Ventilation in the chicken coop: a diagram and how to make a hood with your own hands

You can properly equip the ventilation in your own chicken coop on your own, and very quickly and relatively inexpensively. The main thing is to remember that this installation must ensure the flow of fresh air from the street and the removal of harmful ammonia fumes to the outside. The poultry house should always be comfortable, quiet and warm, otherwise the chickens will stop laying and start to get sick.

Why ventilation is needed in a domestic chicken coop

Many summer residents and rural residents raise chickens. Birds are kept in chicken coops. Such premises are built of brick, concrete blocks or wood materials, equipped with perches and nests for laying hens, the floor is covered with straw or sawdust.In poultry houses they conduct electricity, they make ventilation. Chickens create optimal conditions in which it will be comfortable to live and rush.

In the chicken coop, the air must be fresh. The poultry house must be kept clean so that the chickens do not start to get sick. Too stale air can lead to the spread of infection and the death of birds. If the chicken coop is ventilated through windows or doors, then in winter it will be cold inside, and chickens, as you know, stop laying at sub-zero temperatures.

The best solution is to equip the hood in the house. With the help of ventilation, fresh air will always enter the chicken coop, and the temperature inside the room will remain comfortable for the normal life of chickens.

Varieties of systems

Ventilation in the chicken coop is easy to do with your own hands. It is better to equip the ventilation system in the poultry house at the time of construction. If the chicken coop is already built, it is not difficult to provide it with a simple plastic pipe hood.

Varieties of ventilation in the poultry house and characteristics:

1. Natural. This system does not require large financial costs. It consists of two windows or openings located at the top, on opposite walls of the room. From the slightly open window, air will constantly enter the chicken coop, and then exit through the hole from the opposite side.
2. Circulation. To equip this installation, you need to buy at least two plastic pipes. Fresh air will enter from the street into one, and exit near the floor of the chicken coop. Fumes rising to the top will be expelled from the house through another pipe.
3. Mechanical. This installation will require a small financial outlay. Airing the room with this method will be carried out using an electric fan or hood. Of course, in poultry houses without electricity, such equipment will not work.First you need to conduct wiring in the chicken coop.

What kind of ventilation system to prefer, each poultry farmer decides for himself. The most common is circulation. With this installation, fresh air regularly enters the room, and the vapors are removed outside. And for the arrangement of ventilation, only two plastic pipes are needed, which can be bought at a hardware store.

Basic Requirements

When arranging ventilation in a poultry house, certain rules must be followed. Firstly, the birds in the chicken coop should be comfortable, warm and not damp. This means that the hood should eliminate the appearance of drafts, ensure a minimal but uninterrupted supply of fresh air in any weather and any season.

Air masses should not stagnate in the room, the vapors must be brought out. The air flow speed should be 2-6 meters per second.

Secondly, the ventilation unit must be silent. Chickens react sharply to sudden and loud sounds. Stress can cause a decrease in egg production. Thirdly, the ventilation unit should not be clogged. It is important that the poultry farmer has the opportunity to clean the air duct at any time.

How to make ventilation in the chicken coop with your own hands

Usually, poultry farmers equip the ventilation system in the poultry house on their own. There is nothing difficult in this. With the help of a drawn sketch or a simple diagram, you can make a hood in a chicken room with your own hands.

Natural ventilation

With this method, the ventilation of the room is carried out using two small windows located at the top, on opposite walls. Through one window, air will enter the house, and through the other it will be taken out. It is desirable in the chicken coop, near the ceiling, to put small rectangular hinged windows that open inward.

Open or circulating system

Most often, in poultry houses, an exhaust hood is installed that provides constant air circulation. For its arrangement, two pipes with a diameter of at least 20 centimeters and a length of 2 meters are needed. Air will enter the house through one duct and exit through the other. To install two pipes in the roof, make two holes for the diameter of the pipe. They should be on opposite walls. It is advisable to install the inlet pipe away from perches and nests.

One of the highways will be used for fresh air supply. The pipe is installed in such a way that it does not reach the floor by 25-35 centimeters and rises 45-55 centimeters above the roof, you can put a rain deflector at the top. The second line is intended for the withdrawal of vapors to the outside. The pipe is installed under the ceiling. The top should go out at least 35 centimeters. The bottom of a properly installed pipe is 25 centimeters from the ceiling.

When installing ventilation, you may need elbows with an angle of 90 degrees, fasteners, deflectors, dampers. For a chicken coop, they usually use simple plastic sewer pipes, which can be bought at any hardware store.

Mechanical hood

In the chicken coop, you can equip the supply and exhaust mechanical ventilation system. With its help, fresh air will regularly enter the room, and dirty air will be removed outside. The supply (inflow) is usually equipped at the bottom of the room, and the outlet (exhaust) is at the top. In some electrical appliances, cold air from the street is heated in heaters. The system itself consists of pipes and devices involved in the processing of air, located in the same housing. Such a setup is expensive. It is advisable to use it only in large poultry farms.

For personal subsidiary farming, it is easier to buy an exhaust fan and mount it in the upper window. If necessary, the device can be turned on for a couple of minutes a day.

For the winter

The poultry house should not be hot in summer and too cold in winter. We must always remember that when the temperature in the chicken coop is below 10 degrees Celsius, chickens may stop laying. Usually, space heating in winter is provided with the help of electrical appliances and biobedding. Under such conditions, a lot of ammonia fumes are formed in the poultry house. Too stale air can make birds feel unwell.

In winter, the room must be ventilated, otherwise the chickens will suffocate in ammonia fumes. True, if you open a door or window, there is a risk of letting a lot of cold air into the room and catching a cold for birds. It is better to build circulation ventilation in the house from two plastic pipes in the summer. Such an installation will provide a constant supply and output of air. It is important that the temperature in the chicken coop at any time of the year is 20-25 degrees Celsius.

Typical installation errors

You can build a ventilation unit in the house yourself. The main thing is to avoid a number of mistakes. First, the air ducts must be firmly fixed so that they do not vibrate from the wind, do not make noise and do not frighten the chickens. Secondly, the hood should be at the top, near the ceiling. The influx of fresh air should go through another pipe, lowered to the floor.

Third, the air ducts must not be damaged. For arranging ventilation, plastic pipes without cracks and holes are used. A properly installed ventilation unit will help create a comfortable environment for chickens in the house.

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