How much ventilation? Help please

[Carrie Lynn]

I will try to build a coop this week. I will use the Ware chicken hutch I now have as a model, it will have a shed roof. Question: What size should the ventilation opening be? Should it be located at the top? The coop will be a 4x4' with a small chicken door open to a pen during the day. I will change the larger "people" door to a wire one for summer months. The tenets: 1 Australorp, 1 or 2 RIR, 1 Bantam Leghorn---all pullets. Thanks for your help.
Carrie Lynn

 

[Imp]

Can't help you much with the ventilation question. Not really an issue here in Western Washington, but patandchickens has a lot of information about it here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1642-VENTILATION

Good luck & welcome

Imp

 

[Ridgerunner]

Welcome to the forum!

Glad you are here

Have you read Pat's ventilation page?

Pat’s Big Ol' Ventilation Page
https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1642-VENTILATION

I put mine at the top above where they roost so they are not in a draft when they are roosting at night. I'd suggest putting plenty under your roof overhang on two of the sides away from your prevailing winds. The normal recommendation is at least one square foot of ventilation for each chicken, but more won't hurt. I've got it in all four of my walls and do not close anything off in the winter. My lowest nighttime temperatures are normally in the single digits Fahrenheit. I don't know how well you can see what I did here. My coop is in the end of a shed, so I don't have to worry about rain from one direction. On two of the walls, I just covered the natural openings between the 2" x 6" rafters with hardware cloth. On the other two walls, I left a triangle-shaped section open and covered it with hardware cloth.

I see Imp and I were typing at the same time. Good luck!