Adding ventilation to shed

[My Gal Pals]

We recently purchased a home with an existing shed that had been converted to a coop. The inside is roughly 9x9 and 10’ from floor to the highest point of the ceiling.
I believe the previous chickens used the inside crossbars (which are 6’ off the ground) to roost on.
I am very excited to have such a large structure for my (future) chickens, but there is NO VENTILATION! I’ve spent lots of time cleaning/gutting most of it and it gets very hot and hard to breathe even with the doors open.
What is the best way to add ventilation to this shed? There is no roof overhang.

We have cold winters (it’s our first year here so I’m unsure how cold but I know we will get snow) and hot summers (many days in upper 90s so far)

I plan on making many changes to ensure their comfort (adding shade to the run, nesting boxes, making it easier to reach the roosts) but the ventilation is my main concern at this time

 

[Debbie292d]

That's sure going to be a nice coop for you and your chickens! It's awesome!

The roosts are way too high for our chickens though. Depending on what birds you're putting in there, I would run a roost the long way (so it's not in your way?) a few feet from the floor.

We have silkies and made the mistake of going 5' for the top of the nest boxes. They have a ramp to get up there. We should have done 3 or 4', but it's okay.

For ventilation, I see no windows you could open to stick a fan in. We have an industrial digitally controlled exhaust fan in our coop with a vent in a door on the opposite side of it so when it's too hot or too humid, it comes on. If you don't want to put windows in, perhaps you could put a vent up high on each end that would at least get some air movement up there.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Gambrel roofs are tough to ventilate, you may need to consider awnings or top hinged wood panels over vents to protect them from the elements, something like this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/coop-ventilation.1452812/page-2#post-24868607 Obviously snow load would be something to take into consideration.

If you're planning on doing a roofed run, then the wall facing into the run would be an ideal spot for bigger vents as the run's roof will help protect the vents.

Windows would be ideal for natural light plus extra ventilation in summer, especially if they're close to roost height, so you can get some cross breezes over the area the chickens sleep. I would add roosts at a more reasonable height though, 6' is doable for smaller, lighter birds but difficult on heavier breeds, plus it makes them more inaccessible if you ever need to access the birds at night for health checks or whatnot.

 

[aart]

Gambrel roofs are tough to ventilate

Pretty much impossible, unless you do this:

 

[My Gal Pals]

Pretty much impossible, unless you do this:
View attachment 3595964

Thank you! I appreciate the visual.
Looks like I may have my work cut out for me.

 

[My Gal Pals]

Gambrel roofs are tough to ventilate, you may need to consider awnings or top hinged wood panels over vents to protect them from the elements, something like this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/coop-ventilation.1452812/page-2#post-24868607 Obviously snow load would be something to take into consideration.

If you're planning on doing a roofed run, then the wall facing into the run would be an ideal spot for bigger vents as the run's roof will help protect the vents.

Windows would be ideal for natural light plus extra ventilation in summer, especially if they're close to roost height, so you can get some cross breezes over the area the chickens sleep. I would add roosts at a more reasonable height though, 6' is doable for smaller, lighter birds but difficult on heavier breeds, plus it makes them more inaccessible if you ever need to access the birds at night for health checks or whatnot.

Thank you. I was thinking the roost was quite high but I didn’t even consider them being inaccessible if I may need to reach them. Thank you for your insight!

 

[My Gal Pals]

That's sure going to be a nice coop for you and your chickens! It's awesome!

The roosts are way too high for our chickens though. Depending on what birds you're putting in there, I would run a roost the long way (so it's not in your way?) a few feet from the floor.

We have silkies and made the mistake of going 5' for the top of the nest boxes. They have a ramp to get up there. We should have done 3 or 4', but it's okay.

For ventilation, I see no windows you could open to stick a fan in. We have an industrial digitally controlled exhaust fan in our coop with a vent in a door on the opposite side of it so when it's too hot or too humid, it comes on. If you don't want to put windows in, perhaps you could put a vent up high on each end that would at least get some air movement up there.

I think I will add windows for extra summer ventilation and, of course, sunlight. And I’m thinking some vents up at the very top may be my best option.
Thank you for responding!

 

[DLA]

We recently purchased a home with an existing shed that had been converted to a coop. The inside is roughly 9x9 and 10’ from floor to the highest point of the ceiling.
I believe the previous chickens used the inside crossbars (which are 6’ off the ground) to roost on.
I am very excited to have such a large structure for my (future) chickens, but there is NO VENTILATION! I’ve spent lots of time cleaning/gutting most of it and it gets very hot and hard to breathe even with the doors open.
What is the best way to add ventilation to this shed? There is no roof overhang.

We have cold winters (it’s our first year here so I’m unsure how cold but I know we will get snow) and hot summers (many days in upper 90s so far)

I plan on making many changes to ensure their comfort (adding shade to the run, nesting boxes, making it easier to reach the roosts) but the ventilation is my main concern at this time

You could try putting in an inner door something like this I built for my shed that I converted to a coop. I'm not great at building things but this door wasn't that hard to make or install if you measure everything on both sides of the door because these wooden sheds can settle and warp a little.

 

[perkolator]

Because it's got a shingle roof I'd consider turbine vent on top (because they pull air without any electricity), metal gable vents on both sides, a few windows and maybe even windows in the doors (save cut out wood from windows to make baffles to install during winter when it's snowing)

 

[saysfaa]

Searching the net for climate in your town -typical low is 20's F and it rarely gets below 5F ... that is close enough to my upper midwest temperatures for what I do to work for you also. I leave one side of the chicken space open all the time. Just replace the sheathing with hardware cloth and leave the rest of the building closed in the winter. The air moves enough to carry the moisture out and fresh air in without moving fast enough to be a draft ruffling their feathers or carry the snow into the building.

In the summer, you may want cross ventilation. I do and it is not quite as warm here, I think.

I open the ridge vent. That can be added to an existing roof easily. Get the kind designed for snow country. Last winter, I closed off the ridge vent with scraps of something similar to lightweight tar paper. A cupula would work better but be more difficult to install.

Next most effective is windows. They can be very easy - just hardware cloth holes for the summer. My two are about 24"x30" each - pretty big. I built frames for the hardware cloth thinking I would take the screens out for winter but the single pane "barn windows" just barely fit into the screen frames so I leave them. The barn windows were less expensive than buying glass or plexiglass panes.

Sometimes I leave the people doors open.

Some or all of those three in addition to an open side may be enough for summer ventilation. Or eave vents may be done too - like aart's diagram.