The Plunge

[CorvusFarm]

Wow that looks amazing.

Thanks. I still need to work on more venting.

Not shown in any of these images is the finished fencing, which is roughly tacked up, but still needs to be finished. And there also is a wire mesh skirt that seals off the underside of the coop.

 

[aart]

But 40...I would like to sleep at some point.

Sweeter heater will have them quiet at night.
Doesn't look like you have power to coop...might need a brooder coop closer to power source?

Is that shed 8x10?
Any ventilation?
Looked up your climate, man, it's mild. Range of about 40-70F annually.
But 40 birds in there is gonna be 'cozy'... and fragrant.

 

[CorvusFarm]

Sweeter heater will have them quiet at night.
Doesn't look like you have power to coop...might need a brooder coop closer to power source?

Is that shed 8x10?
Any ventilation?
Looked up your climate, man, it's mild. Range of about 40-70F annually.
But 40 birds in there is gonna be 'cozy'... and fragrant.

I've heard that about the Sweeter Heater. This is my first go-round with it, so I'm really curious. What is it that keeps them quieter? Is it a "cooler" high temperature, as opposed to the bulbs that can get so much hotter?

The shed is 10' x 10' x 12'. They also have 2400 square feet outside. Venting has been cut into the bottoms on two sides adjacent to the front doors, and there are 16 3" circular vents that run along the top on the front and back walls: 8 in front and 8 in back. But I'm not going to stop there. It's adequate without anything else going on, but I'm going to have to figure another plan when they are all out there.

It's nice having my 4 birds in there now so I can kind of see how they use the space. It's tall enough to have 2 roost levels (and I could probably go 3 if I really want to).

I'm not brooding in the coop. The brooding area will be separate from this and closer to where I live (or inside where I live).

 

[CorvusFarm]

...
Looked up your climate, man, it's mild. Range of about 40-70F annually.
But 40 birds in there is gonna be 'cozy'... and fragrant.

And yes, the climate makes things a lot easier. It's coastal, so it fluctuates a bit more than that 40-70 range, especially in the summer, when it routinely is up at 100. Right now, we're dipping into the high 30s/low 40s. We may get a few light frosts over the winter months, but that's about it.

 

[aart]

What is it that keeps them quieter?

It's dark at night.
I use a pseudo brooder heater plate the night quiet is amazing.

 

[CorvusFarm]

It's dark at night.
I use a pseudo brooder heater plate the night quiet is amazing.

Oh, duh.

Isn't it funny how we get fixated so much on temperatures that we forget about things like that constant red light on 24/7. I'm looking forward to the little ladies being in a more natural rhythm.