Ventilation - my insulated coop is too tight!

[chickiebird]

I'm hoping someone has some suggestions about adding ventilation to an insulated coop - it's snug and cozy, the water doesn't freeze even during -15c nights, with only the girls' body heat - but the walls and ceiling are wet, and beginning to grow white mold, which I'm havning trouble keeping ahead of. the coop is too tight. I do open their little chicken door most days to add some fresh air, but it isn't enough. Would a vent in the door with a bathroom fan pushing air out, plus another vent to let fresh air in work? Should I add a heat source as well? Help! It's almost tropical in there, and I know it's not good for my girls!

 

[ARose4Heaven]

Depending on the style of your coop... If it has eaves, get yourself a hole saw that cuts door knob sized holes... put a whole row of them just under the eaves and cover with hardware cloth.

If no eaves, get one of those Whirly fan thingys that mount on the roof.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1642-VENTILATION

Check out this page. It should help!

 

[teach1rusl]

Do you have pics of your coop??? As was mentioned, under the eaves is good. Whats the summer/winter highs and lows in your area too?? That would help with recommending the type of ventilation wanted.

 

[chickiebird]

I don't have a pic, but it's like a small house - pitched roof, eaves, window and door, and chicken door. In the summer I keep the window open (it's covered with heavy wire mesh!) but that would be too much draft in the winter. I'm in Nova Scotia - summers are usually around 20C-25C, and can get up to 30C, and winters typically run about -10C, but can go as low as -20C, with lots of wind and plenty of snow.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
REally simple. Cut holes in the walls... NOT with hole-saw bits (like for doorknob holes), those are way too small to do very much good, you want big ol' rectangular openings, like 4-12" high and as much of the length of the walls as you can manage. Securely attach hardwarecloth over them, and add flaps or something similar to let you close some of them part- or all-the-way as conditions require. This time of year, you want the vents ideally at the top of the wall on at least the usually-downwind side, more than one side is better.

You neither need nor want a powered fan. It will cause more problems than it solves, especially this time of year. Really really, passive ventilation through good-sized openings is the way to go.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
Generally you need vents as high as you can put them in the coop to let the warm, moist air out, such as ridge vents on the ridge of a gable roof, or vents up high on the gable ends. Further down you need some inlets, as others have said, the soffit area works good for pulling in fresh air. This creates a good convection current that lets that moisture out. No, it won't be as warm though, maybe not even warm enough to keep the water thawed. You have to ventilate to get that moisture out of the coop though, even if it means sacrificing a lot of the heat.