at this point because of the frost bite.

I keep all my coop windows and vents open unless one of the two conditions are met:
1. Severely blowing heavy snowstorm which would deposit a few inches of snow in the coop
2. Severely blowing wind with below -20 temperatures.

In one of the above two cases I'll shut the windows except for about an inch crack. I always leave the upper vents open. I open the windows back up as soon as the blowing is over.

The cold dry air helps remove some of the moisture. If you can get some open areas below the vents up top, you'll get a draft of the moist air out of the coop.

 

[ronott1]

That's good to know. I was way worried about it. Ammonia hasn't been a problem yet. My coop is big and I did a full clean out right before the storm. It should hold for a while. Thanks.

Just keep the temps above freezing.

Do you have big combed breeds?

My Penedesenca boys have huge combs and wattles. The Partridge boy had a huge comb at 6 weeks.

 

[insanity]

My roo is large combed and a few of the hens are to . Keeping the temp up isn't a problem so they should be fine. Ammonia I can fix easily enough. As long as humidity itself won't hurt them I think the chickens will be okay.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Another thing I do to keep the ammonia down when you can't clean the whole coop (because the poo-sicles and humidity have frozen most of the litter to the floor of the coop for those of you in more tropical locales) is first throw down some BOSS on the floor of the coop. The biddies will sift through it and scrape up what shavings they can. I then pick the shavings up with a flat bottomed shovel (sometimes I have to use a metal handheld spatula that I got from Home Depot for spackle) and throw it onto the frozen ground outside. Add fresh shavings to the coop. The biddies love the discarded shavings outside the coop. It encourages them to go out. I also throw down some BOSS into the shavings outside for them to dig around in.
Any time the weather gets above freezing for a few days I try and clean out as much of the coop as I can. One day above freezing isn't enough to unfreeze most of the shavings, but you can often get some out. I often go from mid-December to March without being able to clean the whole coop out. March clean out is usually beyond disgusting once it thaws fully.

 

[ozexpat]

My roo is large combed and a few of the hens are to . Keeping the temp up isn't a problem so they should be fine. Ammonia I can fix easily enough. As long as humidity itself won't hurt them I think the chickens will be okay.

I am not adept of humidity and freezing temps but We live in a place with temps of 88 anf humidites the same most of the year.

Hatching is tough but once hatched, they love it.