- Thread starter
- #31
Frazzled chicken tender
Songster
Thank you! You are correct, super thin metal, and no insulation at all. I'll look for that insulation, bet it will help. I'm glad the area they roam is mostly shaded, but it is still so hot. Last night, I wet their feet in a bucket of water before putting them on the roost. Have no idea if it helped cool them down, but we all were stressed afterwards.Good that you have a naturally shaded area, including their run. Any "extra sunny" areas can easily be shaded with some shadecloth (Lowes, HD). I use it everywhere; makes a huge difference.
One thing I notice: you have a metal roof on the coop with no insulation on the interior side. I have a big metal stick-frame barn and had insulation installed underneath the roof when built. You can see it if you look up. Came in a large roll, 4' wide, very thin, easy to install. Came with a roll of wide white adhesive tape to cover the seams. The rolls are wafer-thin fiberglass (?) insulation sandwiched between a sheet of waterproof film (white side faces the interior) and a shiny reflective side (in contact with the metal roof). Super thin, cuts with scissors, easy to put up and (a) definitely keeps barn a bit cooler (b) prevents condensation from dripping.
I used this leftover insulation and some leftover roofing metal when we expanded a covered run space last summer. Really mitigates the heat. Should not be a problem for you to retrofit some appropriate insulation onto the ceiling of your coop. Even in shade, the air temp still affects the heat absorbed/radiated by all outdoor structures. Just a suggestion!

I'll look for shade cloth at Home Depot!