Ummm, couple issues I see here.
We use deep litter as well.
First, chicken poop is wet, when its cold, it freezes. But before it freezes, the liquid absorbs into the litter making it all wet. No amount of natural ventilation is going to stop your littler from turning into frozen blocks. When the sun hits it directly, even if temps are at -20, the litter will thaw and a bit of evaporation will occur. There is no getting around it, besides closing up your coop during the day, to keep the litter shaded and frozen.
I'm not saying to not ventilate, as you can almost never have too much, but it may not solve the issue at hand. You may still have moisture on the windows in the morning as the temps are going to rise from sunrise. What you need to do is go into the coop at about 3:30 AM and see if there is moisture then. If there is then you definitely need more ventilation. If there is not, you are seeing a brief period of thaw, as the sun rises and the birds stir and things naturally heat up, prior to letting them outside.
One thing we do to combat the wet litter is to add more to the bottom. It is heavier and tends to settle. By bringing it up first thing in the morning, the wind and sun will help dry and air it out. We rake the litter out from under the roosts, add fresh litter there and place the old on top to "off gas" during the day. We easily end up with 12" - 14" of litter in a three or four month period.
We have 24 birds in a 8x9 coop. I have cut extra holes into our coop, but before you make any additions, don't just blindly follow statements that you don't have enough ventilation, even though you probably don't. If you understand the problem, you will be better able to place the new ventilation so as to solve more than one problem. Without understanding the cause, source, and reason for the moisture, you may end up with a new hole, an old problem, and a husband who may be even less interested to help in the future.
I hope this does not sound harsh, it surely was not meant that way. Keep digging, the solution is just a little further...
I addressed this in this thread also --> https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/421122/think-its-too-cold-for-your-chickens-think-again/897
We use deep litter as well.
First, chicken poop is wet, when its cold, it freezes. But before it freezes, the liquid absorbs into the litter making it all wet. No amount of natural ventilation is going to stop your littler from turning into frozen blocks. When the sun hits it directly, even if temps are at -20, the litter will thaw and a bit of evaporation will occur. There is no getting around it, besides closing up your coop during the day, to keep the litter shaded and frozen.
I'm not saying to not ventilate, as you can almost never have too much, but it may not solve the issue at hand. You may still have moisture on the windows in the morning as the temps are going to rise from sunrise. What you need to do is go into the coop at about 3:30 AM and see if there is moisture then. If there is then you definitely need more ventilation. If there is not, you are seeing a brief period of thaw, as the sun rises and the birds stir and things naturally heat up, prior to letting them outside.
One thing we do to combat the wet litter is to add more to the bottom. It is heavier and tends to settle. By bringing it up first thing in the morning, the wind and sun will help dry and air it out. We rake the litter out from under the roosts, add fresh litter there and place the old on top to "off gas" during the day. We easily end up with 12" - 14" of litter in a three or four month period.
We have 24 birds in a 8x9 coop. I have cut extra holes into our coop, but before you make any additions, don't just blindly follow statements that you don't have enough ventilation, even though you probably don't. If you understand the problem, you will be better able to place the new ventilation so as to solve more than one problem. Without understanding the cause, source, and reason for the moisture, you may end up with a new hole, an old problem, and a husband who may be even less interested to help in the future.
I hope this does not sound harsh, it surely was not meant that way. Keep digging, the solution is just a little further...
I addressed this in this thread also --> https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/421122/think-its-too-cold-for-your-chickens-think-again/897
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