coop sides- use wire or wood panels? very hot in the summer!

[asteria01]

as stated, it gets very very hot in the summer here, easily over 100 F. would it be more beneficial to make a coop with wired sides enforced with wood support so that there would more ventilation or just keep the sides wood paneled for safety? the chickens would ideally free roam the yard during the day and go back in the coop at night to sleep, but theres no garauntee that they would be getting out early in the day before it gets super hot, and i wouldnt want them to overheat in there before we let them out. it will be in partial shade. there will be around 6 chickens in the coop.

 

[Judy]

Wire. 100F is about their upper limit. To survive your climate, they will require lots of breeze, shade and fresh water. My coop is essentially a prevailing breezeway and I run a box fan all summer. Here is a great thread about other setups for hot climates:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/163417/please-show-me-your-hot-weather-coops

Good luck!

 

[RWD]

Personally, I would use a short solid wall on the bottom (24"-36") and then wire on the upper portion of the wall. Heat will rise and go out while still offering the most protection. And I agree a box fan works wonders......

 

[asteria01]

i see... thanks guys! im a total newbie, first time building a coop. do you recommend deep bed litter for it? ive read that the temperature can actually rise when using this method...

oh and in my area i doubt i will see foxes.. its a suburban area without any wilderness. but i definitely have seen opossums. best way for protection against opossums? we have cats so they dont seem to actually come into our yard and we dont have food lying about, but they do sit on the fences and staarrrree their dark little beady eyes into our place.

 

[aart]

i see... thanks guys! im a total newbie, first time building a coop. do you recommend deep bed litter for it? ive read that the temperature can actually rise when using this method...

oh and in my area i doubt i will see foxes.. its a suburban area without any wilderness. but i definitely have seen opossums. best way for protection against opossums? we have cats so they dont seem to actually come into our yard and we dont have food lying about, but they do sit on the fences and staarrrree their dark little beady eyes into our place.

Stray dogs and raccoons might be your worst predators....1/2" hardware cloth, well attached, with an apron around the bottom.

 

[Blooie]

I wonder why a person in hot climates couldn't combine wire for summer with solid panels for winter. I mean, you could put cleats on both sides of each corner post of coop. Paint plywood or that siding stuff whatever color you want your coop to be, or leave it plain if that suits your fancy. Then during the hot months of the year you could leave it open, just the wire. In the colder months you could have one person on each side of the solid panels, lift them up and then slide them down into the cleats for a closed coop, leaving open wire at the top for ventilation.

edited to add: I didn't explain that very well even though I can see the whole thing so clearly in my mind. By cleats, I guess I mean runners, like those we use as tracks for sliding pop doors or the ones that side opening garage doors use for sliding tracks.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

as stated, it gets very very hot in the summer here, easily over 100 F. would it be more beneficial to make a coop with wired sides enforced with wood support so that there would more ventilation or just keep the sides wood paneled for safety? the chickens would ideally free roam the yard during the day and go back in the coop at night to sleep, but theres no garauntee that they would be getting out early in the day before it gets super hot, and i wouldnt want them to overheat in there before we let them out. it will be in partial shade. there will be around 6 chickens in the coop.

I disagree about the survival issue. Chickens can tolerate hot weather, but direct and unrelenting Sunshine can kill a fully grown hen or rooster in 5 minutes or less. Use a combination of wire and solid panels so that you always have shade regardless of where the Sun is.

 

[CountryChic479]

We have our coop constructed out of both small square wire (super reinforced and attached both on the exterior and interior to where the squares don't line up perfectly/ visually and thereby create an inner second barrier of protection for the flock) as well as partial wood panels on 2 of the 4 sides which are permanent. This gives them shade, sun, breeze, and allows heat to escape. A fan hung from a ceiling rafter is also a must for us. Heat is bad, but it's the humidity that is worse. I do everything I can to keep them safe during super hot days.

Because our coop is half wire, During the winter we DID utilize shutters, (which worked perfectly) hinged together as needed and secured them to the existing framework to aid with the cold. Winter was fine it's summer that you have to be proactive about. Shade, water, and breeze are lifesavers. Frozen pop treats don't hurt either

 

[henless]

I'm leaning toward using hardware cloth for my sides, and putting up tarps/clear plastic on the North & West walls for the winter.

I have an open air coop right now, but part of it has siding. I'm redoing my whole barn and seriously thinking of going full hardware cloth.

 

[asteria01]

these are all such great ideas! thank you!