Winterizing coop

[Chickensall4me]

I’m new to cold winters and never had to deal with “winterizing coops” before. So I’m struggling with the ventilation, sealing for drafts, and cleanliness aspects of winter chicken keeping. Right now I have a wooden coop with a run in a place where my chickens get frostbite every winter. They come out of their coop when it’s 0 F outside and they’re all fluffed up. I feel so bad for them. I’ve been researching better ways to keep them warm besides using heat lamps and I like the idea of heating panels for the really cold days.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a longtime chicken keeper who is new to cold climates, who lives in often ice-cold, highly variable weather?

 

[thecatumbrella]

Whereabouts are you? Can you post a picture of your coop and run?

Frostbite often means there's not enough ventilation for moisture to escape. It collects on the comb and tada... frostbitten tips. You do not want the wind blowing on them. I wrap my run with clear polycarbonate roof panels. They're easy to attach with cable ties (and a drill for pilot holes). BUT, I leave a huge gap at the very top for ventilation. Maybe 9-12" in a run that's 6' tall. The coop is even more critical. Again, you want to make sure wind and drafts aren't hitting the birds on the roost, but there needs to be as much ventilation as possible over their heads.

It's also imperative that you do not place a waterer in the coop, and that you keep the droppings in check. A lot of people use a droppings shelf below the roost, which can be cleared daily.

If you really want to add supplemental heat, I'd look into either a Sweeter Heater (which is meant to sit over the roost and just take the edge off) or one of these low-temp panel heaters that the birds can snuggle against, if needed.

 

[Chickensall4me]

Thank you for the great ideas. I am in Utah. This is the coop I bought. I love it. It keeps the magpies from stealing the eggs, and I don’t have to worry about my escape artists anymore. I love the polycarbonate roofing panel idea, I never would have thought of that one. I’m gonna order some. Thank you!

 

[thecatumbrella]

Thank you for the great ideas. I am in Utah. This is the coop I bought. I love it. It keeps the magpies from stealing the eggs, and I don’t have to worry about my escape artists anymore. I love the polycarbonate roofing panel idea, I never would have thought of that one. I’m gonna order some. Thank you!

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like that coop has any ventilation whatsoever, BUT it's easy to add some! I'd cut out a huge chunk on the upper portions (especially the side that faces inside the run), then hardware cloth the openings. You will have to be mindful of water infiltration. I'd get a hose and do some testing to see how far you can push your cutouts.

I mocked up your photo to show where I would add ventilation (in red) and the approximate height I'd cut the polycarbonate panels (blue). For the door side, look into a clear tarp that can bungee onto the hardware cloth for easy on/off. Omlet makes a heavy duty one in some different sizes.

Best of luck!