Heat: No supplemental (electrical) heat until below 10-20F, HOT water in 1 gallon waterer 2x daily
If yes on heat, what method do you use (lamp, flat panel, etc.)?: I just put a heating pad under the linoleum sheet that covers their poop board about 5" below the roosts...I've had it on low overnight, but I'm interested in getting a flat-panel (or reptile terrarium) heater to mount next to their roosts. I also buried an under-desk foot warmer in the pine shaving/straw bedding. I'm probably going to add some clay tile below and above the heat pad as a heat sink. There is also a 12x14" plexiglass window at roosting level on the east and west sides to allow solar heating in the AM. Chicken heat is my stand-by...the roost is about 30" wide and the 4 chickens have to snuggle a bit to all get on the higher roost, and the reflective insulation was meant to contain and reflect their body heat back to them.
Insulated coop: yes...1.5" styrofoam lines the plywood/tarpaper/asphalt shingled roof, and interior of coop is lined with double bubble reflective foil insulation. I cover the west half of the ridge vent (above the roosts) with straw in the fall and the ridge vent cover is flexible 1/4" plywood covered with reflective bubble insulation...fixed and foil-taped above the roost-half and adjustable enough to allow air exchange on the east half (where the clean-out/people door is located)...also loosely stuffed with straw to baffle strong winds. I would like to put a small removable partition in to box off the roosting area from the ventilation side of the roof ridge vent, maximizing body heat retention. The coop is raised on 18" stilts and the hardware cloth bottom is covered with plastic (plywood door on entire north side that opens to run). The wire floor is covered with 1-1/2" tongue and groove planking, then linoleum, then 4-6" of bedding.
Amount of ventilation (approximate sq.ft.) you employ during the winter: short answer...about .5-1 sf on coldest nights and adjustable to more (pop door open during days, 2 windows, etc.). I have a 4" raised ridge vent running the length of the coop roof (about 4'), but cover most of it with a thin foil-bubble wrapped strip of plywood left loose on the eastern side. The triangular gable opening opposite the roost is hardware cloth covered in plastic, stapled, but not taped, so kind of loosely covered--maybe 1/3 square foot. The ridge vent (great in the summer) is stuffed with straw and sealed on west side above roosts, stuffed more loosely on east half and cover is able to be adjusted...probably 1/2 sf opening exposed, but it is exposed to the cross winds blowing under/through the raised gable of the ridge vent. I'll adjust the east half opening and remove straw stuffing (air baffles) as needed as it warms up. There are also some leaks around the windows even though I tried to weatherstrip the edges in the fall (east window is a bit warped).
Coop size: raised 18", approx 4'Lx3'Wx4'H plus gable roof (a bit shy of 4' walls/5' at center) with two 11"x11" nesting boxes off side
Litter method: poop board, wood shavings and straw (mostly pulled out of the nesting boxes)
#of chickens in coop: 4
Location (city and/or state and/or zone): northern IL, zone 5a/b border
How many winters have you been through with your chickens?: This is the first winter in this coop (ducks for 3 years, but they are tougher in winter...no wattles)
(Optional) briefly describe how your flock has fared using these methods: We've only been at 0F-10F lows overnight for a few nights, but I see the coop 10 degrees warmer than outside, and 10 additional degrees when using the heating pad. The foil insulation really helped with the drafty construction and magnifies the morning sun...it was 25F outside a couple mornings ago and the sun alone had raised the coop to 46F! I still have some tweaking to do and I wish I'd had time to caulk the seams last summer before mounting the insulation, but I feel they are safe down to the -20 lows we see every few years. I haven't seen too many holes in the foil yet, but today is only their 2nd day cooped up inside and they seem to spend most of their time over at the pond scratching through the duck house bedding before heading back to the coop. I haven't tested the heating pad on Medium or (eek!) High, and wouldn't dare until it's sandwiched in clay tiles, but this is a method I found on a reptile forum and seems to make sense for more safety and a heat sink.
