Moisture Problem!!

[Txchickhitch]

I live in a very humid area along the gulf coast. 100% humid is a way of life anything lower than 80% and our bodies dry out like beef jerky. Needless to say, my chicken house was constructed for such southern weather. Always hot, always humid. This winter, snow?! I had enough time to prepare my coop (metal and wood frame, tarps, wood floor) keeping in mind condensation, drafts, and all that. Watched YouTube videos of people up north giving their way of prepping. Made sure I had plenty of ventilation. I didn't seem to have a problem with moister until after the snow finally melted, five days later. We jumped back up into the 70's again. Now.... Everything is wet!!
I store my chicken meds in 5-gallon buckets, everything wet, moldy and in the trash. I picked up a bag of pine bedding soaked. We are expecting another wave of roller coaster weather this week. It has been so misty these last few days that is feels like rain, and we are going from daytime temps of 70's to 50's back and forth. My old chicken coop was a wooden structure, so I never had this problem, am I doing something wrong here? Had plenty of ventilation.

 

[nuthatched]

Any leaks? Can the weather blow in?

 

[WingItRanch]

Sounds like you're in an area similar to my climate. I'm north of Houston.

Can we see a pic of your setup?

I had 3 inches of snow during that winter storm and this past week it's been in the mid 80s but I haven't had the moisture problems you're describing.

 

[Txchickhitch]

Any leaks? Can the weather blow in?

Not that I could find. The north side of the coop is heavily wrapped with the south side lightly wrap and has the vents near the roof.

 

[Bawkbok]

Since we live in a hot and humid climate, we opted for plastic construction for the coop and an open air run. We didn't choose a typical wood construction due to the humidity factor and how it treats wood. We also don't have any issues with mites or lice or mosquitoes in the coop. Insects don't seem to want to attach themselves to the plastic. While it's not our favorite set up, it works efficiently for the climate.

We are in the 50s at night and 80s during the day - it is warmer than what is typical for this time of year. The fog is so dense it's difficult to see across the street. This is daily now and everything stays wet for much longer.

So it sounds like our weather is similar and I don't think you're doing anything wrong. It just might take a while for the wood to dry out. If you're on the coastline, you should get sea breezes that might help.

Moisture and humidity destroys everything faster in the south. I suggest keeping your meds and food in airtight containers or in the house if you can. I'm not sure the 5 gallon buckets are air tight - at least that doesn't work for us here.

 

[NagemTX]

I live in a very humid area along the gulf coast. 100% humid is a way of life anything lower than 80% and our bodies dry out like beef jerky. Needless to say, my chicken house was constructed for such southern weather. Always hot, always humid. This winter, snow?! I had enough time to prepare my coop (metal and wood frame, tarps, wood floor) keeping in mind condensation, drafts, and all that. Watched YouTube videos of people up north giving their way of prepping. Made sure I had plenty of ventilation. I didn't seem to have a problem with moister until after the snow finally melted, five days later. We jumped back up into the 70's again. Now.... Everything is wet!!
I store my chicken meds in 5-gallon buckets, everything wet, moldy and in the trash. I picked up a bag of pine bedding soaked. We are expecting another wave of roller coaster weather this week. It has been so misty these last few days that is feels like rain, and we are going from daytime temps of 70's to 50's back and forth. My old chicken coop was a wooden structure, so I never had this problem, am I doing something wrong here? Had plenty of ventilation.

I keep everything in the garage. My coops are hoopcoops so they breathe better than the enclosed ones. You need to open everything up to dry out better after any precipitation down here or you get mold and mildew. You can also use the dryer fans to help with drying everything out. They are the small blue low to the ground fans used for drying drywall and paint in rooms.

I'm south of Houston so I feel for you.

 

[texsuze]

Is the wood of your coop painted, either inside or out? I think it prolongs the life and sheds moisture better than unpainted wood. I grew up in Pasa-Get Down!-dena so I know humidity, but I swear it wasn't as bad decades ago as it is now.

During last summer I bought my chicken feed in the (expensive) smaller size bags (from TSC) and kept them in the pantry in my house after I lost an entire 50# bag of feed to mold when it was stored inside a metal garbage can inside my feed room in the barn. Winters I can keep feed in the feed room.