Is this enough venting?

[TJE]

Pardon the dust, we are still working on completing our coop. Do you think this is enough venting for an 8 × 8 coop? No venting on backside. The other side has a smaller vent 12"x9". I can take off boards to make more venting if necessary. Thank you all!

 

[enoryz]

I'm a bit of a rookie but that looks good to me. How much did it cost to build that if you don't mine me asking. I'm at a point where I need to expand or just build bigger. 8x8 or 6x8 is what I was thinking. I'm hoping I can just find a shed someone is getting rid of and convert it.

 

[TJE]

View attachment 1177557 Pardon the dust, we are still working on completing our coop. Do you think this is enough venting for an 8 × 8 coop? No venting on backside. The other side has a smaller vent 12"x9". I can take off boards to make more venting if necessary. Thank you all!

The two windows in progress on front are not vents, just at top

 

[enoryz]

Will they be able to open? If not, maybe something on the side that can open to have air flow.

 

[B Redhawk]

an 8' x 8' coop (64 sq. ft. floor space) should have around of 8 to 12 sq. ft. of vent, more is better if you have a dozen or more chickens in there. You can make the extra venting closeable if you have windy conditions in the winter.

 

[HoopyFrood]

View attachment 1177557 Pardon the dust, we are still working on completing our coop. Do you think this is enough venting for an 8 × 8 coop? No venting on backside. The other side has a smaller vent 12"x9". I can take off boards to make more venting if necessary. Thank you all!

BWAHAHAHA!!! Were you stealing my thoughts? You designed and are building a coop that almost seems identical to mine! (Although mine is half the width at 4 x 8.) I don't have a good picture of it because it's obscured by the run I built around it - you can see that in the "My Coop" link under my avatar... But here's a picture of the front of the coop...


To answer your question I'd add a cool air inlet on the bottom of the coop somewhere with 1/4" hardware cloth to keep out mice and snakes. Since you don't want drafts you can either add baffles inside or a windbreak outside. Or you could have multiple inlets that can be open/closed from the outside... as winds shift with changes in weather at our place I close the vents on the windward side and open the vents on the leeward vent. In my picture above the inlets are the lower openings with the trim around them. That's actually a storage cabinet below the nestboxes (whose doors can be seen above the vents). The cabinet acts as a baffle system before it empties into the coop.

Your coop is looking great! You can't see all the vents in my pictures, but I am below the usual recommended 1 sq ft per bird. We have a lot of wind and I monitor the coop conditions closely. Even though it's below the recommended amount of ventilation, it has been working perfectly well.

Good work and good luck!

 

[TJE]

I'm a bit of a rookie but that looks good to me. How much did it cost to build that if you don't mine me asking. I'm at a point where I need to expand or just build bigger. 8x8 or 6x8 is what I was thinking. I'm hoping I can just find a shed someone is getting rid of and convert it.

I probably spent around $400. I could have done much cheaper by waiting for supplies on craigslist but snow/ice is setting in and I had to go with new materials. Didn't really want to spend that much, but I didn't have a choice. If I do expand I will be searching craigslist or the Habitat Restore.

 

[Chickassan]

Looks plenty good! One piece of constructive criticism. The small gaps under your 2x4s you need to seal those or you'll have snakes. Other than that it's jam up.

 

[lazy gardener]

Louvered vents are good to allow air exchange but block breezes and weather. I'd hinge those front windows from the top so you can open them for more ventilation. I'm of the opinion that when it comes to vents, more is better. You can always block a vent or two if needed. I think general recommendation is 1 s.f. vent/bird, or 10% of floor area. I also like to see multi level. I have a floor level louvered vent, soffit vents, 3 windows hinged at top, and 2 eave vents. Also have pop door, human door, clean out door, and an other door that opens to broody pen.

 

[TJE]

Will they be able to open? If not, maybe something on the side that can open to have air flow.

After reading responses, I think I will make these venting window, thank you!!