Do You Need a Chicken Coop Heater? Probably Not — Here’s Why

If you want to start a fight in an online chicken forum, go ahead and ask this one (seemingly) simple question: Should you put a heater in your chicken coop?

Many parts of the country are having a particularly cold winter this year, and if you’re raising chickens, you may be wondering if they need supplemental heat when the temperature drops. However, the topic of coop heaters is particularly contentious in the chicken world — some people swear by them, while other people rail against them.

Personally, I have a middle-of-the-ground stance on chicken coop heaters. For most flocks, I don’t think they’re necessary, but there are some instances when you may need to consider using one. Here are my two cents on when you need a chicken coop heater, as well as some alternative methods for keeping a chicken coop warm in the winter.

You (Generally) Don’t Need a Chicken Coop Heater

For the vast majority of chicken owners, I don’t believe a chicken coop heater is necessary, even if you live in a colder climate. I’ve been raising chickens for more than five years in New England, and we’ve never used any type of heat source in our coop.

Here are three of the main reasons that I don’t recommend putting a heater in your chicken coop:

1. It’s a Fire Hazard

The biggest reason that you shouldn’t put a heater in your chicken coop is that it’s a major fire hazard. A combination of heat + flammable bedding is a disaster waiting to happen — especially if you’re using a traditional heat lamp. I’ve heard about too many tragic coop fires to ever want to take that risk with my own flock.

2. Your Birds (Probably) Don’t Need It

When people ask me if chickens get cold in the winter, I like to point out that there are plenty of wild birds — including pheasants and turkeys — that happily live outdoors all winter long. They don’t even have an enclosure to sleep in, nevermind a heater!

Just like wild birds, chickens can fluff up their feathers to trap their body heat — their body temperature is a toasty 106°F — and they will huddle together on roosting bars to keep warm. The majority of chicken breeds are surprisingly cold-hardy, and they’ll be just fine in their coop overnight, even if the temperatures dip below 0°F.

However, there are some specialty chicken breeds that aren’t cold-hardy, such as bantams, silkies, and frizzles. If you have these types of chickens, you may need to provide supplemental heat for your birds — see the section down below for more details!

3. It Can Do More Harm Than Good

You might be thinking to yourself, “Well, it can’t hurt to put a heater in the coop,” but that’s actually not true. In addition to it being a fire risk, providing supplemental warmth often prevents your chickens from acclimating to cold temperatures, which can be detrimental to your flock if their supplementary warmth is ever taken away.

Chicken coop heaters run on electricity, and if you lose power during a winter storm, your birds won’t be used to the cold temperatures. In these situations, your birds may get sick, stressed, or potentially even die if the weather is cold enough. It’s better to let them get accustomed to your local climate so they can handle temperature fluctuations.

Here’s When You Might Need a Chicken Coop Heater

I wish I could tell you that you never, ever need a chicken coop heater, but as with many things in life, it’s not so black-and-white. There are some cases where supplementary heat may be necessary in your coop — here’s why.

Your Chicken Breeds Aren’t Cold-Hardy

Most full-sized, fully feathered chicken breeds are cold-hardy, meaning they have no problem living in colder climates. However, as I mentioned above, there are some chickens that aren’t winter-hardy and need more meticulous care in cold weather.

A few common breeds that may not be able to withstand cold temperatures include:

• Silkies: While adorable with their fluffy coats, silkies are fairly sensitive to being wet and/or cold. Their feathers don’t trap heat as well as other chickens, and their fluffy feet may get frostbite if wet.
• Bantams: Due to their smaller body size, bantam chicken breeds may have trouble staying warm in particularly cold weather. This also holds true for other small chicken breeds like Seremas.
• Frizzles: Because of their unique feather patterns, frizzled chickens aren’t able to trap heat against their bodies as effectively as other breeds.

If you have these or another specialty chicken breed, I’d encourage you to do some research about proper winter care for your birds. If they’re not listed as cold-tolerant or cold-hardy, you may need to provide some type of supplemental heat in their coop. Some people alternatively bring their birds into a more sheltered location — such as a basement or garage — during particularly cold weather.

You Live Somewhere Really, Really Cold

As mentioned, I live in New England, where our temperatures regularly drop below 0°F in the winter, and we’ve never had any problems losing birds to the cold. As long as your coop is draft-free and your chickens are able to get out of the wind and snow, they should be OK in single-digit and even negative temperatures. Really.

That said, you may want to consider supplemental heat in the instance of extreme cold — I’m talking less than -10°F for extended periods of time. Even then, I’d recommend avoiding a heater unless absolutely necessary. I’ve listed a few other options for insulating your coop below that are safer for your birds.

How to Keep Chickens Warm in the Winter

Just like other birds, most chickens are able to keep themselves warm in cold weather by fluffing up and huddling together for warmth. However, there are a few easy ways you can help keep their coop a bit warmer in the winter:

Double Check for Drafts

One of the most important ways to keep your chicken coop warm in the winter is to eliminate any drafts, which are currents of cold air that blow through the space. Drafts often occur under doors, around the edges of windows, or between cracks in the siding, and if there’s a breeze blowing across your chickens at night, it can be detrimental to their health.

How do you check for drafts? It sounds a little crazy, but I’ve actually closed myself inside my chicken coop on a windy day to double-check that there are no drafts getting in. (If your coop locks automatically, be sure to have someone there to let you out!) If you feel a breeze blowing through the space, find where it’s coming from and plug it up.

Insulate the Coop and/or Run

If there’s cold weather in the forecast, there are a few ways you can insulate your chicken coop and/or run to keep your birds a bit warmer. Many people will stack hay bales around the walls of their coops for added insulation — as an added bonus, your birds will like pecking at the bugs and seeds in the hay. However, if you’re going to use true “insulation,” which contains fiberglass, be sure it’s completely covered so your chickens can’t eat it.

I also like to insulate the run to give my flock somewhere to get away from the wind and snow during the winter. We currently use polycarbonate sheets — the same material used to make greenhouses — screwed to the walls, but in the past, we’ve put up polyethylene sheeting. It’s a bit more work to install and more prone to ripping, but it’s less expensive and gets the job done.

Provide Wider Roosting Bars

If you’ve noticed frostbite on your chicken’s toes, you may want to switch to wider roosting bars. Many people recommend using 2×4 lumber on its side, so your chickens have 3+ inches of space to perch on at night. This allows their feet to remain flat, and they can sit down more readily, covering their toes with their feathers for warmth.

Use the Deep Litter Method

Another way to generate heat in your chicken coop is to practice the deep litter method. In a nutshell, you don’t clean the bedding out your coop during the winter months — instead, just add a layer of clean bedding on top as needed.

As the layer builds up, it acts as insulation on the floor and also creates heat as the material decomposes. If done properly, it won’t smell, but the downside is that you’ll have a thick layer of compost to shovel out of the coop come spring.

Give Extra Carbs at Night

On particularly cold winter nights, I give my flock a few scoops of cracked corn to eat before bed. Because it’s much higher in carbs than their regular pellets, their bodies have to work a bit harder to break down the food, which helps generate body heat during the night. Plus, they love it! Just keep in mind that it should only be used to supplement their regular food — not replace it.