Keeping the Girls Cool in 90s & 100s temperature...?

[Farmgirl1878]

Its so hot and humid in way-Southern Ohio that the town is recommending everyone eat ice cream (along with all the other “drink more water/stay indoors/check on your neighbors recommendations)! I’m all for that! Hubby made frozen custard last night. Two thumbs way up!

 

[moniquem]

Mine did alright last summer in the heat. This year I moved their coop to the shady part of my yard. I like the frozen blocks of ice idea.

 

[Kayla's Lunch]

I'd not pull misted air thru your fan, can't be good for it.

I do use a fan in the coop. Mounted in east window(where it's shaded most the day) to pull cooler air into coop, and push hotter air out, for a few hours before roosting time. It helps some, except for times like these where the 'feels like crap' temps last all night.

The fan would be on the left side of the coop and the mister is on the right side of the coop under a tree. So the fan is 12' away from the misty air. The idea was to have that cooler "under the tree" air being pulled into the run while the hotter stagnant air is being pulled out.

 

[Pork Pie]

There may be additional info / ideas in these links

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/788391/keeping-chickens-cool-in-summer-heat

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/topic-of-the-week-keeping-chickens-cool-in-summer.1181934/

 

[cmom]

I have right now around 400 birds. All of my pens have shade trees and rain/shade tables. I have sprinklers in a few pens that when I turn them on the water will cover all of the pens. I turn on the sprinklers for about an hour which does cool down the sand in the pens. Some of the birds will get under the sprinklers and some won't. I have auto waterers on all of my coops so the birds always have water. We have been in the mid to upper 90's with a high so far of 101.

 

[aart]

The fan would be on the left side of the coop and the mister is on the right side of the coop under a tree. So the fan is 12' away from the misty air. The idea was to have that cooler "under the tree" air being pulled into the run while the hotter stagnant air is being pulled out.

Not sure if it would pull from 12' away in open air....but...<shrugs>

 

[cmom]

A fan doesn't really cool the air. It circulates the air and it feels cooler but isn't really. The fan doesn't effect the actual temperature, it's just that it helps your sweat evaporate by blowing air over your skin. The evaporation has a cooling effect.

 

[Kayla's Lunch]

Not sure if it would pull from 12' away in open air....but...<shrugs>

Nope, it's not pulling any air. I turned off the mister and turned the fan so it is blowing in the run so at least they have a breeze. I'm going to go out and get some bags of ice to lay around in the run, too.

 

[bluemerle]

If you're wondering whether a misting system would work well in your area: ask yourself if swamp coolers work efficiently where you live. It's the same principle. Both are less effective in high humidity areas (not something to worry about if you're in the West: but more of an issue in the South).

 

[analyticalblonde]

I really do recommend foliage. Shrubs, maybe a patch of grass, the fastest growing tree in your area. That helps a lot - with a grass/tree shade combo, my birds hardly ever complain about the heat.

However, I have used misters before, and yes they are absolutely worth it. They really do noticeably cool it down - to the point where you'll want to hang out with them. Just turn the hose off before you go to bed at night so if the hose busts you won't wake up to an enormous mess.

We plan on doing full landscaping next early Spring...our budget this year would only allow us to replace the fencing around our 2-acre property and install a retaining wall our builders wouldn't do!

Thank you for your input regarding the misters...I was wondering if anyone had used them with any success!