Coop ventilation in -20 temperatures?

[junebuggena]

No roosts?

 

[Beekissed]

That doesn't show us much about the inside of the coop right now...I'm assuming your big door is shut right now and your pop door is shut at night? The window I see can be easily used for ventilation by simply cracking it at the top instead of the bottom. You can crack that 2 in. and it will really help...and unless your birds are roosting up that high and the wind will blow directly on them, it won't be a "draft".

Down below you'll need some fresh air intake...I use my pop door and it's right below the roosts but if you can't do that, cut yourself a nice vent under your roosts about 6 in. off the floor under the roosts and cover it with one of these...cheap and easy to get, easy to adjust and will keep out preds.




To give you an idea of how much ventilation I give my coop, even on days that are -17, here's a pic of the front of the coop.....the top of the door is left open, spaces on either side are left open, right under the roof is spacing left open and, in this pic, both pop doors are open, front and back of the coop. My rooster roosts with his head right beside the spaces under the roof line, so he has 4 in of open space to the outdoors right by his comb and wattles...no frostbite. My roosts are located directly across the coop from this open top of the door.

 

[jbrajdich]

The roosting bars are in front of the nesting boxes on the left side of the picture.

 

[Beekissed]

The door is a garage like door located where the picture was being taken from.

Great advice on the castor oil- thank you. Does that need to be done nightly?

The only ventilation currently are the windows.. I could open them a little in the day and close them.. but unsure what the right ventilation to install would be.

Nope....once per winter, but since you are already showing some frost bite, you might want to do it again in a couple of weeks or so just to assess his comb and give him another layer but one coat is usually good for prevention.

 

[junebuggena]

Thought those were just there for the hens to gain access to the nest boxes. Do you have any issues with them sleeping in nest boxes? Definitely get some gable vents cut in.

 

[jbrajdich]

That is awesome and very helpful- thank you! I can certainly crack open the top of the window.. does that also stay open overnight? And during the day I could crack open the garage door at the bottom to allow air in.

 

[jbrajdich]

Some of them do often sleep in their nesting boxes.. is that a no-no?
I could also add more roosting bars

 

[Beekissed]

Some of them do often sleep in their nesting boxes.. is that a no-no?
I could also add more roosting bars

Yep...it's a no, no. Especially if you want clean eggs. Raising the roost bars up higher than the nests and even relocating them to a different area and raising them will help with this, but now you'll have to physically take the nest box birds and put them on the roosts to retrain them to the roosts or block your nest boxes at night so they have to roosts on the bars.

 

[junebuggena]

Some of them do often sleep in their nesting boxes.. is that a no-no?
I could also add more roosting bars

Big no-no. When they sleep, they poo. If eggs get laid in that box, they end up covered in poo. GROSS! Roosts should be at least a foot higher than nest boxes, a foot from the wall, and at least a foot below ventilation. and need to be placed so that they are well out of the way of ventilation. Gable vents at the roofline of the peak provide the most efficient venting. The coop needs ventilation 24/7, all year long.

 

[Beekissed]

That is awesome and very helpful- thank you! I can certainly crack open the top of the window.. does that also stay open overnight? And during the day I could crack open the garage door at the bottom to allow air in.

Especially at night, it's when they are bunched together and breathing together into the coldest part of the day, so this creates more humidity that settles onto their skin and bodies when the air isn't moving it up and out. Cracking that door in the day will help too but if you install the floor vent it should help tremendously, both day and night.