SO is it better to have a rooster?
Or is it better not to.
I dont want to breed chickens, I dont want to make broody hens and I sure in the blazes dont want a crower as my neighbor down the road has over 6 roosters free-ranging and crow willy nilly.
How can I tell if this one "bird" is a rooster. its a EE and the comb doesnt look like the definite pullet.
Roosters will have thicker legs, more upright builds, and develop combs many weeks earlier than their pullet counterparts. I've had birds that I thought were roos early on, but when they began laying eggs and really maturing (at about 16 weeks), I realized I had all hens.
There are benefits to a rooster, but judging by this thread, none of them apply to you. Roosters provide protection to a flock (and even order to a degree). You won't get a nasty hen with a rooster because the rooster is clearly the alpha of the flock. Roosters also allow for breeding, which you explicitly stated that you do not want.
As for the downsides of roosters, they can be very aggressive (to both owner and hen), they eat a ton (and produce nothing), and they are loud. Roosters are generally not allowed in most towns, as I know for a fact that my neighborhood does not allow them, generally because of noise problems. If your hens are in an enclosed/protected area, then a rooster's protective services are meaningless to you. They can be a hassle if you are not looking to breed. Roosters in no way, shape or form contribute to better egg production.
As stated earlier, light has the largest influence on a hens laying habits, so if you want more production through the winter then I would look into artificial lighting. Glad to hear your production returned to a higher level. Chickens are finicky. They react to minor changes pretty often. Maybe the faux eggs were a noticeable change for them.
Chickens are a constant learning experience. You must take everything you hear with a slight grain of salt. I'm convinced that no two birds are the same, let alone any two flocks. I love learning about these birds, and one thing that I've learned (as you mentioned before), is not to overreact or overthink situations. Generally there is always a way to figure the birds out, and if not, then you chalk it up to the unpredictability of the chickens!
