Need help choosing the best ventilation placement.

[kittyacid]

I'm converting an 8 x 10 shed to a coop and have three 36" x 36" windows and one 24" x 24" window. I'd like opinions on the best placement for the windows. I am in NC, hot humid summers and moderate winters, usually with several weeks in the teens/twenties, sometimes dropping to zero briefly. I have a hard time with the ventilation vs.drafts thing and which windows to leave open or closed for the best results. The maximum number of chickens would be 16, but probably only 12. Thanks!

.In A, would leaving windows 1 & 3 open (2 & 4 closed) create drafts on the roosts?

For B, windows 1 & 3 would be covered on the bottom half, 2 & 4 would be closed in the winter. Is this enough ventilation?

In C, would leaving 1 & 2 open (3 & 4 closed) create drafts?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Having the windows so there is a cross breeze would create a draft if it is at the level of the chickens on the roost. If it is way up over their heads and they are down low, not a problem. If they are right in front of the window and the air is being sucked through the coop that would be a draft right on them (bad).

 

[kittyacid]

So there would be a draft on them in drawing A where the open windows are on one end of the coop and the roosts are on the other end?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

So there would be a draft on them in drawing A where the open windows are on one end of the coop and the roosts are on the other end?

Here is a good link:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...-go-out-there-and-cut-more-holes-in-your-coop

It depends on whether the windows are over their heads, or if the breeze will be blowing right on them. The air needs to be still where they are sitting on the roost at night, especially in cold weather, as they depend on that still air to stay there between the feathers and the skin as insulation.

 

[aart]

How tall is shed?
What kind of windows?
Got pics?

 

[kittyacid]

The windows are jalousie to keep the rain out, the side walls are 7' with a 7.5 pitched roof. I don't have a photo, I am going to have it built. After 6 years of having chickens I know I will never willingly be without them so I am investing in a shed for the long haul! This is the style.

 

[aart]

The windows are jalousie to keep the rain out, the side walls are 7' with a 7.5 pitched roof. I don't have a photo, I am going to have it built. After 6 years of having chickens I know I will never willingly be without them so I am investing in a shed for the long haul! This is the style.

I'd go with "A" for the window placement, put the 24x24 by the roost and up as high as possible.
If you're going to have it built, look at clerestory roof lines...better than a gable.