Think it's too cold for your chickens? Think again...

[bruceha2000]

To heat or not to heat is closed for me.

It is ALWAYS up to the individual.

You aren't going to know if your chickens would have fared as well, or better, or worse without heat and I won't know if mine would have fared as well, or better, or worse with heat

You are ready and being prepared is NEVER a bad thing. If it happens that my girls look to be suffering, I'll be scrambling to put something together.

Bruce

 

[bruceha2000]

I am from Northern MN and I only use the heat lamps to keep the water open. I use the red 250w and nothing more. My coop is in an 100+ year old barn that I have done my best to keep the drafts down. The I use plastic on the indoor walls that are in the barn.
I don't worry about them surviving as long as I keep the water open and food in their dishes 24/7.
Did I mention NO INSULATION.

Mine have a similar situation but the ceilings are only about 7.5'. I left the space between the floor joists above (which hit a solid vertical back wall) open as well as the front of the stall above the 4' plywood wall. I put clear plastic on the sides above the wall as well as the space above the chicken door and on the people door (which are in the center of the front wall). So no wind can blow through over the birds.

I don't know if insulating the 4' walls would make any difference at all since the front is open. Opinions are welcome

Their nipples did freeze when it got down to 7F (and probably before that but I don't know what temp that would be). The 5 gallon insulated drink cooler has a 250W stock tank heater in it so the water doesn't freeze, but neither is it warm enough that the water circulating through the pipe and back to the source keeps the nipples from freezing. So, we've been giving them warm water in their brooder waterer each morning even though it hasn't gotten cold enough to freeze the nipples again. I'm guessing a drink of warm water can't but help warm them up inside, like hot tea does for us

So I'm still pondering that one. I'm thinking of a custom designed radiant floor nest box that encloses the water pipe to JUST above the metal pins in the nipples. But I suspect the water would still have to be warmer. So maybe also a super insulated box around the insulated water container that would cost little to keep the water warm enough (whatever that is) to keep the nipples open.

Bruce

 

[popsicle]

I've got four molting hens at the moment.

I'm sick of hauling water, so I'll be putting out a heated dog dish until we build a heated base for the poultry fount. I didn't have this freezing water problem in WI (which funnily enough is colder than MT, just a better coop I guess).

Our coop is well ventilated, but does anybody have any insight onto how much humidity this will add to the coop? I haven't had any frostbite issues yet with my single combed hens, but don't really want to deal with having to coat them with petroleum jelly since I don't really work at taming my birds.

 

[LadyKotaDoria]

I've got four molting hens at the moment. 

I'm sick of hauling water, so I'll be putting out a heated dog dish until we build a heated base for the poultry fount.  I didn't have this freezing water problem in WI (which funnily enough is colder than MT, just a better coop I guess).

Our coop is well ventilated, but does anybody have any insight onto how much humidity this will add to the coop?  I haven't had any frostbite issues yet with my single combed hens, but don't really want to deal with having to coat them with petroleum jelly since I don't really work at taming my birds.

O

Wouldn't Bag Balm be better the petroleum jelly? Bag Balm is lanolin based with an antiseptic in it with some petroleum jelly.
If the water is held to above freezing I think it will be aright. I lived in my grandparents homestead house in Minnesota, I turned the coop into a kennels, put a stock tank heater in their water, in the coop. A couple of times the windows frosted, I spent a couple of nights in the coop with them during a unusually cold snap. I had my fish house/work room salamander going. I was afraid of fire. Salamanders are not very high tech.

 

[BethanyS]

soooooo i guess its safe to go outside n take the booties n scarves of my chickens?! but they look so stylish

 

[HollerLady]

This is my first winter with chickens and I, too, was worried about providing heat for my hens. A trusted friend told me simply, "if you baby your hens, they will die." I followed his advice and heat only their waterer, and was very amused to find that my largest hens are choosing to roost ON TOP of their coup with temps down to the low 20s.

 

[lalaland]

I've got four molting hens at the moment. 

I'm sick of hauling water, so I'll be putting out a heated dog dish until we build a heated base for the poultry fount.  I didn't have this freezing water problem in WI (which funnily enough is colder than MT, just a better coop I guess).

Our coop is well ventilated, but does anybody have any insight onto how much humidity this will add to the coop?  I haven't had any frostbite issues yet with my single combed hens, but don't really want to deal with having to coat them with petroleum jelly since I don't really work at taming my birds.

It will add humidity, I just can't quantify how much. Keeping the waterers outside lessened the frost on the coop interior for me.

Hey, a trick I just learned this winter that made my life sooo much easier with the heated dog dishes, was to put the water inside a plastic ice cream bucket, and put the bucket in the dog dish. That way, you don't have to unplug the dog dish to empty, rinse, refill - you just pick up the bucket and go!

 

[Kernel Cluck]

I added a large, heated, hard plastic pet bed under the bedding that is meant for outdoor dog houses. It doesn't put off enough heat to raise the temp in the coop but the shavings are warm so they can "snuggle" in during all the cold days we have in Wisconsin. This is my first winter with chickens so we'll see if my theory holds.

 

[bruceha2000]

I'm sick of hauling water, so I'll be putting out a heated dog dish until we build a heated base for the poultry fount.

Our coop is well ventilated, but does anybody have any insight onto how much humidity this will add to the coop?

How much humidity added? I don't think anyone can tell you but if it is truly well ventilated, I suspect: not much.

Since the chickens don't need to stick their big snouts in the water dish, could you get a piece of plastic bigger than the top of the dish and put some appropriate sized holes around the edge? That way there is less exposed water to evaporate. Ooorrrr, How big is this dish? Could you put a brooder sized waterer in it and have the dish heat that? Sort of like a heated base for the fount? Relatively little surface area to evaporate and a decent amount of "storage".

Bruce

 

[Triplell]

I use the heated platic dog dishes for my ducks. I just simply put a board on top of it so they can't climb in and not much gets splashed out from them playing in it either. I do use this idea for my roosters pen only have a peice of mesh wire on top so they wont just sit on it and fowl the water. When I just had the 2-3 sections this is what I used for the chickens and never had a problem with to much humidity. Now with the ducks and geese they get the water bowls and the chickens get the heat lamps. At least unitl I can afford to buy some more of them.