# Ventilation?



## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

I am a second year flyer and needless to say I did horrible last year, and I am kind of off to a rough start this year. I am trying to improve my loft little by little and my main focus right now is ventilation. I am confused about this whole ventilate but don’t create a draft. I have a slanted steal roof that I left a two inch gap at top of loft so warm air go’s out. I want to put vents in at the floor but won’t this create a draft? My loft is 6' by 12' I currently have 3 sections but will be going to 2 sections. Any ideas would be great; pics would be helpful also so I can see what you are talking about. I just don’t understand how to ventilate without creating drafts.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

your loft is close to my size I have 8 x 16 for one loft. what I did was cut out some "windows" and put wire on them, but they also have a door with a latch to shut in the winter winds.plus I have trap pop hole doors on all three sections and aviaries under them so the roof of the aviary serves as the landing board into the loft..so that side with the trap door and the door to go out in the avairy is nice a ventilated..but I did add a side window with wire and two back small rectangle wired windows in the back under the lean to.. here is a picture of the loft..but not of the wired windows in the back..but it give an idea of where the openings are.
well it is not the best picture..but on the left side of the picture you can see the settling cages on the landing board and the aviary under that..and the side "window" ,,I cover that one with plastic when the chill hits.. here is the link to the picture.. also check back allot as there are allot of folks here who have great ideas ..and all of them may be different. 

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/album.php?albumid=341&pictureid=7782


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## Jaye (Mar 13, 2008)

It would help to tell us what part of the country you live in, so we can figure the climate.

Do you feel the temp. in the loft gets too warm ???

I agree that whipping up a vent system which can be opened and closed is a great idea. This way, you can cross ventilate,probably create some drafts, but by closing off the secondary vents the drafts would stop and never be constant.

The passive eave vents you have are good....you just wanna create some cross-ventilation thru the space, because vents just in the eave are not going to do that.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

I live in Northern MI just North of Cadillac, thank you for your comments


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## Hareloft (Jun 26, 2011)

I hace vents on the 3 small vents on the west wall and 1 36 by 20 inch vent in the east wall with a fan blowing the air out of this one. They are at floor level. I also have open aviarys, and 2inch vents around the whole roof. In the sumer my loft has a breeze blowing through it 24/7, on the calmest day it will blow a lighter out. This keeps it dust free well as dust free as possible and dry.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

how is it in the winter?


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## Hareloft (Jun 26, 2011)

I cover the vents in the west side and shut the fan offin the winter its not breezy then it just keeps the air moving. The most important things with pigeons is to have lots of ventilation lots of sun light and keep the loft dry. Drafts only hurt if they are blowing directly on babys.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

Hareloft said:


> I cover the vents in the west side and shut the fan offin the winter its not breezy then it just keeps the air moving. The most important things with pigeons is to have lots of ventilation lots of sun light and keep the loft dry. Drafts only hurt if they are blowing directly on babys.


ok thank you for your suggestions and the info given


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## redleg23 (May 6, 2009)

I recommend the DVD, Secrets of Champions IV Winning Lofts. This video thoroughly explains loft designs of famous racing fanciers.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

redleg23 said:


> I recommend the DVD, Secrets of Champions IV Winning Lofts. This video thoroughly explains loft designs of famous racing fanciers.


Thank you I just recently bought the collection 1 through 4 and that is what got me into the whole ventilation thing in the first place just confused on how to ventilate without creating drafts.


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## Hareloft (Jun 26, 2011)

As long as you keep the vents low the draft will be on the floor and off the nest and you will have no problems. Look how wild pigeons nest under bridges its all open with the nest tucked in a corner and you couldn't get one of those birds sick if you tried.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

Hareloft said:


> As long as you keep the vents low the draft will be on the floor and off the nest and you will have no problems. Look how wild pigeons nest under bridges its all open with the nest tucked in a corner and you couldn't get one of those birds sick if you tried.


thank you. . .


