# Coop and Drafts



## Love My Chickies (Jun 25, 2021)

I have a question regarding my coop. I live in the hot and humid area of Houston, so my coop is completely open on each end with hardware cloth (east and west facing). I really don't want to cover the end/s until absolutely necessary. How cold is too cold of a draft before I need to cover it?


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

Install a tarp on each of the ends. Simply roll it all the up and use small bungee cords to secure it. Watch your weather on TV and when there's a cold front coming your way with windy cold temps behind it, drop the tarps down covering the ends and secure the tarp with more small bungee cords. Easy peasy.
I do the same on my carport pen and other pens during the winter just before a cold front rolls through, including when it rains.


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## Love My Chickies (Jun 25, 2021)

Any idea at what temperature to lower them?


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

I live in northeast Florida. Any time we get a cold front pushing through with 40-45 degree temps or lower, I drop the tarps because the wind chill factor will be much lower in the 30's or even lower. Here's some pics for you to give you an idea what it looks like. Currently I have the tarps lowered to prevent rain from getting in the carport pen. I rolled one of the tarps up and secured it with the bungee cords to give you an idea what it looks like. The others that are rolled half way down block rains coming from any direction out of the north. I did that for show and tell lol.
On the other side of the carport pen, all of the tarps are lowered all the way down because most of the rain we get comes from any direction out of the south, it is the southside of the pen. At the front of the pen on either side of the door is shade cloth. It faces west. The metal panels around the base of the pen prevent the chickens from kicking sand out of the pen. Hardware cloth is attached to the chicken wire about even with the metal panels. Field fence is in place as an apron around the pen like the other pens. 
The first pic is the south side of the pen with all tarps lowered. The rest are of the north side of the pen. I hope you can see where the bungee cords are located on the rolled up tarp:


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## Animals45 (May 11, 2021)

I would probably start covering it when it get's down to the 40's. What will you be using to cover it up? You might want to add a few extra heat lamps also.


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## imnukensc (Dec 5, 2020)

Heat lamps would be totally unnecessary in Houston, TX. It would be rare, if ever even needed, to heat the chickens water. Most commonly kept breeds are well adapted for much colder weather than there.


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## Animals45 (May 11, 2021)

\


imnukensc said:


> Heat lamps would be totally unnecessary in Houston, TX. It would be rare, if ever even needed, to heat the chickens water. Most commonly kept breeds are well adapted for much colder weather than there.


Oh sorry didn't know she lived in Texas I recently lived in Texas about 4 years ago but moved to Oklahoma. It was very hot down there 102 degrees so humid also which made everything worse.. I remember 1 of my chickens dying while laying a egg it was so hot.


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## Love My Chickies (Jun 25, 2021)

Animals45 said:


> I would probably start covering it when it get's down to the 40's. What will you be using to cover it up? You might want to add a few extra heat lamps also.


I think I'll try the tarp idea mentioned above. No heat, though.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

Love My Chickies said:


> I think I'll try the tarp idea mentioned above. No heat, though.


I've seen the pics of your coop. It would be very easy to rig up a couple of tarps for your set up. Tarps and bungee cords are cheap. You wont need a large tarp neither.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

What I'm going to do once the temps drop is install hooks around the upper part of my pens to hang the tarps from.


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## dawg53 (Aug 25, 2015)

robin416 said:


> What I'm going to do once the temps drop is install hooks around the upper part of my pens to hang the tarps from.


Clip type hooks like for a shower curtain would work. Regular hooks wouldnt work if it's windy, the tarps would blow off and away they go lol.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Not if they're hooked at the bottom with bungies.


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## lovely_chooks (Mar 19, 2021)

Cover it when it’s super windy and -20 degrees


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## Animals45 (May 11, 2021)

lovely_chooks said:


> Cover it when it’s super windy and -20 degrees


It never get's that cold in Texas, maybe in other states but not Texas


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## lovely_chooks (Mar 19, 2021)

Animals45 said:


> It never get's that cold in Texas, maybe in other states but not Texas


Ok bht like this winter is supposed to be freezing cold.


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## Animals45 (May 11, 2021)

lovely_chooks said:


> Ok bht like this winter is supposed to be freezing cold.


You are looking at your weather most likely...
Love My Chickies is in Texas.
I looked at the monthly weather in her place and the Lowest it gets in December is 40 degrees.


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## Love My Chickies (Jun 25, 2021)

Animals45 said:


> You are looking at your weather most likely...
> Love My Chickies is in Texas.
> I looked at the monthly weather in her place and the Lowest it gets in December is 40 degrees.


Mostly yes, but we do have our occasional nights in the 20s or teens.


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## Animals45 (May 11, 2021)

Love My Chickies said:


> Mostly yes, but we do have our occasional nights in the 20s or teens.


Oh I used to live near Houston, TX and it never got that low.


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