To insulate or not to insulate

[Jennyhaschicks]

We live in Maine. Obviously we get cold winters here. Does our coop need to be insulated? Dh says no and I keep telling him yes because I don't want my little chickie poos to be chilly. We are obviously going to have a heat lamp out there, but does anyone have any advice about the insulation?
Thanks

 

[patandchickens]

Well, if you were going to run a heat lamp it would be kinda silly not to insulate, to lower your electric bill

But really, chances are good you won't need a heat lamp at all in a properly designed (and insulated) coop, or at least not on any but the very coldest nights.

The biggest advantage of insulation is that it allows better heat retention even when you have ventilation open, and you NEED ventilation open (yes, even in the winter) to avoid unhealthy humidity inside the coop. The warmer the coop keeps itself, the more you can ventilate it without overcooling the chickens

You'll need to cover the insulation (be it batts or rigid foamboard or whatever) with something peck-proof, it doesn't need to be really strong, just something they won't eat

Have fun,

Pat

 

[Rhett&SarahsMom]

We are in MA and will be insulating the coop before winter gets back. I am planning on using the foam board stuff and covering it with particle board. I want to do it sooner, but with my part of the stimulus check(coming to us in July) I need to buy as much hay as possible.

 

[dixygirl]

I didn't think chickens needed a heated room. Many farmers just have chickens outside with a coop period. No insulation much less heat and the chickens live just fine.

They only need a mother's heat or a brood lamp when they are first born I thought. I did not give my peafowls any heat last winter. They just stayed outside in their coop. I only put a wind break around their coop and they are very much alive and heathy. Now the first winter I kept them in a non heated, non insulated garage. They were also fine. The lady I bought them from just had them outside without even a roof over their heads, much less a wind break. She said they were fine. Aren't chickens the same?

 

[Nuggetsowner:)]

We live in Minnesota and both of our coops are insulated. We have put a heat lamp in but only when we had a stretch of -40 nights for a few days. The girls seem to do just fine. I have not ever had to deal with frostbite on the combs or anything!

 

[dixygirl]

Oh, it only gets down to 10 degrees here at the coldest. Minus 40 !! Oh my!

Yes if your climate gets that cold, I would definately insulate!