Woods-style house in the winter

[austintgraf]

I very much like this coop. I think I will do research on this kind of coop, perhaps build one in the future and use it for a blog post, very conventional

 

[kathyinmo]

I am sooooooooo gonna buy the book!

Thanks for this thread!

 

[happytraylz]

Great thread! Living in Maine, I've wondererd if this style coop would work for our winters. Definitely going to by the book! Thanks!

 

[PEI chicken]

http://www.archive.org/details/openairpoultryho00wood

You may want to download the pdf version of the out of print book on the Wood's style open air poultry house. See link above. At this site you may either open the book and read it on-line, or if you prefer download a pdf or ebook.

Great read, and I will probably use this plan if I ever build a larger coop.

Happy New Year to you all!

 

[Talisman]

Love love love it! I would put christmas lights on it if it was mine.

 

[off-grid hen]

JackE- I wanted to say thanks to you for posting this. Hubby built the "woods on wheels" this spring and its been a relief to know the hens have plenty of fresh air but NO DRAFTS. This coop is not insulated and there is no added heat.

I was wondering if you have put a thermometer inside your coop to measure differences(if any) compared to outside temps. Maybe it was already discussed, but it's been a while since I read the whole thread.

I have noticed that there is a 6-10 degree difference between coop temp by the roosts and the outside temps. This has been consistent since I installed the thermometer in late November. (I tested it inside and out to see what it was reading before we installed it at roost level.) This morning it was 0 out, but 10 in the coop.

The buffer/cushion of air Woods talks about is very real. Even when the wind is blowing directly at the the front windows, I barely feel it by the roosts. We installed a droppings board. The windows have shown no condensation or frost, which is more than I can say for my old human house.

. I have not had frostbite issues.

Thanks a ton! If I hadn't seen your post I wouldn't have known about this style of coop, and I would have had serious doubts about using it in my northern NY winters.

 

[riverpilot69]

PEI chicken. Thanks for the link.

 

[Avonlea22]

Quote:
A hard copy of this book is at the NC State Library (you can see DH Hill Library stamped on one of the pages). I'm going to check it out when I return to school next week. Exciting.

Thanks for the link!

BTW, I'm a HUGE fan of PEI. Jealous.

 

[JackE]

Quote:
You're welcome, and thank you. I remember when you were building the WoodsOnWheels, What a cool idea. I do have a thermometer in the coop and have noticed the same thing with the temp deferential. I guess between the birds and the deep litter, there is a bit of warmth generated. I got into a mini-argument about the "AirCushion/Buffer" theory here once. Because every now and again winter winds will blast right at the open front, and you get in the coop and you don't really feel any air movement back by the roost area. No swirling cold air in the Woods, even with the wide open front. I have also had the same results with frostbite, NONE, and I have a few birds with big combs. Like I said before, This style coop was a proven idea, practically a hundred years ago. And it still works today. Heatlamps, ceramic heaters need not apply.
Jack

 

[PEI chicken]

Hi Avonlea and riverpilot

You are very welcome to the link. I was happy to find it too.

Avonlea, with a name like yours, you are probably an Anne of Green Gables fan?

My 9 chickens would really appreciate a Woods style house today, if only.

It is -10 C and blowing snow all day. Anyway, they are as cosy as can be for now. I tacked up tarps yesterday to cover the wired pens under their coops, so their pens won`t fill with snow. They still like to spend most of their time in the area under their coops and just go into the coop to lay eggs and roost for the night.

My mantra to keep me sane for the next few months: Winter is good, snow is good, I love winter, . . .