Deep Bedding/litter coop design...

[gabtrac]

Hi, and thanks for having me.
I'm designing and building my first coop. I want use the deep bedding method.
I'm in the Pacific North West.
All the coop designs I've seen say that ventilation should be high up in winter with no drafts - makes sense.
But what I can't find is design info how much ventilation or how to ventilate the ground/bedding so that the chickens don't get a cold draft during the winter, but the deep bedding gets enough air to function as it should.
Probably a 4x8 coop with an attached fenced run - they'll have access to free range outdoors during the day as well.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I don't think there's an "extra" ventilation requirement for deep bedding. If you aim for a minimum of 1 sq ft per bird that's a good starting point (though if you can add more it doesn't hurt). My coop is 6x10 with about 32 sq ft of ventilation (depending on the weather). I don't do deep bedding but the bedding stays bone dry in there even with rained on chicken feet and mucky boots.

 

[Sally PB]

My chickens scratch the bedding around enough that if there were some dampness, it would dry out quickly.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC.

I'm about to go to bed so I can't get into a long explanation, but here are my articles on Deep Bedding and Coop Ventilation.

Repecka Illustrates Coop Ventilation

Using Deep Bedding in a Small Coop

 

[Happy hen lover]

Hi, and thanks for having me.
I'm designing and building my first coop. I want use the deep bedding method.
I'm in the Pacific North West.
All the coop designs I've seen say that ventilation should be high up in winter with no drafts - makes sense.
But what I can't find is design info how much ventilation or how to ventilate the ground/bedding so that the chickens don't get a cold draft during the winter, but the deep bedding gets enough air to function as it should.
Probably a 4x8 coop with an attached fenced run - they'll have access to free range outdoors during the day as well.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Check out the articles by 3killerb . I have deep bedding and poop boards under roosts. Bedding stays dry as it is pine shavings and very absorbent material. I have moisture build up on poop boards where they poo overnight. I just change their bedding (lining) of poop boards regularly. I use pine shavings there also. The bedding in coop rarely gets soiled since they go outside as soon as it's dawn. All my ventilation is up high since that's where moisture and ammonia is. No need for ventilation down low to dry bedding.

 

[3KillerBs]

But what I can't find is design info how much ventilation or how to ventilate the ground/bedding so that the chickens don't get a cold draft during the winter, but the deep bedding gets enough air to function as it should.
Probably a 4x8 coop with an attached fenced run - they'll have access to free range outdoors during the day as well.

Good morning. In addition to the articles I posted above, here's some basic information:

The Usual Guidelines

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

A 4x8 coop would be suitable for 8 hens.

8 hens

• 32 square feet in the coop. 4'x8' is approaching the limits for a non-walk-in coop even with the access door in the middle. 6'x6' should be walk-in because even the tallest chicken-keeper won't be able to reach the far wall.
• 8 feet of roost
• 80 square feet in the run. 8'x10' is a nice looking number but, remembering the common dimensions of lumber, a roomier 8'x12' is actually easier to build. 6'x14' looks good on paper but would require a lot of weird cuts.
• 8 square feet of ventilation.
• 2-3 nest boxes.

As Repecka illustrated in the link in my previous post, airFLOW is critical -- the air has to move to carry the warm, moist, ammonia-laden air up and out of the top of the coop. My 4x8 brooder, rednecked together from a structure I was given, has 16 square feet of ventilation but doesn't have good airflow because the roof is flat.

That 1 square foot per hen minimum is a guideline that *may* be more than is necessary in a cool, dry climate but is less than what is truly necessary in a hot climate (I find that I need double or triple that to keep the coop under 100F on a 90F day unless my coop is in DEEP natural shade), and may be less than is necessary in a wet climate even if it's a cool and wet.

Height is your friend when it comes to ventilation. My Little Monitor Coop was designed to meet the 4-hen minimums almost exactly and, IMO, shows the absolute minimum height for any coop intended for long-term use.

You want your vents at least a foot above the roosts and having a tall enough coop to get the vents 2-3 feet above the roosts is better. And safer for you since you'll have to go inside a 4x8 in order to clean it.

It's also important to note that "draft-free" doesn't mean "no air movement at all". It means no breezes strong enough to ruffle the birds' feathers when they're sitting on their roosts. You can check this by going out on a windy day with a light ribbon or a strip of plastic grocery bag and seeing what the air is doing. A gentle waft is fine. Fluttering isn't.

Are you planning a coop with a floor and thus Deep Bedding or a dirt-floored setup with Deep Litter? (Explained in the article in my previous post).

BTW, if you put your general location into your profile it will always be handy for people to reference so they can give better-targeted advice. Climate matters.

 

[gabtrac]

Wow! You guys are great! Thank you for all of this. I'll begin digesting.

 

[gabtrac]

Thank you 3killerBs - I was planning on a dirt floor set up.
And I have added my location to my profile - thanks.
Once I figure out the final size I'm thinking about removable panels for summer/winter.
The guidelines you've provided are also most appreciated.
I'm thinking no more than 8 to start and maybe add some meat birds at a later date once I get everything working.

 

[gabtrac]

And thank you for the Repecka ventilation post - it's very helpful!