optimal humidity inside chicken coop

[aart]

What I'm really concerned with is whether we have adequate ventilation for winter nights, to avoid frostbite.

May depend on your ambient humidity...I've found FB is inevitable in my climate.
Which sector of Washington are you in?
Big diff between the coast and east of mountains.

Also, size of coop and number of birds would be good to know when we see those pics.

 

[Mrs. K]

To me, that sounds like good ventilation. And that is about all you can do. Do make sure that you have deep, deep bedding, and once a week throw scratch on it, so the girls will turn it.

I agree with AArt - when I have gotten frostbite is when I get a thaw, and everything thaws out. Frozen solid, not a lot of moisture released, but come in with a chinook, everything thaws, humidity rises quickly during the day and then plunges cold that night, recipe for frostbite.

Those days, it is important to maybe do a change of bedding, or pull the thawed poop out, to make sure the roofs are cleared, think dry, dry, dry.

Sometimes mine do get a little bite, but it does not seem to affect them.

Mrs K

 

[Vicky Ann Painting]

I'll have to think about ways to increase ventilation... our coop is already pretty "holey." There are (screened in) slits on opposing walls just under the ceiling, and the door is not at all tight. There is probably a half inch wide gap running from top to bottom along the edge of the door where it opens, and smaller gaps between the planks that the door is made of. We also drilled a bunch of small holes in the wall of the coop near the roost. What else can we do?

Holes are different than ventilation. Seal up the holes and leaks. The ventilation should be on purpose up above the perches. We have gable vents at the top of the coop peak. Not everyone has that. So, here is a great video from one of my favorite chicken ladies. Hope it is helpful. God Bless you.