Using photovoltaics to generate and "dump" heat into a distant coop

[Badlatitude]

In the late 80s we ran 2 solar thermal panels on our garage roof to heat the pool. If you forget anf left the pump on the pool would be too hot to even get in. Really tho thats over kill and there is almost no need to heat a chicken coop. If its insulated and vented well it will be just fine. Infact id venture to guess more chickens freeze to death from lack of ventilation then from the actually temp outside. Humidity builds up and water removes heat faster then air. If you over heat your coop and the heat source fails in some way. You will probably ensure all the birds freeze to death.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Sorry to be a downer, but you are not going to collect much heat that way. If you want to stick with the "moveable black buckets" system, at least build a little cold frame type 'greenhouse' for them to sit in during the day, so they heat up decently. (That way, they will be absorbing heat from all over their surface not just the small amount that is facing the sun, and they will be getting a lot MORE heat owing to the heated air in the enclosure, and they will not be radiating a bunch of heat back *out* to cool air on their non-sunny sides.)

But frankly, it would be a lot less work to manage, and not really any harder to construct, if you did a popcan-style heater panel (need not involve pop cans

) that put its air outlet into a big box of rocks in the coop, with the box having a somewhat indirectly-routed vent to the coop air. You could use flap 'valves' or manual closure or both.

Although:

Chickens are pretty tough critters anyway.

Yeah, frankly in most of Mass. you do not *need* to heat your coop *anyhow*

Just good insulation (which you'd need anyhow to make effective use of solar heating) and the natural hardiness of chickens will generally be quite adequate, except possibly for a very tiny coop.

Goo dluck, have fun,

Pat​

 

[Scott]

I'd go with a low wattage heater. I've got a little 1inch by 2inch silicone heater that is only 10 watts. I use it to heat the bird's waterer in the winter time using solar panels. See this thread.