The graph shows the temperature in the chicken coop, the temperature of the air in the vent pipe coming from the biomeiler, and the temperature of the outdoor air. The electrical energy usage is shown for any days when the electric heater was used. The scale is the same, but the units are in kWh.
Once, again, we went a month without using any electric heat. All month long, the biomeiler warmed the outdoor air enough that the fresh air coming in through the vent entered the coop close to the desired coop temperature. The body heat from the birds often was able to keep the coop temperature above 50F all month.
Again, the results are not too exciting when we look at the temperature of the outdoor air. March was quite a warm month. It was mostly between 30 and 40F.
Two issues have coincided inconveniently: the coop is now usually in the 50s and we have to use sawdust for bedding instead of shavings.
When the coop is in the 50s, the moisture can easily migrate through the bedding, but does not evaporate into the air too easily. Fresh bedding has to be added more frequently than when the coop is warmer or colder.
In the fall, we usually get two trailer loads of shavings from Northland Wood to use as bedding during the winter. This fall, there was a bad rain and snow storm which saturated their shavings pile before I could stockpile enough to last the whole winter. We ran out of wood shavings a little while ago and they will only have sawdust until summer. Sawdust does not work as well as shavings. The birds love to scratch in the bedding and the sawdust quickly gets mixed into the soiled litter. Fresh shavings tend to stay on top longer. Also, shavings absorb more water than sawdust, which keeps the coop drier.
The net result of the two issues is that I am adding fresh bedding more often and in greater volume to keep the birds clean and dry. When it comes time to clean out the coop there will be a massive amount of used litter for the next biomeiler iteration.