If yes on heat, what method do you use (lamp, flat panel, etc.)?: I just put a heating pad under the linoleum sheet that covers their poop board about 5" below the roosts...I've had it on low overnight, but I'm interested in getting a flat-panel (or reptile terrarium) heater to mount next to their roosts. I also buried an under-desk foot warmer in the pine shaving/straw bedding. I'm probably going to add some clay tile below and above the heat pad as a heat sink. There is also a 12x14" plexiglass window at roosting level on the east and west sides to allow solar heating in the AM. Chicken heat is my stand-by...the roost is about 30" wide and the 4 chickens have to snuggle a bit to all get on the higher roost, and the reflective insulation was meant to contain and reflect their body heat back to them.
Insulated coop: yes...1.5" styrofoam lines the plywood/tarpaper/asphalt shingled roof, and interior of coop is lined with double bubble reflective foil insulation. I cover the west half of the ridge vent (above the roosts) with straw in the fall and the ridge vent cover is flexible 1/4" plywood covered with reflective bubble insulation...fixed and foil-taped above the roost-half and adjustable enough to allow air exchange on the east half (where the clean-out/people door is located)...also loosely stuffed with straw to baffle strong winds. I would like to put a small removable partition in to box off the roosting area from the ventilation side of the roof ridge vent, maximizing body heat retention. The coop is raised on 18" stilts and the hardware cloth bottom is covered with plastic (plywood door on entire north side that opens to run). The wire floor is covered with 1-1/2" tongue and groove planking, then linoleum, then 4-6" of bedding.
Amount of ventilation (approximate sq.ft.) you employ during the winter: short answer...about .5-1 sf on coldest nights and adjustable to more (pop door open during days, 2 windows, etc.). I have a 4" raised ridge vent running the length of the coop roof (about 4'), but cover most of it with a thin foil-bubble wrapped strip of plywood left loose on the eastern side. The triangular gable opening opposite the roost is hardware cloth covered in plastic, stapled, but not taped, so kind of loosely covered--maybe 1/3 square foot. The ridge vent (great in the summer) is stuffed with straw and sealed on west side above roosts, stuffed more loosely on east half and cover is able to be adjusted...probably 1/2 sf opening exposed, but it is exposed to the cross winds blowing under/through the raised gable of the ridge vent. I'll adjust the east half opening and remove straw stuffing (air baffles) as needed as it warms up. There are also some leaks around the windows even though I tried to weatherstrip the edges in the fall (east window is a bit warped).
Coop size: raised 18", approx 4'Lx3'Wx4'H plus gable roof (a bit shy of 4' walls/5' at center) with two 11"x11" nesting boxes off side
Litter method: poop board, wood shavings and straw (mostly pulled out of the nesting boxes)
#of chickens in coop: 4
Location (city and/or state and/or zone): northern IL, zone 5a/b border
How many winters have you been through with your chickens?: This is the first winter in this coop (ducks for 3 years, but they are tougher in winter...no wattles)
(Optional) briefly describe how your flock has fared using these methods: We've only been at 0F-10F lows overnight for a few nights, but I see the coop 10 degrees warmer than outside, and 10 additional degrees when using the heating pad. The foil insulation really helped with the drafty construction and magnifies the morning sun...it was 25F outside a couple mornings ago and the sun alone had raised the coop to 46F! I still have some tweaking to do and I wish I'd had time to caulk the seams last summer before mounting the insulation, but I feel they are safe down to the -20 lows we see every few years. I haven't seen too many holes in the foil yet, but today is only their 2nd day cooped up inside and they seem to spend most of their time over at the pond scratching through the duck house bedding before heading back to the coop. I haven't tested the heating pad on Medium or (eek!) High, and wouldn't dare until it's sandwiched in clay tiles, but this is a method I found on a reptile forum and seems to make sense for more safety and a heat sink.
Last edited:
