Tell me how to keep my coop cool!!!

[pawsplus]

I guess I'm lucky in where I put my coop and run. It is frequently 95+ here in the summer, w/ humidity around the same number, but the hens always seem happy. The run is in the shade of a biggish tree. The coop itself has windows covered w/ hardware cloth, which are open in summertime (there are plastic panels that go over them in winter). I'm sure it's hot in the coop during the day but the chickens are really never in there except at night-I keep their food and water in the run so they stay out there. I worried at first when it got hot, but they have always seemed pretty comfy thanks to the shade--and even more, now w/ the new tarped roof I added over the run.

 

[Cetawin]

If you are worried about electrical issues, you could use what I used in the back of the uhaul truck when I moved my flock across country...battery operated or solar operated fans. They come in small sizes that can be mounted high and pointed downward towards the birds and just use them at night when the girls are roosting. or put a frozen bottle of water in front of it and make them a mini air conditioner in there by circulating cold air with the fan.

 

[Combusken]

I'm so happy to have found this thread! I'm a new urban chicken wrangler ;-) and we just had our first days of triple digit heat. I have a lovely coop / run and there is always some shade for my chooks (one Americauna, 6 Black Austrolopes) but it got hot hot HOT in the coop/run, and all of the ladies were panting. I will be building a larger run around the coop next month and will be planting trees along the fence, so they WILL have better shade--next year. I am not sure know how to rig up a misting system or run an extension cord to the coop that my dogs won't find so amusing they'll destroy. But I can definitely try the garbage can/ frozen water bottles inside. Thanks. Also, Laura...do you have a link for solar fans that I could install? LOVE the idea! Thanks, everyone!
~Elizabeth

 

[CarolynF]

I feel like your chickens when I go upstairs to our bedroom at night -- it's the hottest part of the house! What I've learned over the years is that it's much harder to cool it off once it gets heated up. So, to translate that to your coop -- do everything you can to keep it from heating up in the first place rather than just trying to cool it off afterward. Keeping it shaded has to be at the very top of the list. Don't let that roof get hot from the sun, it holds the heat like a sponge which is great in the winter, terrible in the summer. #2 would be to get the air circulating as early in the morning as possible to blow out any hot, stale air that might linger. If you have a big door on your coop, maybe that you use for cleaning, can you open that during the day and make a temporary wire door? It would keep them from escaping during the day, but let in air. Then at night close it up as usual for protection.

Good Luck.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
Where are you located is it humid there?

I am in the high desert. those misters work great in low humidity. it takes evaporation to cool the air though.

The Shade over the coop itself will do wonders. Use a silver reflective tarp try give air some space up over the top of the coop if you can. If the roof is sloped lay some pvc lengths over the op connected by cord What this will do is keep the heat from the tarp from transferring to the roof of the coop. Lots of people here build a wooden deck on their roof racks of their vehicles it keeps the car or truck much cooler.

Usually a south facing wall will take the brunt of heat absorption as well. Hang a reflective tarp there too. Make sure you stretch the tarps out so they don't flap because it makes them last longer and will keep them from pulling loose if it happens to get windy.

Over the run you can put up some shade cloth or more tarp. If you use shade cloth along the side of the run you can sprits it with water and it will cool down the air around it.

 

[Combusken]

Hi, I'm in Sacramento, it's pretty low humidity here. You can see a pic of my coop on my blog page, I just put it up.I've only been a member for about half an hour, so I'm just figuring things out. The roof of the coop/run is a light blue tin, but it still gets hot. EVERYTHING gets hot when it's over 103. There is some shade, but not enough, and I don't want to put up so much impermeable shade that blocks any breeze that might come along. Thanks for your ideas! This is great.

~Elizabeth

 

[Patricia Jane]

I have my run covered with shade cloth. It was alittle pricey but definately worth it. Keeps it 10 degrees cooler. My coop sits 3 feet off the ground so I put frozen gal. water bottles under it so they can go uner there. I open up the main door and window for a good cross breeze and lay a tarp on top of the
coop and use bricks to hold it down. So far it has worked for me. I live in CA. about 45 miles north of San Francisco. We have already had a day of 100.
Oh and

combusken

 

[perchie.girl]

If you have a Harbor Freight near by they have shade cloth already made up like tarps. The beauty of it is it allows the wind through still provides anywhere from 50 percent to 90 percent shade depending on the tightness of the weave. Good prices too.
Oh and

also combusken

 

[SIMPleChick]

Yeah, my DH wants to be the one to look for the shade cover....come on....I have better taste and style than he does....LOL! But he has kind of adopted the chickens to be "his" thing so if something needs to be done on the coop, he has to do it! LOL! My kids painted on the coop and he had to supervise....hahaha....So he is also talking about one of those round, roof windmill things so the hot air can flow out but he initially didn't want to put one in, so he will have to go through the shingles and 2 inches of wood to put it in now! LOL! Oh well, at least we have a plan! But for now I am rigging my daughters sun umbrella (used for her sand box when younger) to shade a little. I also put a battery operated fan in to help and it is helping! That is the only fan I had that I can use.

 

[adgcountrygirl]

It is only June and we have had triple digit weather for over a week. We have a commercial grade tarp over the top of their pen. The pen is also under a big shady tree and protected from the east and south by two old mesquites. While Mesquites don't offer much shade, they also don't block the breezes either. They also have a 3 gallon waterer which I refresh around 2 or 3 pm. As well as a 1 gallon waterer which I fill with what I like to call, "Chicken Gatorade" You can get it at Tractor Supply and they call it Sav A Chick. They go through a gallon of it a day when it is hot. I have 11 birds as well. I also set our sprayer on shower (don't have a mister yet) and dampen almost half of their pen and one part of the larger yard. They "dust bathe" in the cool damp dirt and it shows when they have cooled. I have come home to them panting, and that is a sign of early heat distress. It's good to catch it early. I used frozen water bottles last summer for my rabbits and it worked great! They would stretch out beside them and relax. I hope you can find the Sav A Chick stuff. It has made a big difference in my birds.