Critique my ventilation? Also, roosts and paint?

[gracejr]

Shed is 10'x10', but I haven't climbed up to take exact measurements on anything we'll be cutting out yet.

Back wall - Will be cutting out and putting hardware cloth over the area outlined in red. Shelving shown is at 6' high, and will remain in place. We'll be running chicken wire vertically so the birds can't get up there. Wall is south facing, and will be 8-10' or so from the tree line. Is this going to allow too much weather in, or will it be fine? My hope was to be able to leave this open year round without having to get up there to cover it somehow.



Side walls have some ventilation already from the roof. We'll also be adding windows that will be kept open in fair weather - likely one on each side and two on the back wall. Do I need to add more ventilation? If so, where?

Left side: White shelving is coming down. Window in middle, where shelving is. Pop door will go on this side as well. Might put window farther forward if it will fit between beams. (east facing) You can sort of see the ventilation under the eaves.


Right: Bare wall, hooks are coming down. Window in middle again, where the numbers are. (west facing)


Back: Ventilation above here. 2x4 framing is coming down, two windows on this wall in middle sections? (south facing)



Nest boxes (5 gallon buckets for now) will be going on the left back corner, 3 on bottom then 2 above. Not sure how I'll secure them in place yet though. Roosts I think will go on the right wall? Some on each side of the window? Or will there be too much chance of drafts that way?

Lastly, do I need to paint inside? If so, what paint should I use? And what should I do to keep the floor easy to clean? The cheaper the better, we're already going to be over budget before any paint or coverings. Plus we only have 2 weeks to get it fully finished before we pick up the rest of our birds. (Less than, when you factor in the toddler and full time job)

 

[4 the Birds]

Should make for a nice coup! Windows are nice because they are easy to open , let in light and they seal good when closed. You can always tack hardware cloth over the window screens if you have worry of predators. That back wall opening will let weather in when blowing from that direction. I like to cut just rectangular holes and then hinge an outside board flap so that I can angle to keep out weather or flip closed when storms come. I would add pine chips to the floor about 4 or 5 inches deep. No need to paint the interior. Good luck with the new peeps!

 

[gracejr]

Yeah, we'll be doing deep litter, if anything else, it should make life a lot easier during the winter!

I thought we had 4 windows, but it turns out we only had 3, and one had broken glass, so only 2 usable ones. Now I'm not sure WHERE I want to put them! I could put them both on the back wall, or one on each side, or...? Hmmm I want to get to the Re-store to see if they have any cheap, but not sure we'll be able to get there before we get the rest of the chickens.

For that high up ventilation, where would you go about making a flap/cover for it? The outside of the coop has vinyl siding, and that section inside will be blocked off by chicken wire so the birds can't roost up there.