Solar fan with battery backup

[Baileybunchx5]

Anyone use a solar powered fan with battery backup for nighttime cooling? I find my chickens are hot at night in the coop with two windows open.

 

[aart]

I find my chickens are hot at night in the coop with two windows open.

A fan can help cool off a coop, if the air outside is cooler than inside and if the fan is set up to be efficient in moving air from outside to inside.
I had to mount mine properly to work well....not it's not solar and I don't leave it running after I lock up at night.

2 windows may not be enough.
Post pics of your coop and let us know ......
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[plasma800]

This would work fine. You can use any sets of 12 volt fans.

Amazon sells 20 watt solar kits that come with a panel and a charge controller.

Topsolar Solar Panel Kit 20W 12V Monocrystalline with 10A Solar Charge Controller + Extension Cable with Battery Clips O-Ring Terminal for RV Marine Boat Off Grid System https://a.co/d/dRrWRSw

I’ve used 12volt 18ah to 22ah batteries successfully with this kits.

ML22-12 - 12 Volt 22AH SLA Battery - Mighty Max Battery Brand Product https://a.co/d/dgwIzBG

I’m not sure how familiar you are with these sorts of setups, but you’ll need some way to charge a battery.

I’m not familiar specifically with “solar fans”. Maybe some solar fans already have a battery built in? If so that would be ideal.

I place all of the items (battery, charge controller) inside a cheap marine battery box, no more than 12 dollars, nothing fancy and this works fine.

You can research all kinds of 12 volt fans but the thing that comes to mind first are larger computer fans. I would guess a 22ah battery would run a series of smaller fans for a long time. Once you know the draw of any fan, then simple math can tell you how much battery capacity you may need.

 

[AntiqueB]

I have a similar setup to @plasma800 , but for heating water in winter. I have 2 solar panels with one controller, and 2 car batteries for energy storage. Like Plasma800, the batteries and controller are in a plastic storage bin. It would provide more than enough power for a fan overnight. The initial setup cost, however, was probably around $550 just for the panels and batteries.

Fans are always best pulling air out, rather than pushing air in. One thing to consider is the direction of the fan, and potentially having it clog with dust.

Do you have a secure run? I leave my pop door open, so they can roost outside of the coop if they prefer, but my run is completely covered in hardware cloth.

 

[Baileybunchx5]

A fan can help cool off a coop, if the air outside is cooler than inside and if the fan is set up to be efficient in moving air from outside to inside.
I had to mount mine properly to work well....not it's not solar and I don't leave it running after I lock up at night.

2 windows may not be enough.
Post pics of your coop and let us know ......
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always th

I have a similar setup to @plasma800 , but for heating water in winter. I have 2 solar panels with one controller, and 2 car batteries for energy storage. Like Plasma800, the batteries and controller are in a plastic storage bin. It would provide more than enough power for a fan overnight. The initial setup cost, however, was probably around $550 just for the panels and batteries.

Fans are always best pulling air out, rather than pushing air in. One thing to consider is the direction of the fan, and potentially having it clog with dust.

Do you have a secure run? I leave my pop door open, so they can roost outside of the coop if they prefer, but my run is completely covered in hardware cloth.

Yes our run is secure with hardware cloth. My husband was considering leaving the pop door open at night as well. Or he may just add a window on the Run side with hardware cloth as a screen so there is more of a cross breeze. We have two windows but both on the same side of the coop.

 

[Baileybunchx5]

Yes our run is secure with hardware cloth. My husband was considering leaving the pop door open at night as well. Or he may just add a window on the Run side with hardware cloth as a screen so there is more of a cross breeze. We have two windows but both on the same side of the coop.

sounds dumb but is it an ok idea to spray their covered run area with water a little to cool them down? I will not get their food wet but maybe just some of the run. We have pine straw and dirt in the covered run. Today is the first time I have noticed them panting out in the run. It is in the shade but just no air moving today and I dont have electric out there

 

[plasma800]

Our coop is hot like this. You might look at cheapy rv fans. They are usually 12 volt and they can move some air. You could mount it with zip ties even. Just look for one with a low power draw and connect it to a solar kit. You can connect it directly to the “load” ports of the solar charge controller. You will likely want a switch between the two to turn on and off.

Alternatively, you can connect a cheap power inverter to the charge controller or directly to the battery and then you could plug in a regular fan into the inverter. the lower the power draw the better

 

[Packy]

Very new here and learning, never thought of solar powered fan great ideal. My question regarding a fan, what are your thoughts on a heating fan?