vent size for air circ?

[BearSwampChick]

We're building our coop inside our barn in the southeast corner. It's a 2-story barn and the coop ceiling will be about 8-9 feet. There will be one window on the east outside wall and 2 windows on the southern side. What kind of ventilation system will work best for my coop? There will be electricity, so we can add a ceiling fan, if needed. The barn gets quite a bit of shade in the summer.

 

[twigg]

I was discussing the kind of vent that can be seen running the full length of the roof, at the peak.

The gable end vents might be worth exploring.

The advantage of getting the vents up high is the reduced draught.

Gable end or ridge is best, eaves next best but baffles might be needed.

And so on.

 

[patandchickens]

For whatever it's worth, Gail Damerow's book suggests I think 1 sq ft of vent space per chicken. While it is pretty ballpark as numbers go, and some folks whose chickens spend most of their time outdoors get away quite happily with less, I would suggest it as a sensible starting point from which to design.

Critterhill,

reading the thread about your coop construction, I see your coop is for 11 chickens, but I am not sure what the dimensions are -- 6x8 maybe? On the one hand, two 2x2 windows, if they're *completely* openable rather than sash windows where you can only open half, *might* be sufficient, especially since you have the advantage of a tall coop with large air volume and have that 2" opening along the top of one side. On the other hand, it also might not be sufficient (depends how much time they'll spend indoors in winter, which depends on the nature of your run and the personalities of your chickens).

Either way, I'd like to put in a plug for building in more ventilation, probably in the form of screened or louvered vents that can be closed off with a plywood door when you don't need to use 'em. It is MUCH easier to do it now than to attack the finished coop with a reciprocating saw, and really there is no such thing as too much ventilation as long as you can close some of it off. The other advantage of adding more vents is that you could locate them up uder the eaves of the roof overhang, and/or hood them on the outside, so that you will never be forced to choose between insufficient air exchange and rain coming in the windows.

BearSwampChick,

If it's a two story barn and a dirt or concrete floor (?) you may have more dampness problems in spring and early summer than some people do, because of the air in there staying cooler longer. So if that is the case it might be smart to err on the side of more rather than less ventilation capacity. However a ceiling fan will not do a huge amount to move air in/out of the building, although it is better than nothing. Is this a bank barn where you physically *can't* put windows in the other 2 sides of the ground floor? If not, personally I'd put 'em in. If it is a bank barn, then if you suspect your three windows for ventilation won't always be enough and if you can't add more windows, you might think about getting a through-the-wall ventilation fan. You need one designed for agricultural etc use, that will stand up to dampness and dust. It would be a *lot* better (and cheaper and safer) if you could just get sufficient window and other passive ventilation, though.

HTH,

Pat