Winterizing advice needed

[kmacinnis]

Hey everyone
I am a first year chicken owner from New England and I'm looking for advice regarding my store bought coop's ventilation and how to ensure a healthy winter for my 4 girls . Since there are no vent should I be worried ?

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome! That's very cozy (small!) for your girls. Ventilation is most important, so blocking the north and west wind will be your best option here. If the open side is to the south, that's great. Bedding in the run may help too, because wet ground isn't so good either. Mary

 

[kmacinnis]

Do you think I should modify and expand coop before winter ? I do have a longer run (see pic) I plan to wrap up with plastic but want to be sure

 

[Folly's place]

You can wrap the lower part of the walls, and leave the upper six to twelve inches open for ventilation, especially on the south and east sides. I am concerned about predators invading your coop and run; neither looks safe to me. Think about 100 lb. dogs, digging critters, and raccoons with their nice little hands. I thing a major upgrade is needed for safety. Mary

 

[kmacinnis]

Sorry ... The coop picture used was taken shortly after assembly 4 months ago . Since then I've added 3ft long wire fencing and buried it around perimeter to prevent digging .
All latches and locks have been upgraded as well. The run was just built but I'm planning to do the same before fall.

 

[Emma Miriam]

What's the square footage of your coop? Your run? Do your birds free range at all? Also, how tall is the coop?

It looks like much of the coop is open, so you actually do have lots of airflow...great for summer, but those chilly breezes will blow on your chickens in the winter. As Folly's place suggested, wrap all the openings in your coop that aren't above the chickens' heads, and make sure that there are no direct breezes blowing on the roost. That's super important, otherwise they won't be able to stay warm at night.

One other thing: is all the wire on the coop 1/2 inch hardware cloth? Often prefab coops use other types vof wire with lower gauges and larger openings. If yours does, make sure to cover all the openings with hardware cloth.

 

[TalkALittle]

Make sure you secure the point where the coop meets the new run against predators. That looks like a particularly weak spot.

I'm in MA too and after last winter was so glad I wrapped my run. I would completely wrap the new long run in plastic. Leave it open a few inches along the top on all sides. I assume there is an access door at the far end? You may want to leave that end unwrapped as long as it isn't exposed to prevailing winds. If the end is unwrapped then you don't need to leave any space open along the top of the sides.

I'd also wrap the run that's directly attached to the coop. For that one I'd put the plastic all the way to the top edge. I probably wouldn't attach the front completely. That way I could roll it up and out of the way to open things up on sunnier and warmer days. If you staple the bottom edge of plastic to a 2x4 you can just roll it up like a roller shade and flip it onto the roof. When you want it down, the weight of the 2x4 keeps it in place.

I would look into adding some ventilation to the coop. Perhaps install an adjustable vent in the wall that faces into the run. That way you'll get some necessary air flow but won't have to worry about wind or weather blowing in. Small coops are tough because ideally you want ventilation well above the roost height but in those tiny pre-fabs there is sometimes no good place to put it that won't also make a draft on the birds.

 

[kmacinnis]

Thanks for the advice
My coop is 6ft x 3ft wide and 4ft tall
Run is 8ft long x 3ft wide
And yes the girls are typically outside most of the day .

 

[Emma Miriam]

TalkALittle had a

That's actually a good size coop! As long as your birds can free range a bit, they'll be fine space-wise for winter. And I agree that putting a vent in above the heads of roosting chickens would be great if that's possible. It might be, depending on how high the roost is.

Hey, I'm in MA too!