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

You just don't want a draft blowing directly on the birds.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

OK, thank you guys for the help looks like I'll go ahead and put the vents at floor level along the back of my loft.


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## Hareloft (Jun 26, 2011)

I would put at least one in the front so the air can move. This way dust and moisture will be removed from your loft.


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

Hareloft said:


> I would put at least one in the front so the air can move. This way dust and moisture will be removed from your loft.


I have a two inch gap at ceiling all the way around the loft will this work?


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## almondman (Aug 22, 2009)

Only if it doesn't allow drafts to hit your birds. How much space between the top of nest boxes and the vents? Can birds roost on top of nest boxes where drafts might get to them? How much of an overhang does your roof have to prevent blowing rain from getting in?


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## coldskins (Jan 24, 2011)

almondman said:


> Only if it doesn't allow drafts to hit your birds. How much space between the top of nest boxes and the vents? Can birds roost on top of nest boxes where drafts might get to them? How much of an overhang does your roof have to prevent blowing rain from getting in?


I have about a six inch over hang front and back and about a two inch overhang on the ends of the loft. there is about 12 to 14 inches from the top of nest box's to the vents at ceiling. they currently can access the top of nest box's but this access is about to be eliminated for ease of cleaning. the over hang is trimmed out also with one by three board I have not had any issues with rain or snow blowing into the loft.


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## almondman (Aug 22, 2009)

Sounds good. It should be okay then.


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## Shan (Feb 4, 2012)

Lots of good ideas here. Good question, BTW, and one that is MOST important for any type of pigeons. I'll add my quarter's worth.

When I lived in Pennsylvania I bought two wooden prefab storage sheds for my racing lofts. They were 8' X 12' affairs with barn style roofs. With all of the humidity of that region, I decided that an adaptation of the ventilation systems I had seen in Holland would be perfect. They used dropped ceilings with the back 2/3rds over the nest boxes and perches solid wood. The front 1/3 was a sliding solid wood panel under wooden slats. I used a solid wooden panel under 1" chicken wire. The wooden panel simply moved on two wooden slats nailed to the 2 x 4 rafters.

The key to using a dropped ceiling ventilation system is that the back wall of the loft has NO vents, except for above the solid rear ceiling. Mine was a 4 inch vent along the entire back of the loft. Inside the loft you couldn't see the vent as it was above the dropped ceiling.

The other vents I used were in the front of the loft at FLOOR LEVEL. These were the standard vents available at any home improvement store used for heating or cooling applications--steel vents with mire mesh backs. I had two 12" vents on either side of the doors at the front of the loft. In addition, I cut my door in half and adapted it as a Dutch styel door, meaning I could open the entire door or only the top half of the door. The top half of the door was fitted with a 1/2" hardware cloth screen for additional ventilation in warm weather or the occasional sunny Winter day. The lofts faced South.

The ventilation worked like this. Air in at the floor vents, moving towards the back of the loft, but then up through the screen and into the dead space above the dropped ceiling. From there it moved out the back of the loft. There was NEVER a direct draft on the nest boxes or the perches. Remember that warm air rises. This is how the ventilation system works. There was never any stangnant air, and, in hot weather, I could open the top half of the Dutch door to ramp up the air flow a bit. Sounds more complicated thAn it is. But . . . it is the system I saw in lofts of all sizes in Holland in the dead of Winter. 

Here’s an example of the ceiling vent system with the vent in the middle of the loft ceiling. My vents, as I have noted, were in the front 1/3rd of the loft ceiling.

http://www.siegelpigeons.com/news/news-Norman-Ventilation.html

And in the 6th photo down is an example of the vents in the front of the loft, but NOT with sliding panels in the ceiling.

http://www.b-hermes.de/en/?Pictures:G&amp;S_Verkerk

Just remember to use what works in your loft. Have you EVER tested your ventilation? Use some incense sticks or cones and TEST it to make sure it is working like you THINK it is working. Don’t guess. Good luck in finding the solution. Your birds depend on it to race well.


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