Adding ventilation

[kcal]

Essentially - we have a 12x8 shed for our coop. When putting our thoughts together for design, I was a little unsure of the best way to incorporate ventilation because the coop sits between our post frame building and our timber so I wasn’t sure how the wind would end up being a factor. We wound up just making two small cutouts near the “peak” on both ends of the shed to start and planned on adding more once we had a better idea of how the building and timber may/may not block airflow. Well - I should have started paying closer attention sooner because before I knew it, our little chickies were ready to move out to their permanent home. This shouldn’t have been a huge issue because temps are usually mild this time of year, but wouldn’t it figure...we got two days of way above average temps.

I had already included a solution to daytime stuffiness for summer. The front gate of an old outdoor dog kennel fits just perfectly in the doorway of the double doors on the front. We can latch the double doors open during the day and allow a lot of airflow with the gate in place. However, this doesn’t offer the appropriate amount of ventilation at night or in the winter when the double doors can’t be left open due to predators or it being too cold.

I am including a couple photos for a visual. I’m looking to see if anyone has any suggestions for adding to/improving the ventilation of our setup. The two nights of above average temps didn’t seem to cause any stress for our chickens, but it did feel stuffy when I opened the doors up first thing in the morning so I want to get this rectified before the temps go up again. Additional FYI - we are in the midwest...western IL. Summers can have some very hot/humid stretches, and we can also get brutally cold in the winter. I thought about trying to predator-proof the dog kennel gate (hopefully you can see it in the photo) so the doors can be left open at night when needed, but I feel that would leave it open too much in cold weather. I also like that the dog kennel gate can easily be removed so I can just pull up the tractor with the loader and scoop dirty litter into it when it needs to be changed out.

 

[CoopsNPoops]

First, i just wanna say I'm jealous! I want a utility shed for a coop so badly. I go to buy one so many times and i just cant make myself spend 3 grand on something for chickens to crap in, lol. I will eventually, i just have to actually talk myself into it. When i get my utility shed, i am going to install electric vents in the ceiling. Theyre fairly cheap and would help alot with the stiff humid midwest temperatures. Ya know, like the exhaust fans in most bathrooms. I also to plan to have windows on both sides of the shed. I am in southeast Missouri, so we have pretty much the same weather. Keeping the windows open on nights it isn't raining will help alot. As for modifying your shed, i would add ventilation along the top of the back. That way when the window is open, you will get a nice circulation breeze. The small vents on the sides, i find they're about worthless. Maybe consider making them much larger. Depending on how much you are willing to cut and modify your shed, i can see alot of ways to add adequate ventilation. I see an extension cord maybe? Adding a fan in there will really help with the window open at night while you preditor proof and add ventilation. Those sheds can get brutally hot in the summer and our temps are only gonna go up from here on out.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC.

You're right, you're going to need to add a LOT of ventilation that can be left open 24/7/365 -- one square foot per hen.

Do you have photos of the interior construction?

One of the advantages of a shed conversion is the height -- allowing you to open up big sections of the gables and the tops of the walls with the ventilation well over the birds' heads. The trick is figuring out how to extend the roof overhangs to protect the vents from rain.

 

[kcal]

First, i just wanna say I'm jealous! I want a utility shed for a coop so badly. I go to buy one so many times and i just cant make myself spend 3 grand on something for chickens to crap in, lol. I will eventually, i just have to actually talk myself into it. When i get my utility shed, i am going to install electric vents in the ceiling. Theyre fairly cheap and would help alot with the stiff humid midwest temperatures. Ya know, like the exhaust fans in most bathrooms. I also to plan to have windows on both sides of the shed. I am in southeast Missouri, so we have pretty much the same weather. Keeping the windows open on nights it isn't raining will help alot. As for modifying your shed, i would add ventilation along the top of the back. That way when the window is open, you will get a nice circulation breeze. The small vents on the sides, i find they're about worthless. Maybe consider making them much larger. Depending on how much you are willing to cut and modify your shed, i can see alot of ways to add adequate ventilation. I see an extension cord maybe? Adding a fan in there will really help with the window open at night while you preditor proof and add ventilation. Those sheds can get brutally hot in the summer and our temps are only gonna go up from here on out.

