Coop problem?

[LaurenRitz]

The new coop faces East. There are 14 adult birds, eight 9 week old chicks, plenty of roost space, and 2 nesting boxes for 5 pullets, only one of them laying. Two birds, the one laying pullet and the oldest cockerel, prefer to sleep on the roof.

All summer they have used the roosting bars, fighting over who gets the highest position.

Fine so far. However, winter is now in full swing, winds as much as 50 mph blowing through the coop either from the high vent when the wind comes from West or North, or through the hardware cloth door and the low vent when the wind comes from South or East.

The birds have stopped using the roosting bars entirely, and all attempt to crowd into the nesting boxes, which are protected from the wind, being low and on the enclosed South side.

At least, that's why I suspect they've changed their habits. None of them will speak up to confirm it.

My thought is to switch the roosting bars to the protected South side and shift the nesting boxes to the North. I could also open up the broody box on the South, which was made with a removable hardware cloth wall between it and the main coop. The problem being that it is much harder to clean.

I don't want to make other changes to the broody box, as it will eventually be needed for its main purpose.

I'm not sure how to block the wind without eliminating all the ventilation.

Any other suggestions?

 

[Yakisugi Coop]

You definitely need to protect them from winter drafts. Winter ventilation should just be up high in coop, well above their heads when roosting.

 

[saysfaa]

I'm guessing the dimensions by comparing to the ladder. If I guessed right, I would leave the bottom half to two thirds of the front wall and of the doors open and close the roof and other three sides, including eaves. That should give you about 30-40 sq ft of ventilation with no drafts. If I guessed too big, I'm not sure this will work well.

The moisture will rise with the warm air of their breath and such which pulls fresh air in along the bottom which pushes the cooling warm air out the top of the opening. Since the opening is big enough, the airflow is too slow to be a draft.

Actually, I'd move that open part up a foot and put a board across the doors to keep 8-12" of bedding in the coop.

 

[linguini]

In addition to take care of the draft, is it possible to close the nesting box or put a barrier at dawn and open later at night after they have all roosted?

 

[KyCoop]

Can we have pics of the inside? It looks like you don't have any overhead ventilation. Just doors and windows.

 

[LaurenRitz]

There is a foot-wide strip of hardware cloth along the top in the back. No windows at all on the sides.

The plan was a chimney effect, pulling cooler air from the bottom front, carrying moisture out the top in back. With wind blasting through at 25 to 50 mph, that does not appear to be happening. It worked perfectly until the winter winds hit.

My concern is not the nesting boxes. They can be moved, reconfigured, whatever. Roosts can be moved, although I put them there for a reason.

The broody box is behind the screen at the end.

 

[rosemarythyme]

There is a foot-wide strip of hardware cloth along the top in the back. No windows at all on the sides.View attachment 3992962

So the roosts are the branches on the right side of this photo? How high are the nests in comparison? You could try dropping the roosts a good foot or so if the nests aren't too high off the ground.

Otherwise without seeing the nests... if they're favoring that location for "roosting" then swapping the roosts over there could work as well, though you still need to be mindful of the heights of each element.

 

[LaurenRitz]

The sticks are just part of the roosts. The other part stretches along the wall under the large "window," about a foot off the ground. You can see the end of it to the right in the last picture.

I put the roost low because I have big birds. Do you think the relative heights are part of why they switched?

The black plant pots are the nesting boxes. The pullets didn't like them when they were on their sides so I set them upright to create a more nestish feel. Turning them back over might prevent the birds roosting on top of them.

 

[rosemarythyme]

The sticks are just part of the roosts. The other part stretches along the wall under the large "window," about a foot off the ground. You can see the end of it to the right in the last picture.

I put the roost low because I have big birds. Do you think the relative heights are part of why they switched?

The black plant pots are the nesting boxes. The pullets didn't like them when they were on their sides so I set them upright to create a more nestish feel. Turning them back over might prevent the birds roosting on top of them.

In regards to heights, possibly? While it would be better for larger birds to roost low, they don't always do what's best for their legs, so they might want those roosts slightly higher.

Otherwise might just do a seasonal change and put the roost across where the black pots are, and the pots elsewhere, as I doubt you're planning to brood at this time of year, so temporarily blocking the brooding area should be ok.

 

[LaurenRitz]

I moved the front vent up high and turned the nesting boxes back on their sides. Some fussing, but a few of the birds moved back to the roosts. We'll see what happens next time there's a storm.

None of them settled in the nesting boxes, so maybe.