Sponsored Post Win an Ecoglow 20 Chick Brooder from Brinsea with your best tip for winter!

[XseankellyX]

My chickens are in ireland and we have had them for a good few years, and we dont do anything in winter, in the summer they sleep on a roost in the outside part of their run, and in winter they sleep in the wind proof house, my tip is to have a house they can go into and a roost outside to sleep on when you have hot summers

 

[SGM]

I cut back on scratch grains and add BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds) - not a lot, treats, scraps and some beet pulp to add fat for winter. I start covering walls with tarps or plastic to prevent drafts and when its cold out I bring hot water out and the chickens LOVE it!

 

[thomasboyle]

My coop run is exposed on 3 sides, and we have a strong North wind most of the winter. To protect the chickens and ducks, I wrap the coop with heavy clear vinyl shower curtains from a local dollar store. They are 6'x6' and cost $4, so I was able to do my entire 15x15 run for under $32. I attached them to the wood frame of the run with 1 inch screws with 1 inch fender washers on each screw every 12 inches along the edges of the vinyl. The vinyl weathered the winter extremely well, and I am able to re-use them again this year. I attach the vinyl to the run right before the first snow storm and take it off after the last one in the Spring. In addition to keeping the snow out of the run and keeping it draft free, the sun coming through the vinyl warms the run and keeps it 5-10 degrees warmer than the outside air, and my waterers no longer freeze during the day.

 

[The Mother Hen]

Since it doesn't snow in the winter where I live, I simply place a heating lamp with a red warming bulb in our coop. It keeps my girls and guys warm enough to get through the cool nights even if there is no snow. My coop is big enough where my chickens can huddle or spread out depending on the heat in their coop.

 

[LBejaran]

Even in our mild winters, our open-air coop can get pretty drafty when cold fronts come around. One side of our coop is protected by our big shed while the other side is open to a fence that encloses the yard, separating it from the empty field behind the property. To prevent the draftiness, I don't chop down the vines that grow on the fence that is right beside the coop. This keeps the wind and rain from coming into the coop, keeping it dry and warm enough for the chooks. The vines only need to be trimmed a couple times a year to keep them from growing onto the ceiling of the coop. It is a simply and free way of keeping the coop insulated.

 

[Coupe]

I dont use a heat lamp or have electric out to the coops...but in winter I move all the chickens to the larger coop and put hay in there. The body heat from the chickens keep the coop pretty warm and keeps the waterer from freezing..when it snows I shovel paths tothe feeders and around the yard. I live in NY so we get lots of snow. But my chickens do very well with out all the extra heat lamps and heated waterers.

 

[Fireandice123]

To prepare for the winter ahead, I add a few more vents throughout the coop and cover it with a tarp, so the heat can stay in, but so it won't get stuffy. It also helps keep the water from getting frozen. We also have added another heat lamp to the one we already have.

 

[mrott91]

Using a thermocube.

 

[jillstu]

I have a (more or less) open coop with an attached run and a series of additional outdoor paddocks my chickens range in during the day. The coop has a living roof (insulates in summer and winter) and the run has a clear plastic roof that functions like a green house. I use the deep litter method This is my first year having chickens and this is what I've done (or will be doing) to winterize my set up:
- add a layer of mulch on the living roof, increasing the insulation
- add sun panels over some of the hardware cloth sides of the run, increasing the greenhouse effect and blocking wind
- add wood chips to the floor of the run
- add extra litter to the coop floor - adding in straw, wood shavings, and leaves instead of just the dried grass clippings I usually use
- insulate the hose that connects to my automatic waterer using foam meant for water pipes. Then I buried this just below the lawn surface in a trench lined and topped with straw. I'll be wrapping the waterer itself in several layers of bubble wrap as well. If we ever get freezing weather (uncommon in Seattle), I'll disconnect the hose from spigot and place a disposable 10+ hour handwarmer under a smaller, portable waterer. I have several portable waterers which I can swap out if they freeze completely.
- keep a good layer of leaves in the paddock, providing a warm mulch layer for insects to live under; and hours of foraging activity for the chickens
- get a few bales of hay from grocery stores after they take down their Halloween displays and stack them up on the outside of the coop for extra insulation - just in case
- throw some BOSS in at dusk (my girls are corn-free for allergy reasons) to generate extra heat, keep their crops full
- I've also been harvesting comfrey all summer long and dehydrating it, so I have an extra source of greens to feed

 

[cluckcluckluke]

To prepare for Winter I plant crops. I'm in Australia now, so last Winter I planted corn so they could have it fresh or cracked, I planted pumpkins and also had a sectioned of area full of weeds, beans and other such things for them to eat over the Winter.
It all worked wonderfully but I defiantly need to plant more next time

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