Winter is Coming! Checklists, tips, advice for a newbie

[Windy Bay Farm]

@jsmith, my coop is 10x12. 8 foot high ceilings. My chickens do not like a stiff cold winter wind but there is a big difference between a nice cool breeze and the wind at -30 or-40. In the summer they roost right beside the open window which is above the pop door but in winter they move to the west window that I close then, it's also away from the pop door. The roosts are high enough that winter drafts from the pop door don't seem to reach them. All winter they are in and out of the coop, on really windy winter days they stay inside and I'm sure some cold breezes get in through the pop door but it doesn't seem to bother them at all.

It's probably not wise to raise delicate chickens without heat, Seramas come to mind but my chickens are a mix of bantams and large breeds (Barred Rock and Welsummer) and are very hardy. The bantams are mixed breeds and may come from some fancy little bantams that my sister raised but they appear very hardy as well. Perhaps because they have been raised without heat and adjusted.
Sometimes we over-coddle to the detriment of kids and critters. Keep it simple. That said I would be wary of raising the delicate breeds without any winter heat. Of course my winter is very different from a Texas winter where I would probably not give any kind of chicken heat in the winter.

 

It's hard to say why your hen would sleep in a nest, is she going broody?

Look up breeds online to find out which ones do well in cold climates. You might want to hunt up an article on ventilation by a lady who raises chickens in eastern Canada. Very informative. Big difference between direct drafts and ventilation.

Hi CindyR... Any chance you know the ladies handle here on BYC or what the name of the thread is ?

 

[Bogtown Chick]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/822925/understanding-ventilation-versus-drafts here is a thread that discusses just those particular issues.

 

[aart]

Hi CindyR... Any chance you know the ladies handle here on BYC or what the name of the thread is ?

I think this might be the article she is talking about.

advanced search>titles only>ventilation
choose 'articles' from the left hand panel

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

I think this might be the article she is talking about.

advanced search>titles only>ventilation
choose 'articles' from the left hand panel

Thanks, aart !

 

[spainterrd]

How do you reach your eggs from the outside?
What is your roof made of.....will it hold up to snow load?

Right now, the nesting box has a hinged roof. The girls like to lay on the "first floor" coop level too so we have to reach in from the back door which swings down on hinges too.
The roof is definitely in need of changing for the winter. Currently, it's an old political sign that was posted on our corner. I've put a new roof on my husbands honey do list!

 

[CindyR]

Yes Windy Bay Farm, that is indeed the article I mentioned. Thanks for finding and posting the link.

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

Just ran across this post on "The Chicken Whisperer's" Facebook page....



The Chicken Whisperer · 71,606 like this
31 minutes ago ·

• 
  
  Well, it's that time of year again when people start posting questions about keeping their chickens warm in the winter. This means it's time for me to post my opinion on the topic, which has not changed in over two decades, so here I go...Chickens have been domesticated for about 6,000 years, yet we have only had electricity in America for the past 125 years, and the chickens have been doing just fine for the past 5,875 years without a heater in their coop. When you wake up on the morning, and it's -10 degrees, what is the first thing you see when you look out the kitchen window? Tiny little birds flying around looking for food and water, and I can assure you that they do NOT have a heater in their nest up in that tree. Chickens have feathers to keep them warm, and they do a good job of doing so. Have you ever slept under a down comforter? I have never in over five years of broadcasting over 850 episode had a poultry expert including certified avian vets, poultry scientists, poultry professors, APA, ABA, American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Society for Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, USDA, and other poultry experts recommend heating a chicken coop, and believe me, I have asked them all because I am so passionate about this topic. That said, this by no means you don't have to use some due diligence this winter to keep your birds healthy. I will post about this a little later. You can't argue with someone that says, "I will sleep better at night knowing that my precious chickens are warm ans toasty" so I don't. However, I will try to get them to at least use a safe heat source to prevent them killing their precious chickens with kindness. Every year I post a countless number of articles about coop fires that have been caused by an unnecessary heat source. Not only are their precious chickens all dead, but their coop has been destroyed, and is some cases even their own house or neighbors house was also caught on fire!!! In most all cases in the United States, including Alaska, a heat source is not needed in your coop! Yes, this includes Silkies and Seramas! However, if you still choose to heat your coop, PLEASE PLEASE, PLEASE, use a safe heat source! If you use a dangerous heat lamp, then incorporate several safety back up devices like once you clamp the heat lamp to something, duct tape it, and then spring clamp it, and then use a chain to secure it to the ceiling! Then, four things have to fail before your coop burns to the ground! The heat lamp clamp has to break, the spring clamp has to break, the duct tape has to fail, and the chain has to break all at the exact time for the lamp to fall into the shavings and cause a fire! Or, just spend a little more money and get a safer heat source for your precious chickens. I won't even get into the possibility of doing more harm to your chickens by providing heat, and then the power going out in the middle of the night, and you chickens are not acclimated to the cold due to them having a heat lamp every night. My basic point for this post is to let my fans know that in most all cases anywhere in America that heat is not needed in your coop. Please don't kill your precious chickens with kindness. Take it or leave it, but I will continue to be passionate about not using heaters in coops.

