Hen house Ventilation - how much ventilation does your chicken house need?

Every chicken house needs ventilation, yes, even, in fact especially, in cold weather.

How much ventilation each hen house needs depends on several variables:
Climate
o Is your climate hot or cold?
o Is the humidity high or low?
o Do nights get cool?
o Is it windy?
Chicken house
o Is the chicken house located where it’s sheltered from winds or exposed?
o Is it in shade or direct sun?
o How insulated is it?
o What is the roof made of?
o How high is the roof (volume of air matters more than floor space)
o Do you use bedding that is naturally moist (like deep litter) or is the floor dry?
o How frequently do you remove the droppings?
Chickens
o How crowded with chickens is the chicken house?
o What breed are the chickens? (big comb & wattles in cold / heavy breeds in hot)

Where to place that ventilation is vitally important. The Golden Rules are:
include as many large openings as possible,
and make them adjustable so you can open or close them as weather and wind direction indicates,
always include high vents to allow warm moist air to exit,
unless your climate is very cold, include some cross ventilation,
but avoid drafts blowing directly onto the chickens,
keep out the rain and other sources of water,
and keep the manure cleaned out.

To see how I applied these principles when designing my new Ultimate Urban Hen house, see episode 4 in my series:
   • Design and build my Ultimate urban hen hou...  

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