Welcome,
First, patandchickens is a wonderful source of chicken info, AND, she is posts online a lot, so, it's easy to PM her, too.
Next,
read below and look at the everygrowing pics of coops built by BYCers.
Although I keep saying that I've been living on this site since January, actually I spent the first MONTH on the Coop page, alone! There are so many of them that I would have commissioned to be built for ME if I could afford it.
Sometimes those of us that have been keeping animals for a long time forget that not
everyone knows about things like southern exposure (for northern, temperate climates), hay bales on the north and west to insulate, and ammonia buildup in animal houses.
I found this site (and quoted, since I am NOT a plagiarist!!) and thought I'd share:
http://poultryone.com/articles/housing.html
Planning Your Chicken Coop's Ventilation:
Your chicken coop MUST be well ventilated! Just as humans don't like stuffy houses, chickens don't like stuffy coops! If you don't give your chickens enough ventilation, fumes can build up to a toxic level.
Vents, placed on the south or east side of your chicken coop, can help create proper airflow while also protecting them from cold drafts. Alternatively, drill large holes on the north and south sides of the coop where the roof meets the walls. To keep out wild bird visitors, which can often be carriers of diseases, cover these holes with mesh screens.
Coop ventilation goes hand-in-hand with coop insulation. Good insulation will help keep your chickens dry and warm in the winter, as well as cool in the summer. To keep the flock comfortable during these cold nights (and during the hot summer days), invest in proper coop insulation. 1.5 inches of Styrofoam sheets between the walls (and ceiling) provides great insulation. To reflect heat during the summer, many people use aluminum roofing and cover the walls with white paint. Another way to cool the chicken coop is to plant tall plants around its exterior. If you do this, be careful not to let the plants block any ventilation holes and windows that you may have made.
NOTE: To provide extra insulation during the winter, and if it is possible, stack hay bales against the north walls of the barn. It's cheap, and when winter is over you can use the hay as litter.
Hey, patandchickens, where is the link to the chapter on ventilation, from that book published in the 1920's? I can't seem to find it.
I know that it talks about chicken farmers who ripped open the fronts of their coops in the middle of the winter to give their flocks enough air.
