Too much air??

[Jmurcks]

Ok so the coop is HOT inside. I mean H-O-T hot.
So I got a little box fan from Walmart and it made little to no difference.
So I went to Home Depot and got one of those orange round fans. The smallest one they had, too.
Now it is like a hurricane in there!

Can chickens have too much wind on them? I know house birds like parrots and stuff dont' need a breeze on them... how about the chickens?
What about baby chicks, too because I thought about moving them outside, as well?

BTW I have two large vent holes on the sides at the highest point of the coop and two large vent holes on either side, just over their heads, so it is well ventilated.
They also have their two pop doors so there are holes all around.
Thanks!

 

[kichohana]

maybe you reverse the fans to pull the hot air OUT of the coop instead of having them blow the hot air around inside the coop. i know chickens do not like it drafty. are the inside the coop during the day or out in the run? it's been 100+ here daytime highs and my girls spend their days out in their shaded sand-filled run. they only go into their coop at night to sleep. chickens are also very adaptable to heat/cold. mine are wyandottes n sussex and are handling the heat well. i just make sure they have fresh cool water every day.

 

[teach1rusl]

They can handle wind/blowing air on them in warm weather, but won't like STRONG winds. If the air is blowing as much as you're indicating, then I would try to have it blowing out, as kicho suggested??? Maybe rig the box fan over one of your vents to pull air out, and the other fan on low aimed inside an opposite vent opening???
In your area, I would like LARGE wired openings for windows. Would this be possible to cut into your existing coop?? I don't know how large your coop is (smaller coops will heat up more/quicker), but even up to half a wall size wouldn't be too much. You can always cover the window openings up in the winter time w/plywood, plexiglas, or something else if you guys get cold weather. Change out their water midday if you can, and add ice cubes to it. Frozen watermelon or something similar makes a nice cool treat too...

 

[PhilErvin]

Here in So. Cal. the commercial growers have misters on top of their chicken houses to keep the girls from suffocating from the heat.
Maybe you should check those little misters out at the hardeware store that are on a stand ment for spraying on you as you lounge around the pool.

 

[Jmurcks]

The chickens are bantam cochins and are extra fluffy and black in color so I imagine the heat is pretty tough for them.
The will hardly go outside much, only to drink as I have their water outside in the shade. I have the waterhose dripping into their waterers to try to keep the water as fresh as possible and I have been doing the ice cube thing, as well!
The holes in the side of the coop are pretty large but I can't cut much more as that is where the nest boxes are.
I will try to aim the fan going out instead of blowing in and see what happens! I have a thermometer inside and it reads 91 degrees so far. At only 10:30 am that is pretty hot.
The roof opens and I have even been keeping both sides of the roof open and it is still unbearably hot. They just pant and pant all day!
Thanks!

 

[patandchickens]

First, what is the actual air temp in your coop and outdoors. If they are the same, a fan is not going to cool the coop. (Putting 98 F air into a 98 F coop is not going to cool things off

) If OTOH the coop is hotter than outdoors, you don't need a fan so much as you need more OPENINGS for PASSIVE air exchange.

Therefore, secondly, what is your goal -- to COOL the coop (in which case you need a source of coolth) or just to create a gentle breeze to make the chickens feel a bit more comfortable.

If it is the latter, you don't need a tornado, just a gentle breeze from a box fan is fine -- put it at chicken level so they can sit in front of it if they desire.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat