Looking for experienced input on a cold-climate open-air coop

[WthrLady]

This is our set up in N.H.. It is not open air as we keep the window closed but air vents though a gap underneath the roof on both sides. The plan was to allow the crabapple to provide food and shade in the summer. I also planted hops along their pen which is 14 feet by 14 feet, including the 6 by 4 coop. It all seems to work well but the weather has kept the birds imprisoned in their coop and they seem less happy and healthy as a result. I'm totally fed up with snow and winter. Negative three right now and the wind is blowing 30 mph. I took this picture about 11 days ago and we've had another 3 feet of snow since then. A friend raises broilers on his farm and is active in local markets. He tells me that one year he experimented with allowing customers to buy chickens that he would raise and help slaughter. One customer got cold feet and the chicken was allowed to escape. It has lived wild in the woods for the last three years. That seems unbelievable but chickens may be more resilient than we give them credit for.

rockin' color!

 

[Kris64]

Thank you! This makes solid logical sense (regarding the air pockets between feathers). I'm building (let's be honest, my husband is building) an open air coop and we've discovered it can get pretty windy around here. Already brainstorming plans to block wind when needed.

Having the shelter's open end facing south will help, but in the NC foothills sometimes the wind seems to come from all directions at once! Most likely we'll block some of it with tarp or plywood propped on the open side.

 

[Kris64]

Thanks for this. Would you say the "trick" is only one side open with the back sealed up?

We're building from scratch a very simple design. It's 6'x6' with one side open and 3 walls with a roof. Currently we were going to have a small opening--maybe 6" at the top of the rear wall and some opening along the ground--with just fencing.

I suppose we could try it and on a windy day go in and see how it feels.

 

[duluthralphie]

Thank you! This makes solid logical sense (regarding the air pockets between feathers). I'm building (let's be honest, my husband is building) an open air coop and we've discovered it can get pretty windy around here. Already brainstorming plans to block wind when needed.

Having the shelter's open end facing south will help, but in the NC foothills sometimes the wind seems to come from all directions at once! Most likely we'll block some of it with tarp or plywood propped on the open side.

My brother lives in rural Durham. His chickens never go inside, it drives him nuts, he built a nice coop for them, and they refuse to use it. They prefer to roost in the trees in his back yard. However to be completely honest his backyard is fenced entirely with privacy fence which breaks the wind.

 

[Kris64]

Nice! Maybe the wind won't be as much as an issue as I thought. We have a large shed nearby to the chicken shelter. Then again the cardboard I laid out for garden paths (right next to where the chickens will go) blew all over even when we put bricks on it!

 

[aatx]

No matter what design you end up with, just wanted to say kudos for thinking about ventilation.

I live in Texas, so my requirements are slightly different as I am catering to the hot temperatures more than the cold. For that reason, I do have two large openings across from each other to create a cross-breeze.

Here are some photos during the build that show it better (this was a reuse of an 8' x 8' playhouse).

On this end you can see that all the top was left open and just covered with hardware cloth.



This is the side that the roost poles are on, so we left in the real window, but covered it with hardware cloth so that it can be opened during the summer or closed off during the winter.



Here is what both sides look like. We removed the existing windows, framed out a larger area and covered with hardware cloth. These two openings are across from each other and allow a good cross breeze. We do have a plexiglass panel that can be added to one opening in severe weather, turning it more into a three sided coop.




Taken from the inside, you can see that the roost poles are where the solid walls are to keep them away from drafts.



Roost poles - real window here that can be opened in the summer or left closed in the winter to just allow additional sun to come in. Area above it, though, always stays open.



This joins onto their run that is covered in avian netting. Large shade tarp hadn't been put back up in this photo, but it is on there now. There is a piece of plywood attached to the fence that provides a wind block or shade or shelter from the rain. We have several of these types of things in their run so that they can self regulate.

 

[Kris64]

Thanks for sharing! Is the avain netting enough protection during the night? Or are the chickens closed up at night behind a stronger fencing or wire?

 

[aatx]

Thanks for sharing! Is the avain netting enough protection during the night? Or are the chickens closed up at night behind a stronger fencing or wire?

This is just for daytime protection. We close them up in the coop at night. We have loose dogs that will kill pretty much anything that comes into the yard, but we'd rather not chance it.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Avian netting will not stop anything that climbs. It will keep the chickens in. It will help deter hawks or owls but some can still get through if they really want to. The way to keep chickens safe at night is to lock them in a secure coop.

 

[Bushmansbliss]

Hey all, I saw this thread this morning and am just lurking for now so I can find the thread again. Later this afternoon will post a few pics of some of my open air coops.