Very cold coop

[hagoesch]

Morning! I know chickens are great insulators and can deal with cold temperatures but it shocked me to see that it was only 26° F inside their coop when I opened the pop door at 0645 (was 22 outside). There should be no drafts on them. Plenty of ventilation. It's a coop built into the corner of an unheated, uninsulated pole barn, 16 ft L x 5 ft W x roughly 8 ft tall. Ceiling is open to the slanting rafters but covered with chicken wire. I am deep littering but possibly started the process later than I should have. Our flock of 7 turned 10 months old yesterday, so this is their second winter with us, but we only finished building the coop in our new barn this summer. We are in southeastern WI where temps easily dip into the teens, single digits and sometimes lower in winter.

Do you think I need to do something for insulation? I would prefer not to use heat sources in there. Or perhaps I'm just overreacting... Your thoughts are appreciated!

Cheers,
Heather

 

[sourland]

As long as they are dry, well fed and watered, well ventilated but draft free they will be fine.

 

[Callender Girl]

Although I also worry when the coops are cold, I think as long as there is adequate ventilation to reduce the incidence of frostbite, the chickens will be okay.

Last winter it got down to 20 or 22 below (too darned cold for two degrees to make a difference) and none of my chickens in the uninsulated coops had any issues. I, on the other hand, was whiny until spring when breaking ice out of the waterers was no longer necessary. Even electric waterers can only do so much when it's that cold.

 

[aart]

Do you think I need to do something for insulation?

Nope.

but it shocked me to see that it was only 26° F inside their coop when I opened the pop door at 0645 (was 22 outside).

Sounds right to me.
Temps and humidity should be about the same inside and outside the coop.
Otherwise you may need more ventilation.

 

[jreardon1918]

*** edited after a bit more research and a correction of football locations***
I think insulation and heat are unneeded. Here in SE Mass we have neither. Just a draft free coop with a covered run. The temp inside our coop later this week will be in the teens. I imagine we both have occasional days below 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

A search of the internet shows me that our typical temperatures along with rain and snow are similar. Compare the sites of our football teams. Milwaukee? Really. Sorry folks. I would have thought your area would be a bit colder. Also, I suspect these are average temperatures. So maybe the Internet is misleading me.

Weather Highlights
Foxborough, Massachusetts
Summer High: the July high is around 83.3 degrees
Winter Low: the January low is 16.4
Rain: averages 50.3 inches of rain a year
Snow: averages 45.5 inches of snow a year

Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Summer High: the July high is around 82.7 degrees
Winter Low: the January low is 13.8
Rain: averages 34.8 inches of rain a year
Snow: averages 44.6 inches of snow a year
January has the coldest nighttime temperatures for Milwaukee with an average of 13.8°. This is one of the warmest places in Wisconsin.

January has the coldest nighttime temperatures for Foxborough with an average of 16.4°. This is colder than most places in Massachusetts.

 

[hagoesch]

As long as they are dry, well fed and watered, well ventilated but draft free they will be fine.

Thanks, sourland! I tick all of those boxes otherwise, so good to go I'm a worrier (surely it doesn't show)... CHEERS

 

[hagoesch]

Although I also worry when the coops are cold, I think as long as there is adequate ventilation to reduce the incidence of frostbite, the chickens will be okay.

Last winter it got down to 20 or 22 below (too darned cold for two degrees to make a difference) and none of my chickens in the uninsulated coops had any issues. I, on the other hand, was whiny until spring when breaking ice out of the waterers was no longer necessary. Even electric waterers can only do so much when it's that cold.

HA, agreed. That will definitely be me this winter, anthropomorphizing my worries onto them. Really appreciate your words! CHEERS

 

[hagoesch]

Nope.

Sounds right to me.
Temps and humidity should be about the same inside and outside the coop.
Otherwise you may need more ventilation.

Awesome. As always, thanks very much to you, aart. Would you think there's a threshold low temperature that requires action, or are food, water, ventilation, dry all they need?

 

[jreardon1918]

Sorry for being so misleading about SE Wisconsin. Leave it to an Easterner, to speak about a state they never visited.

 

[aart]

Awesome. As always, thanks very much to you, aart. Would you think there's a threshold low temperature that requires action, or are food, water, ventilation, dry all they need?

The first winter is tough, until you realize just how tough they are.
The thing I look out for is cold stress, same as heat stress, lethargy...which I test by tossing out a few treats. If a bird won't go for treats, they are in need of some attention.
Here's my notes about cold weather......

Birds can get dehydrated in winter as well as summer so I've started soaking rolled oats in a Sav-a-Chick electrolytes/vitamins solution.
This avoids the 'wattle dippage' of an open waterer.
Gives them a boost and gets them hydrated.
1/8 teaspoon to 1 cup of warm water, mix until dissolved.
Add solution to 1 cup of rolled oats, stir well on occasion until all liquid is absorbed, might need to add more oats. Takes an hour or two, then give it to the birds.

Have done this every few days during extreme cold(<10°F), and I believe it's really helped them, they all stayed mobile. Gives me a good chance to assess mobility, any bird that doesn't go for the oats gets watched very carefully and may be brought to a warmer place for a couple hours to 'reset'.

@BantyChooks taught me about 'cold reset'. I bring bird into the slightly warmer garage for just a couple-few hours. Makes sure she eats, give her a dose of electrolytes, see what's coming out the other end, and just observe. Then take them back out to coop, has 'saved' a few here, it's pretty amazing how they bounce back.