How to Prepare Chicken Coops for Winter in 6 Steps

Reader Contribution by Jennifer Poindexter and Morning Chores
Published on October 26, 2016

Having a coop full of chickens can be great. Some people breed chickens as a hobby, while others have chickens for the fresh eggs and the fresh meat. Whatever your reasons are for having a coop, you need to keep them warm and safe during the cold, winter months. Chickens are very strong birds. As long as they have food, water, and a solid structure for shelter, they can make it through the winter.

If you want to keep your chickens happy, healthy, and laying eggs, you would need to know how to winterize your coop to prepare it for the cold, wind, and snow. This will provide your chickens a warm, draft free, and clean environment for the chickens.

1. Clean the Coop

The first thing that you want to do is clean out you chicken coop before the winter. You should remove any dishes, removable nest boxes, perches, and any other accessories that you have in the coop.

Next, use scrubbers and scrapers to clean all of the droppings off the inside of the coop and on the accessories. You should clean everything with an industrial strength cleaner or you can create your own vinegar and water solution. While you are cleaning, you should inspect all of your accessories. If your dishes are cracked or if your perches are worn, it is a good time to replace them. After you have cleaned everything, you should put it in the sun to let it dry.

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