Wrong way to winterize a run...

[Badchickenpun]

I want to know if there is anything a person can do, or has done that one could consider a BAD THING when winterizing a run.
I feel comfortable with how I have handled my coop. I think it will do fine this winter.
But I have seen so many different approaches to a RUN.
I have seen some do NOTHING and other people wrap it up so tight it becomes a mini-greenhouse!
I want to know more about BAD IDEAS when attempting to make the run a little nicer for the winter months.
My plan was to completely wrap half my run with plastic including the sand box under the coop, leaving the other 6 x 18 completely open.
I plan to leave openings for the chickens to pass between the covered portion and the uncovered.
The image below is an approximation of the wrapping I was planning.
Is there anything wrong with doing this? Is there anything in which I should be mindful?

 

[Aunt Angus]

I want to know if there is anything a person can do, or has done that one could consider a BAD THING when winterizing a run.
I feel comfortable with how I have handled my coop. I think it will do fine this winter.
But I have seen so many different approaches to a RUN.
I have seen some do NOTHING and other people wrap it up so tight it becomes a mini-greenhouse!
I want to know more about BAD IDEAS when attempting to make the run a little nicer for the winter months.
My plan was to completely wrap half my run with plastic including the sand box under the coop, leaving the other 6 x 18 completely open.
I plan to leave openings for the chickens to pass between the covered portion and the uncovered.
I will post an image of my plans in a few.

I think the worst mistake is not leaving any ventilation. Oh - and using unsafe supplemental heating. Chickens usually don't need heat supplemented but can be ok in certain situations. But bad setups (too many extension cords, poorly suspended heat lamps, etc) can lead to tragedies!

Poor drainage? Might result in bacterial/fungal nightmares or frozen chickens if followed by a hard freeze.

 

[WIchickMama]

If you only partially wrap the run, I would make sure that the sides open will get the least amount of driving winds, rain and/or snow (if you get some). OR you can wrap the full run and leave 6-12 inches open at the top all the way around or some sort of combination of wrapped and ventilated. I leave 12 inches open at the open of my door and then 6 inches around the top. Enough so they don't bake when the sun is out, the air moves through, and it isn't horribly dusty for them. Maybe I get a dusting of snow in the run when it snows, but I either leave it and they investigate or I cover it up with mulch.

 

[Jenni Hen]

I'd agree with WIchick Mama about aiming for the least amount of driving wind. My big mistake was that I put panels on the sides of the run but not the ends. The usual driving wind tunnelled down the middle of the run! Brrrrrr! The photo shows the stone barn (not ours) and the wind funnels up the valley and whips round the barn, so it's surprisingly draughty just there and having only side panels actually made it worse.

So I had to put panels on the ends as well. On the front, the lee side, I put extra holes and string so I could remove them, or open and close them like windows. This was handy as the weather varied a lot and the greenhouse effect was quite powerful on sunny days.

The main panels were PVC roofing sheets, the next ones were offcuts from PVC roofing, the next batch I cut from plywood & wrapped in a plastic bags, and the last ones were just used plastic sacks sewn or stuffed into place.

The roof panels are on a frame that sits just above the walls so there's an air gap. The roof panels overhang by a few inches but I've curved them down to stop anything driving in yet without reducing actual ventilation. I made them curve down by using string and pieces of wood on the side and just baler band tied tight around the overhang at the front.
The mistake I've made with the roof is that the slope isn't steep enough lengthways so some water doesn't run off. And when I wrapped it up for winter, I ended up attaching the roof to the sides so I could no longer lift one end to get rid of the water.
The main mistake I've made with the roof on the little extension (not on the photo) is that the material isn't rigid enough and water puddles in the middle. But also, the overhang isn't big enough and when I try to get rid of the water it showers into the run.

 

[Badchickenpun]

I'd agree with WIchick Mama about aiming for the least amount of driving wind. My big mistake was that I put panels on the sides of the run but not the ends. The usual driving wind tunnelled down the middle of the run! Brrrrrr! The photo shows the stone barn (not ours) and the wind funnels up the valley and whips round the barn, so it's surprisingly draughty just there and having only side panels actually made it worse.

So I had to put panels on the ends as well. On the front, the lee side, I put extra holes and string so I could remove them, or open and close them like windows. This was handy as the weather varied a lot and the greenhouse effect was quite powerful on sunny days.

The main panels were PVC roofing sheets, the next ones were offcuts from PVC roofing, the next batch I cut from plywood & wrapped in a plastic bags, and the last ones were just used plastic sacks sewn or stuffed into place.

The roof panels are on a frame that sits just above the walls so there's an air gap. The roof panels overhang by a few inches but I've curved them down to stop anything driving in yet without reducing actual ventilation. I made them curve down by using string and pieces of wood on the side and just baler band tied tight around the overhang at the front.
The mistake I've made with the roof is that the slope isn't steep enough lengthways so some water doesn't run off. And when I wrapped it up for winter, I ended up attaching the roof to the sides so I could no longer lift one end to get rid of the water.
The main mistake I've made with the roof on the little extension (not on the photo) is that the material isn't rigid enough and water puddles in the middle. But also, the overhang isn't big enough and when I try to get rid of the water it showers into the run.

Would love to see the images...

 

[Jenni Hen]

Would love to see the images...

I'm struggling with the images. The one I uploaded has been trimmed at the top. I might need to take some more pics tomorrow (it's bedtime here in England)

 

[BDutch]

The reason some people do little or nothing is probably bc they live in a different climate without harsh and cold winters. Or these people have a type (breed) of chickens that can endure cold very well.

 

[Ted Brown]

I have a roofed run fully encased with HC. The 1st year I used a heavy Grey tarp to close off the south facing front; my flock would spend most of the daylight hours in their coop (also open front to the south) because that was where the sunlight came in.

2nd and subsequent years I used clear plastic in lieu of the tarp, flock now spends the majority of their time in the run, very much better. I do not free range, my birds avoid snow covered ground.

Good luck!

 

[Jenni Hen]

I'm struggling with the images. The one I uploaded has been trimmed at the top. I might need to take some more pics tomorrow (it's bedtime here in England)

It's been raining since I posted so no pics yet, sorry.
I'll clarify with my mistakes:
1. Doing the extension in a rush (because at some point this autumn/winter, avian flu will require all poultry to be housed and I wanted the extension done before my eye operation.)
2. Using material that's too flimsy (because I already had it).
3. Ted Brown;s post reminds me - yes my flock love the sunshine coming through the clear PVC panels, - but one day in Spring it got too warm so I removed the panels on the South side and laid them flat in a pile. When I came back later to stack them properly, the middle ones had distorted with the heat.

 

[sdm111]

Heat lamps have been known to cause fires. It's been documented on this website. There's also folks whom have wrapped the pens with plastic type wrap that has worked. @roosterhavoc