Help!! Ventilation problem?

[jessshell]

Any damper than the straw outside?
Ventilation looks pretty good to me.

It's humid as all get out here in SW MI.
Are you in northern or southern IN?
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thank you! I just updated my profile. I live in west Lafayette, so NW Indiana.

and the straw is much dryer than the straw outside, but it's still not dry. I'm just really worried about them staying warm through the cold days/nights

 

[jessshell]

A hygrometer inside the coop is helpful. If the humidity is 10% above ambient, you don't have enough ventilation.

that is a great idea! thank you! I just ordered one off amazon so I'll be able to check

 

[RoosterML]

@jessshell
I know it will likely be a pain now but if you raised your coop another 6”-10” a cinder block would work. You could allow the chickens to go under the coop to get out of the rain. It’s a very easy way to add a “free” covered area . After all it’s already there why not use it.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

that is a great idea! thank you! I just ordered one off amazon so I'll be able to check

Make sure it is accurate. Hygrometers are notoriously inaccurate out of the box.
You can put it outside out of the sun or wind and see if the reading is close to what the weather channel or accuweather are citing for your current humidity.

... I'm just really worried about them staying warm through the cold days/nights

Please don't worry. You may think it is cold but they don't. Chickens go to bed wearing their winter down coats, not pajamas. They are adaptable to a wide range of climates. Red Jungle fowl (chicken ancestors) range from tropical SE Asia to the Himalayan foot hills and many of the breeds we currently raise were developed in much harsher climates than Indiana.
I don't recommend this but one of my hens has been sleeping in a tree for 3 months through temps down to 10F and inches of snow. She has free access to a large coop where all of her flockmates sleep yet shows up every morning to be with the flock and healthy as anything. Do you know why? Fresh air.

 

[RoosterML]

I'm going to disagree with everyone else. You need double the ventilation you have.

I disagree completely. What @jessshell has as a method of ventilation and the amount she has is actually a very good example for everyone else to follow. It’s not about the amount of area you have opened up for a vent it is how you use that area. There is a really nice intake and exhaust area that is not even counting the pop door or side wall vent.
Well done @jessshell you nailed it.
Sorry @ChickenCanoe no disrespect as you add a lot of good info here very often but sorry not in this case.

 

[jessshell]

Make sure it is accurate. Hygrometers are notoriously inaccurate out of the box.
You can put it outside out of the sun or wind and see if the reading is close to what the weather channel or accuweather are citing for your current humidity.


Please don't worry. You may think it is cold but they don't. Chickens go to bed wearing their winter down coats, not pajamas. They are adaptable to a wide range of climates. Red Jungle fowl (chicken ancestors) range from tropical SE Asia to the Himalayan foot hills and many of the breeds we currently raise were developed in much harsher climates than Indiana.
I don't recommend this but one of my hens has been sleeping in a tree for 3 months through temps down to 10F and inches of snow. She has free access to a large coop where all of her flockmates sleep yet shows up every morning to be with the flock and healthy as anything. Do you know why? Fresh air.

I keep reading how they are cold tolerant, but when I go into the coop with them they seem like they want to surround me and cuddle/snuggle down into my coat and I kind of just figured they were getting too cold. Very paranoid chicken mom. lol

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I disagree completely. What @jessshell has as a method of ventilation and the amount she has is actually a very good example for everyone else to follow. It’s not about the amount of area you have opened up for a vent it is how you use that area. There is a really nice intake and exhaust area that is not even counting the pop door or side wall vent.
Well done @jessshell you nailed it.
Sorry @ChickenCanoe no disrespect as you add a lot of good info here very often but sorry not in this case.

That's cool. We agree to disagree.
Pop doors provide zero ventilation when they are closed.
In over 60 years with chickens in extreme colt to extreme heat and high humidity in both. I've lost birds to heat but never to cold. I've never had a chicken with a respiratory issue. The reason is huge open windows.
I have one re-purposed garden shed with a smallish window and ridge vent. I keep a box fan on the window sill blowing at the roost - year round.
They have tiny lungs and respiratory systems and need lots of oxygen. The only need for coops is predator protection and shelter from rain. Otherwise, they could sleep in trees year round. You can't keep a draft out of a tree.
I have a friend with a great coop. They type you recommend. There is an attached predator proof run. Her chickens have never slept in the coop, year round. They opt for the roost in the run for the fresh air.

 

[perkolator]

Nice coop. My only criticism is directed at the floor area of your coop. That bare OSB with just a thin scattering of bedding over it wouldn't be good as there's nothing to "soak up" poop or wet/muddy feet and anything wet would soak into the wood.

If it were mine I would make a simple wooden baffle at the chicken door and human door, to be able to retain more depth of bedding without it spilling out the doors. You could also use a waterproof membrane on floor/up walls to protect things - sheet vinyl flooring, waterproof panels, paint it, etc.

 

[jessshell]

Nice coop. My only criticism is directed at the floor area of your coop. That bare OSB with just a thin scattering of bedding over it wouldn't be good as there's nothing to "soak up" poop or wet/muddy feet and anything wet would soak into the wood.

If it were mine I would make a simple wooden baffle at the chicken door and human door, to be able to retain more depth of bedding without it spilling out the doors. You could also use a waterproof membrane on floor/up walls to protect things - sheet vinyl flooring, waterproof panels, paint it, etc.

That is a really good idea! we do have an issue with straw spilling out. We put a waterproof mat on the bottom of the coop so that the straw isn't directly on the wood.

 

[perkolator]

Yeah, my old coop was like yours where the floor is flat/level with the doors. The roost bars in that coop were all on one side, with the feeder opposite - so what I did was make a baffle to hold back about 10" deep bedding under the roost bars. No more bedding strewn out into the run after that.

Ours was also bare OSB and you could tell how much funk had soaked into it over the years, which is why I suggested putting a barrier on it so the bedding isn't in direct contact. Much easier to do all this now before they get bigger.