Advise on Coop Ventilation

[paruhna1]

Hello Everyone!!

I am hoping someone would give me some advise on the ventilation of my chicken coop. My coop is 4'x4' and has an approximate ceiling height of 5' to the peak in the center. I have a 24"x18" sliding window on one side, only the bottom half opens leaving a 12"x18" opening with a screen and also hardware cloth on the inside, this window is about 4" off of the floor level. Other than that I have two 4" pod vents at the peak on both sides. The coop is kind of set back into a wooded an brushy area which is great for shade plus it does get a little sun as well pending on the time of day and what light comes through the trees, but unfortunately the wind does not go through there enough to cause good ventilation due to the brush and trees. I have four chickens in the coop with an attached run. My thought is to add an exhaust fan at the peak of the wall that is opposite of the window so basically air would get sucked in and then up and out the exhaust. My concern though is would this be creating a draft that would hurt the chickens in the winter time? The roost is approximately 3' of the floor, and being only a 4'x4' coop I think they will feel and draft coming through. Any suggestions and advise is greatly appreciated!!

Thanks!!

 

[PatchtoTable]

Pic would help?

How cold does it get in winter?

 

[TerryH]

It's very helpful to know your general location/climate. You can add that in your profile. Generally accepted numbers for proper ventilation are 1 sq.ft. of permanent ventilation per chicken. That ventilation needs to be above their head when they are roosting so they are not in the draft. The low to high ventilation will be great for warm weather but you will need to provide higher ventilation for cold weather if your climate gets cold.

 

[paruhna1]

I'm sorry I should have posted my location....I live in Wisconsin and it can get down to negative 20+ degrees some days in the winter time. Here are two pics of where I am at right now with the coop, it is not 100% complete but close. There is also no ventilation on the nesting box side either...maybe that would be a good idea??? Thank you!!

 

[TerryH]

Interior pics? Depending on how the roosts are situated it would probably be easiest to open up the upper portion of the gable ends. I'd cut some triangular holes in the siding and cover with 1/2" hardware cloth. You should be able to get enough ventilation doing that.

 

[paruhna1]

Thank you for the input so far!! Here are some interior pics.

 

[TerryH]

Nice!! Opening up those gable ends looks like the best spot to me.

 

[paruhna1]

TerryH - thank you for your input!! I agree, I'm going to cut the triangles in the ends and see what that does. Thanks again!!