Metal roof question

[Vincentville farm]

I have a metal roof on my coop. I'm trying to figure out how to keep my coop cool in the summer and warm in the winter. If I treat it with a reflective coating it won't absorb the suns heat in winter. My girls are panting at night, even with an exhaust fan going all day. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[LTAY1946]

I have a metal roof on my coop. I'm trying to figure out how to keep my coop cool in the summer and warm in the winter. If I treat it with a reflective coating it won't absorb the suns heat in winter. My girls are panting at night, even with an exhaust fan going all day. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

I'd err on the side of keeping it cool in the summer. Unless you have one of the breeds that can't take the cold and you are in a very cold climate area most likely you have nothing to be concerned about in the winter. Without knowing breeds and local where the coop is it is impossible to make a hard suggestion.

 

[gimmie birdies]

I have a large coop with metal roof, I have a window in the coop I keep open all day. And some pop doors, with screens. When they are open at night, it gets a breeze, I also have an ice pack I put in the coop. My coop has over dangles which keeps the sun from off the coop.

I also have some smaller coops for smaller chicks. I lean left over boards on the side the sun shines to keep the smaller coops cool.

 

[aart]

I have a metal roof on my coop. I'm trying to figure out how to keep my coop cool in the summer and warm in the winter. If I treat it with a reflective coating it won't absorb the suns heat in winter. My girls are panting at night, even with an exhaust fan going all day. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

To make viable suggestions we would need to see pics of your coop, inside and out,
and know where in this world you live.

 

[Vincentville farm]

I live in Southern Oregon, Rogue River. We don't get as hot as Texas but we make it into the 100's every summer. Our winters, as far as I have known, never get into the negatives. We get snow here a few times a year but doesn't usually last more than a few days. Living in the country keeps us free of the city heat.
I have one exhaust fan and one large window. There are chicken doors on both coops and people doors on the outsides of both coops. There is a inner door that can divide the two sections for when I have to separate groups. I put up tarps to help with shade in the runs. There are 3 feed stations with oyster shell (two outside & one inside) and 4 water stations with nipples (two inside & two outside). I also have two round feed troughs that I keep water in for them to wade, dip their combs and drink freely if they want.
My chickens are almost all Barred Rock. They just turned 20 weeks, and no eggs yet. I have one older Easter Egger hen. My rooster is a Barred Rock Easter Egger cross who is a year old. The older chickens were gifted to me.
I'm attaching pictures of my coop and run that show everything I feel you might need to help me with my issue.

 

[perkolator]

That setup looks hot to me.

Biggest issue I see is lack of ventilation if it's baking in the sun like that without any shade. Your roof looks to be supported by 2x6's, which is great - but all the soffits are filled in solid with wood and preventing heat escape and air movement. IMO you should remove that wood fascia and replace with hardware cloth = way more ventilation under that roof to let some heat out.

I'd probably get some shade cloth to help cut down on some temps too, that's an easy one, there's even versions that are more reflective than others. Tarps will give more shade, but they also trap more heat and block airflow. Could even put vining plants on that run, such as beans/cucumbers/chayote/grapes/kiwi/passionfruit/etc that will shade it in the summertime and give you and chickens some food

I would worry more about summer weather than winter

 

[HeritageFan]

I’m in NW OR and have shade trees over my turkeys and rabbits that provide shade -most- of the day.
On the hottest days, I freeze water bottles (after draining a bit out of them) and let the bunnies play with them.
(Also on the hottest days) I refresh all water mid day/ early afternoon so it’s cooler from our well.
My ducks have less shade, so I bought rigid insulation and insulated their coop.
They also have a very large, opening window and a fan that is hooked up to a thermostat that I rigged so the fan comes on when it’s hot (reversed the poles, it was easy to do)
I had to add some interior siding to protect the insulation from the birds and the rodents
I just went to the local building materials recycling store and bought the cheapest plywood they had.
Depending on where in S OR you are, you may have better luck looking on CL, FB marketplace, or contacting a local contractor to see if you can find a deal on materials.
Other than adding insulation, shade cloth, and/ or more windows/ fans.... the only other though I have is to look into a misting system.
....which has more downsides and likely more cost than the other thoughts offered on this thread.
Good luck!

 

[Tired old Rooster]

There is a trick we use in Argentina for that. Will require a small bit of rebuilding work.

You will need to buy:
Tongue and groove slats (half to three quarter inch thick), enough to cover the present roof area.
Cheap clay bricks (two inches thick) and some wood plank, that is the same thickness of your current roof frame and has a width just a little more than the thickness of the bricks.

To do the job:
Remove roof bolts holding the metal sheet on and take the sheet off.
Attach the tongue and groove onto the original roof frame, like you are making a table top.
Fit the wooden planks on top of that, preferably exactly over the original frame planks for strength, while keeping in mind the spacing needed for the clay bricks.
Lay your clay bricks neatly on the new tongue and groove "roof", between the new planks you fitted.
Now refit your steel roof and bolt it to the new frame planks that are between the clay bricks.
Make sure that the steel has no leaks that will allow water into what is now you wood and brick ceiling. Laying down some 200 micron plastic sheet over the tongue and groove before applying the planks and bricks is a good idea.

 

[Mouthpear]

I have a metal roof on my coop. I'm trying to figure out how to keep my coop cool in the summer and warm in the winter. If I treat it with a reflective coating it won't absorb the suns heat in winter. My girls are panting at night, even with an exhaust fan going all day. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Putting this reflective insulation on the ceiling would help immensely. Not this particular brand but we put stuff like this on my friends garage door that gets hit directly for most of the day. It was unbearable before. Leave door down you get suffocated, put the door up the sun would cook you or the heat would radiate in. Once we installed it, the difference was day and night.

 

[3KillerBs]

Welcome to BYC.

Here in North Carolina, I find that I need either DEEP shade or several times the usually recommended amount of ventilation (2-3 square feet per bird rather than 1 square foot per bird), to keep a coop under 100F on a 90F day.

Your coop, unfortunately, looks to have very little ventilation. Here's some information to help you fix that.

Repecka Illustrates Coop Ventilation

Hot Climate Chicken Housing and Care