Honestly - I got very lucky that my husband (not a carpenter) is EXTREMELY handy and also creative. Between that and having a close friend who operates his own sawmill, as well as some leftover supplies from another project, we saved a ton of money constructing the shed.
We placed the two vents mainly so there was at least somewhere for hot air to escape - since our coop is sandwiched between the timber and our pole barn, we didn’t figure there will be much of a cross breeze to justify cutting large vents in those sides.
The extension cord can’t stay unfortunately. We haven’t run electricity to the pole barn yet, so the extension cord is 3 cords daisy-linked together running all the way from our house. It is just powering a regular utility light so I can see to check on the girls before I go to bed while they get used to their new home. I am looking into some sort of exhaust fan though to blow hot air out. I saw that they make solar powered ones! So that might be a good option to maximize airflow once I get some more ventilation put in.

 

[kcal]

Welcome to BYC.

You're right, you're going to need to add a LOT of ventilation that can be left open 24/7/365 -- one square foot per hen.

Do you have photos of the interior construction?

One of the advantages of a shed conversion is the height -- allowing you to open up big sections of the gables and the tops of the walls with the ventilation well over the birds' heads. The trick is figuring out how to extend the roof overhangs to protect the vents from rain.

I don’t have any photos of the interior right now, but I can try to get some later today. The inside is fairly simple. You can see the exterior access of the nest boxes - those are the only thing on that wall aside from the small vent. The roosts are on the opposite wall - just 2x4’s running almost the entire length of that wall constructed “ladder-style”. Feeder and waterer are hanging along the wall with the pop door - between the pop door and the wall with the nest boxes. These can be moved if needed.

I was thinking about putting ventilation along the top of the back wall, pretty much the whole length of the wall (maybe stopping before the roosts?), 1 foot tall. Then make a wooden “awning” over the top to protect from rain. Possibly do it in two sections and install it with hinges so one or both can be closed temporarily if absolutely necessary for weather. I could then cut something else in the upper panels of the double doors so the air will be able to flow better. I’m just a little unsure how to do that part and create rain protection without it looking horribly tacky

Would that be enough for 16 chickens? I’m not sure if I need to add more on the sides or lower. The coop faces west. It is sandwiched between our pole barn (to the south) and timber (to the north). It doesn’t seem there’s going to be much of a cross breeze since those will block a lot of it, so I’m not sure if I’d get much benefit from more ventilation on the sides but not opposed to adding more if necessary. The pole barn provides shade for the majority of the day, which will help in the summer.

 

[Mellowmalt]

looks great so far. So add a vent somehwere at the bottom too but not too close to where they sleep.

Hot air risesand will escape out the vents at the top so if you want to take advantage of this air movement which occurs every night then add a vent near floor level, the ground under the coop will be coolest and hot air the chickens produce will rise sucking this cold air in as it escapes out the top.
Without an intake at the bottom the hot air will just circulate at the bottom and the only exchange of air will happen between the two vents at the top.

You don't want to add too much that it gets drafty in winter - maybe you will find that having additional vents that can be closed off in winter might be good. In summer you want as much air to be exhanged as possible and in winter not so much that they start getting too cold.

 

[aart]

Yeah, those two gable vents are not near enough.
Are the eave soffits open?
That's the first thing to do.

Oh, and.... Welcome to BYC! @kcal
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[kcal]

Yeah, those two gable vents are not near enough.
Are the eave soffits open?
That's the first thing to do.

Oh, and.... Welcome to BYC! @kcal
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 2647277

No, the eave soffits are not open. I’ll talk to my husband and see what we need to do to make that happen. I knew we needed more ventilation than the gable vents - just needed to figure out airflow between the pole barn and timber and time got the better of me

We are located in western IL. I’ll see if I can add that to my profile. Typical midwest weather...windy in the spring, hot and humid summers, mild in the fall, and can have bitter cold winters. Typically we only get the extremes of hot and cold for short stints at a time, but it is still a factor.

 

[aart]

just needed to figure out airflow between the pole barn and timber

Not seeing these things in the pics above?

 

[kcal]

Not seeing these things in the pics above?

The coop faces west. The pole barn is south of the coop...about 10 feet off the side. The timber is north. You can see the start of the trees in the photos. They get much thicker just a few feet north of what is seen in the photos.