Converted playhouse - Ventilation?

[AllSeasonAustralorps]

Hello, welcome to BYC. I seem to have missed this thread yesterday.

Is the playhouse still used by small children? If so, you'll need to be extremely diligent about sanitation and handwashing because the chicken poop dust will get on everything.

Yes, there is a lot of scaremongering about Salmonella and Campylobacter, but they *do* exist and our beloved backyard chickens *can* transmit them to our families, especially young children who put everything in their mouths.



No. Cutting circular holes with even a good-sized hole saw adds square inches when what you need is square feet.

Top-hinged windows/vent covers over openings covered in hardware cloth are better because they act as their own awnings and can be adjusted to suit the current conditions.

I agree that under the slide is a good place for a vent.

Thank you for the response. The kids know that after they touch/help with the chickens they need to wash their hands, but that being said, I didn’t even think about the dust. I was going to do deep bedding

I will look to put a vent in beneath the slide. I’m assuming that I should place it high up near their roof line? Any vent that you would recommend?

I’m also going to look to move the hinges on the side window to the top. That window will be within the run which will be running parallel to the slide. I am looking to put an angled roof on the run to help with snow.

I’m debating if I should try to do the same with the one next to the slide as well, but I like that it offers a lot of airflow opening more like a door.

 

[Folly's place]

The playhouse floor will absolutely need to be solid, because the coop dust will rise up and is very bad to breathe. I'm not sure that will be enough to keep the dust out of the playhouse, given the amount of upper ventilation your birds will need.
Mary

 

[3KillerBs]

I will look to put a vent in beneath the slide. I’m assuming that I should place it high up near their roof line? Any vent that you would recommend?

Just cut as big a square/rectangle as you can fit out of the siding and cover it with hardware cloth.

IMO, with kids around you should definitely cover all hardware cloth edges with trim boards to protect the kids from getting cut on the sharp metal.

 

[AllSeasonAustralorps]

Just cut as big a square/rectangle as you can fit out of the siding and cover it with hardware cloth.

IMO, with kids around you should definitely cover all hardware cloth edges with trim boards to protect the kids from getting cut on the sharp metal.

Leave it to me to make it more complicated than needed. Haha. I can do that - and good point with the edges.

 

[AllSeasonAustralorps]

The playhouse floor will absolutely need to be solid, because the coop dust will rise up and is very bad to breathe. I'm not sure that will be enough to keep the dust out of the playhouse, given the amount of upper ventilation your birds will need.
Mary

 

[AllSeasonAustralorps]

Thank you! I will look to change that with the addition of the other ventilation. The initial plan was to use the top of the playhouse for the conversion, but all of a sudden the kids “use the slide all the time”

 

[aart]

Just cut as big a square/rectangle as you can fit out of the siding and cover it with hardware cloth.

...and you'll need to protect it from rain and snowfall.

 

[3KillerBs]

...and you'll need to protect it from rain and snowfall.

The theory is that the slide will act as an awning -- but if weather *does* get in then a top-hinged cover ought to do the trick.