 

[AK Baha]

Just ran across this post on "The Chicken Whisperer's" Facebook page....



The Chicken Whisperer · 71,606 like this
31 minutes ago ·

• 
  
  Well, it's that time of year again when people start posting questions about keeping their chickens warm in the winter. This means it's time for me to post my opinion on the topic, which has not changed in over two decades, so here I go...Chickens have been domesticated for about 6,000 years, yet we have only had electricity in America for the past 125 years, and the chickens have been doing just fine for the past 5,875 years without a heater in their coop. When you wake up on the morning, and it's -10 degrees, what is the first thing you see when you look out the kitchen window? Tiny little birds flying around looking for food and water, and I can assure you that they do NOT have a heater in their nest up in that tree. Chickens have feathers to keep them warm, and they do a good job of doing so. Have you ever slept under a down comforter? I have never in over five years of broadcasting over 850 episode had a poultry expert including certified avian vets, poultry scientists, poultry professors, APA, ABA, American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Society for Preservation of Poultry Antiquities, USDA, and other poultry experts recommend heating a chicken coop, and believe me, I have asked them all because I am so passionate about this topic. That said, this by no means you don't have to use some due diligence this winter to keep your birds healthy. I will post about this a little later. You can't argue with someone that says, "I will sleep better at night knowing that my precious chickens are warm ans toasty" so I don't. However, I will try to get them to at least use a safe heat source to prevent them killing their precious chickens with kindness. Every year I post a countless number of articles about coop fires that have been caused by an unnecessary heat source. Not only are their precious chickens all dead, but their coop has been destroyed, and is some cases even their own house or neighbors house was also caught on fire!!! In most all cases in the United States, including Alaska, a heat source is not needed in your coop! Yes, this includes Silkies and Seramas! However, if you still choose to heat your coop, PLEASE PLEASE, PLEASE, use a safe heat source! If you use a dangerous heat lamp, then incorporate several safety back up devices like once you clamp the heat lamp to something, duct tape it, and then spring clamp it, and then use a chain to secure it to the ceiling! Then, four things have to fail before your coop burns to the ground! The heat lamp clamp has to break, the spring clamp has to break, the duct tape has to fail, and the chain has to break all at the exact time for the lamp to fall into the shavings and cause a fire! Or, just spend a little more money and get a safer heat source for your precious chickens. I won't even get into the possibility of doing more harm to your chickens by providing heat, and then the power going out in the middle of the night, and you chickens are not acclimated to the cold due to them having a heat lamp every night. My basic point for this post is to let my fans know that in most all cases anywhere in America that heat is not needed in your coop. Please don't kill your precious chickens with kindness. Take it or leave it, but I will continue to be passionate about not using heaters in coops.

TY for posting this. I live in Alaska and am a new chicken owner.I have been debating whether to heat or not,I will not.

 

[farmchickutah]

I don't heat my coop but I would sure like to figure out a way to keep their water from freezing. We have long cold winters here in our valley.

 

[LadyCluck77]

I'm not planning to heat my coop either. We used thick wood as the siding, with the log cabin effect in mind.
My winter preparations are going to consist of solving the water-freeze up issue, creating a cover for the run, and regular maintenance.

One idea I liked was the homemade solar water trough. I need to buy the black rubber dish at TSC this weekend and start working on it.

The run cover, I think, is going to be a lumber frame, possibly from a few discarded pallets. This will then be covered in heavy plastic, and "tarped" on the sides.

DH and I may start that also this weekend.

Will post pictures if we finish- the pictures and friendly tips others have posted have been very helpful so far in giving me ideas.