question on vents

[pappy1264]

Hopefully our coop will be finished this weekend. I plan to have vents on all four sides (I have windows on four sides as well.) Now, we have the metal vent stuff, but I am now wondering if it would be better to just do long strips on all four sides up near the roof line, and just use hardware cloth over the openings, so more air will be able to get in during the winter, when the windows will be closed. Please advise. After seeing the open air coops, I am wondering if I should do this (with the hardware cloth instead (I will make little doors I can close over the vents if it is extremely cold and I need to close any of them off.) Thank you.

Was speaking to hubby, he will wire each pocket of the 2x's on the roof, so it will have that opening on the front and back (2x4's on end, roof over hangs). Would that be enough for vents or should I also put some of what I was speaking of above on the sides? Thank you.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I don't know where you live but I worry more about air quality and excessive moisture than cold.
If you have the right breeds for your climate, cold is never an issue.
My big windows on east and west walls are open year round. No respiratory problems.
A local chicken keeper here has a predator proof covered pen and a nice coop. Her birds never slept in the coop one night this past brutal winter.

 

[pappy1264]

I am in Massachusetts, can get pretty cold here in the dead of winter and I live right on the woods, so the wind can be brutal. I have some pretty big windows and all four sides will have windows.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Chickens wear some pretty nice down jackets around the clock.
I shoot for a minimum of 1 sq. ft. opening per bird - year round.

 

[pappy1264]

So that would be 10 sq. feet, with 10 chickens....will let hubby know, since he is the one building it. Thank you!

 

[aart]

Hopefully our coop will be finished this weekend. I plan to have vents on all four sides (I have windows on four sides as well.) Now, we have the metal vent stuff, but I am now wondering if it would be better to just do long strips on all four sides up near the roof line, and just use hardware cloth over the openings, so more air will be able to get in during the winter, when the windows will be closed. Please advise. After seeing the open air coops, I am wondering if I should do this (with the hardware cloth instead (I will make little doors I can close over the vents if it is extremely cold and I need to close any of them off.) Thank you.

Was speaking to hubby, he will wire each pocket of the 2x's on the roof, so it will have that opening on the front and back (2x4's on end, roof over hangs). Would that be enough for vents or should I also put some of what I was speaking of above on the sides? Thank you.

Yes, excellent idea!!

Got pics?

 

[WoodlandWoman]

During freezing weather, I try to have the roosts placed in a more sheltered end of the coop, that doesn't have drafts blowing through it. This prevents added wind chill on combs and wattles. It also prevents breezes from ruffling their feathers and letting trapped body heat out. The rest of the coop should have as much ventilation as it needs to have good air quality. So, in my coop, I don't want a lot of ventilation on all four walls in the middle of winter. We get days where the highs are below zero at times and lows can get down to -30, although it's not that bad all the time. Still, you need to plan for the worst weather when building a coop. In hot weather, breezes on the chickens can actually be helpful, to cool them.

How much ventilation you need varies, depending on the temperature, humidity and stocking density of your coop. Except for needing to vent moisture in the winter from their breathing, it's not all that different from ventilating a structure for yourself. In hot weather, how open would you want it, to be comfortable? More like a screened in porch, for me. In cold weather, would you rather be in a frigid, biting wind or in a sheltered area, with no wind? It's the same for the chickens.

When looking at air flow for drafts, I imagine a string going between any two openings in the coop, including the pop hole door. Just don't have the roosts placed where the strings would intersect, at least in the winter. I have things wide open in the summer, since we also get temperatures and humidities in the summer that are in the upper 90s. I have a lot of that closed down in the winter, but they still have enough ventilation to let in frsh air and keep the humidity down.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

... Still, you need to plan for the worst weather when building a coop. ...

Very good point, not the nice day you're building it. Especially rainy and snowy weather.

How much ventilation you need varies, depending on the temperature, humidity and stocking density of your coop. Except for needing to vent moisture in the winter from their breathing, it's not all that different from ventilating a structure for yourself. In hot weather, how open would you want it, to be comfortable? More like a screened in porch, for me. In cold weather, would you rather be in a frigid, biting wind or in a sheltered area, with no wind? It's the same for the chickens.

Also good points. The only disagreement I have is that just because we're cold, it doesn't mean chickens are. The bulk of breeds most people keep were developed in very cold climates long before there was any source of heat for them. The only ones that died were the ones that were 'cooped up' tightly.

...

 

[pappy1264]

So, should I just have the venting at the roof or should I also do the strips as well, would that be too much?

 

[Ridgerunner]

During freezing weather, I try to have the roosts placed in a more sheltered end of the coop, that doesn't have drafts blowing through it.  This prevents added wind chill on combs and wattles.  It also prevents breezes from ruffling their feathers and letting trapped body heat out.  The rest of the coop should have as much ventilation as it needs to have good air quality.  So, in my coop, I don't want a lot of ventilation on all four walls in the middle of winter.  We get days where the highs are below zero at times and lows can get down to -30, although it's not that bad all the time.  Still, you need to plan for the worst weather when building a coop.  In hot weather, breezes on the chickens can actually be helpful, to cool them.

How much ventilation you need varies, depending on the temperature, humidity and stocking density of your coop.  Except for needing to vent moisture in the winter from their breathing, it's not all that different from ventilating a structure for yourself.  In hot weather, how open would you want it, to be comfortable?  More like a screened in porch, for me.  In cold weather, would you rather be in a frigid, biting wind or in a sheltered area, with no wind?  It's the same for the chickens.

When looking at air flow for drafts, I imagine a string going between any two openings in the coop, including the pop hole door.  Just don't have the roosts placed where the strings would intersect, at least in the winter.  I have things wide open in the summer, since we also get temperatures and humidities in the summer that are in the upper 90s.  I have a lot of that closed down in the winter, but they still have enough ventilation to let in frsh air and keep the humidity down.

 

Excellent post.

Always, year round, have ventilation up high, over their heads when they are roosting. Ammonia can build up from their poop. Ammonia is lighter than air. You need an opening above their heads to get rid of ammonia. A side benefit to that is that warm air rises and holds more moisture than cool air.

I have those pockets between 2x4’s covered with hardware cloth. I also have high openings on the other walls open year round. I’m in a warmer climate than you. My winter lows are generally in the (-) 5 Fahrenheit range. It’s kind of hard to have too much ventilation over their heads when they are roosting. For me, heat is much more of a risk than cold. I’ve had chickens die from excess heat. I’ve never had one have a problem with cold.

I don’t know what you mean by the metal vent stuff, gable vents, roof vents, ridge vents? If it can be blocked by snow, don’t count on it. But when it is open, those do a real good job.

I have a window below roost height plus some ventilation at the ground level. Those are open in warm weather and blocked in the winter.

I don’t know how much is right for you. Each coop is different, maybe blocked form storms or prevailing winds, maybe in the shade, maybe really exposed. They are made out of different materials and painted different colors. Some have a lot of space, some are packed pretty tightly. Some are taller than others. Some are elevated and some are on the ground. All these things affect how much ventilation you actually need. I really hesitate to say, yeah, that’s plenty from across the internet.

Do you think you’ll be comfortable in there during the summer?