My chickens don't like their coop :( please help

[deniker]

Something else you might want to think about is the color of your coop. Red tend to get warm or HOT! Try white or a lite color try paint colors on 2 boards one white one red see what is cooler and yes more vents.

 

[LittleMamaBigPapa]

hello,

we have a ridge vent in our little 4x4 coop, plus on the front of the coop by the door there is a 10"x12" window (bottom) that opens and has hardware cloth (this provides for airflow & exchange as mentioned above). We also have the 14"x24" window on the right side (east), plus a 12" hexagon gable vent on the left peak (west). All of these are open all summer unless it pours down rain. It gets pretty hot here in Nebraska but right now its only 60s and 70s

also wanted to say that a 2x4 for a roost may be more preferred....give that a try. lay it on the 4" side so they have a real wide place. you can round off the edges too. We did that

 

[AnnainMD]

Quote:
LOVE your coop!!! Super nice!

I agree with other posters, paint it a light color and you need more ventilation. You should have LOTS of ventilation on all sides, especially in Florida for cross-ventilation to allow air movement. I'd actually have one full wall of just hardware cloth with a half panel that you could place over it in the winter if *absolutely* necessary (don't know what FL winters are like).

There should be several square feet of ventilation in there. Your 24" by 4" window only provides .66sq ft. Here's a link to a conversion table: http://www.metric-conversions.org/area/square-inches-to-square-feet.htm. Cut more holes and you may just need a fan in there.

Our coop has windows on all sides, pretty good sizes and the air movement in the coop is impressive.
ETA: cross-ventilation and personal coop design.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

My first thought was also to basically replace one wall with hardware cloth, for a start. Your existing vents are probably fine for winter. In hot weather, you need a design that is more like a screened in porch. Your roof ventilation is good, but you need a lot more air coming in, to allow that hot air to flow out. A more open wall, going down lower to the floor, will give you a better summer air flow. You can close more of it up in the winter, if you want.

Painting the roof and exterior walls white is a great suggestion, too. Or at least some pastel that is agreeable to you.

 

[elmo]

Be careful with that air conditioner: you don't want the cold air blowing directly onto your chickens, either.

 

[Penturner]

Having hole at the top to let air out is not all there is to ventilation. You have to also let air in. in fact with no way for air to come in to replace the air leaving. no air will move at all no matter how big your holes are. So put in a few holes near the bottom of the coop, that could help cool it down. I say it is pretty obvious the chickens are afraid of the AC not sure if they will get used to it or not.