yet another ventilation question

[DutchieWannabe]

ok, So its a huge topic since everyone is prepping for winter.... but i havent found a general ventilation rule of thumb.... (ie X amount of birds need Y sq ventilation.) So I have 4 Hens (city code is 3, so im a real rebel now

) my coop is a converted garden shed 10'x4' and about 6 feet tall at the tallest point. how much Ventilation will I need? I seem to have more coop space than birds, but I dont mind- Just wish I could have more ladies. Thanks for all replies

PS I am only doing ventilation for winter, they have the doors wide open all sumer and only go inside to lay and sleep

 

[Orchid]

General rule of thumb is 1 sf per chicken.

 

[33yardbirds]

Quote:
This is correct. But if I did this I would lose a whole wall. I just want the air to get out. If you are new to chickens I would follow the recomendation though.

 

[mcostas]

1 square foot per chicken would be 4 square feet, which would be a square 2 ft by 2 ft. Or two 1ft by 1ft squares.

If I am calculating correctly.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
True, but it works best to put the vents up high at the top of the walls. So if your coop is 5' by 5', you could put a 6" by 5' foot vent at the top of each wall and end up with 10 square feet of ventilation! Even if you put the vents only on the top of two walls, you'd get 5 square feet of ventilation. Putting the vents on opposite walls gives you the benefit of cross ventilation, too.