Ventilation Suggestions

[CaptainPoulet]

You could replace the poop tray with hardware cloth so you have ventilation below and above the birds. Also I'm definitely on team, those top roosts are too dang high. Have you named your chickens yet? Do you have any drawings of your dream coop?

Wouldn’t a hardware cloth poop tray be too drafts under their roost bars? I’m going to go with @BDutch ’s idea to raise the roof 2”. If I do that, plus lower the high roost bars a couple inches, they’ll have plenty of room to fly up.

the EE’s are Easter and Cluck. The barnevelders are Poppy and Maud.
After days drawing up the coop blueprints, I threw them out once I priced the materials.

 

[HausOfEggwards]

If you've got the skills to raise the roof go for it! I just mentioned replacing the poop board because of the pictures where it was removed. It looked like plenty of ventilation. And I don't think it would be drafty without a weird bottom to top cross breeze.

Those names are adorable. And don't give up! Someday material prices will drop back down lol

 

[CaptainPoulet]

If you've got the skills to raise the roof go for it! I just mentioned replacing the poop board because of the pictures where it was removed. It looked like plenty of ventilation. And I don't think it would be drafty without a weird bottom to top cross breeze.

Those names are adorable. And don't give up! Someday material prices will drop back down lol

I might do the poop board conversion as well, it can get pretty hot in there during the day. Thanks!

 

[BDutch]

Good luck with rebuilding you’re coop.

It’s quit different to have one 10x5” opening on one side or two openings half that size opposite to each other. Two 5x5” openings opposite to each other in the top, create a much more effective and stronger air flow. I honestly thought this was not too bad. But if you all say the openings are not big enough, even then , I believe you.

Because the US has made it problematic to buy wood from Canada , you're prices went up . Has to do with taxes. If this tax problem is resolved by the new government prices will drop again. And not only in the US.

Now ‘you’ buy wood from Europe. So the price of wood increased here a lot too.

 

[CaptainPoulet]

I’m in Canada, not the US. The problem with the 5”x5” windows is that one is facing a wall. There is a niche there, so it’s actually almost 3’ from the wall, but the other sides of the coop are touching the brick.

 

[BDutch]

I have been looking at the photo’s again. Maybe there is a simpeler way to rebuild the coop. I see you have a thin wire before the lower openings. So you /the chickens don’t use them for cleaning / to go in?
Its just an alternative idea and I’m not sure if it would work. Can you leave one side partly open in the night too? Would this give a good airflow without a draft over the spot where the chickens sleep? Maybe you just need to make the panel with a hinge on top to prevent rain coming in and a firmer HWC against nightly predators? This is not better but a lot easier to establish than taking of the roof without damaging anything and rebuild it with more space.

Maybe taking out some of the lower roosts (use the drawer as a floor) make it easier to get up and down from the higher roosts and gives the chickens more space to walk around if the weather is nasty.

I have a poop drawer in my small coop too, but I use it as a floor and not as a drawer. I took out the lower roosts. When I had two hens roosting in this coop I used the floor partly as an area to cross to the 2 nestboxes (for 6-8 hens) and it was partly in use as a poop board with only 2 high roosts for two hens. I put cardboard in the drawer and take the cardboard out when cleaning. The drawer only comes out once a year for a thorough spring cleaning.

 

[neo71665]

The issue with replacing the poop tray with hardware cloth is while it might be open it still aint allowing a natural draft. The gases build at the upper most point, that is where the vents need to be. Raising the roof and putting hardware cloth will fix it only if the overhang of the roof doesn't allow rain in.

I'd still go with raising the roof if you can. It's much better than my earlier suggestion. I'm sorry I was lookin at it from the eyes as somebody that knows how to do it but assuming you didn't. Looking for something simple and easy. If you have the tools, know how, and can then that is best. You know what they say about assuming crap.

 

[CaptainPoulet]

I have been looking at the photo’s again. Maybe there is a simpeler way to rebuild the coop. I see you have a thin wire before the lower openings. So you /the chickens don’t use them for cleaning / to go in?
Its just an alternative idea and I’m not sure if it would work. Can you leave one side partly open in the night too? Would this give a good airflow without a draft over the spot where the chickens sleep? Maybe you just need to make the panel with a hinge on top to prevent rain coming in and a firmer HWC against nightly predators? This is not better but a lot easier to establish than taking of the roof without damaging anything and rebuild it with more space.

Maybe taking out some of the lower roosts (use the drawer as a floor) make it easier to get up and down from the higher roosts and gives the chickens more space to walk around if the weather is nasty.

I have a poop drawer in my small coop too, but I use it as a floor and not as a drawer. I took out the lower roosts. When I had two hens roosting in this coop I used the floor partly as an area to cross to the 2 nestboxes (for 6-8 hens) and it was partly in use as a poop board with only 2 high roosts for two hens. I put cardboard in the drawer and take the cardboard out when cleaning. The drawer only comes out once a year for a thorough spring cleaning.

Great suggestion, and definitely much easier. Thank you!