Designing a coop - where to put the ventilation?

[aart]

Even when the temp drops to less than17 F?

How often does that happen?
You have way more heat to deal with than cold.
You can always cover part soft mesh wall(strong and small enough for preds) with solid walls in winter.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Even when the temp drops to less than17 F? I'd also be super concerned about predators with an open coop.

17F isn't bad for a chicken. They'll deal better with that than 97F.

8x8 run should be fine for 4. If you build the coop elevated enough for chickens to use under side (so at least 18" clearance) then put it inside the run, that's extra security from run fence without sacrificing usable run sq ft.

If you still want the coop to be mostly solid wall, I'd consider removing 1 wall from your build, and replace it with wire - for extra security you can layer two types of wire for extra protection, like 1x2 welded wire and then 1/2" hardware cloth.

 

[Kaley]

17F isn't bad for a chicken. They'll deal better with that than 97F.

8x8 run should be fine for 4. If you build the coop elevated enough for chickens to use under side (so at least 18" clearance) then put it inside the run, that's extra security from run fence without sacrificing usable run sq ft.

If you still want the coop to be mostly solid wall, I'd consider removing 1 wall from your build, and replace it with wire - for extra security you can layer two types of wire for extra protection, like 1x2 welded wire and then 1/2" hardware cloth.

The design I'm considering doing now is an elevated 4x5 box. I'm considering doing the wire wall and/or having it so that two sides can be opened up completely.