How to make ventilation in an animal shed: requirements and nuances of arranging ventilation

In autumn, winter, and most of spring, animals are constantly indoors. Their waste products emit a dangerous substance - ammonia. In addition, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the barn is significantly increased. Agree that constant ventilation is not an option, especially in twenty-degree frost. But ventilation in an animal barn is just as important as heating.

Drafts are not the best way to affect the health and offspring of animals. At the same time, air circulation is indispensable. Therefore, in addition to building insulation, it is also necessary to take care of the ventilation system. The latter should provide normal microclimatic conditions, including air temperature, cleanliness and freshness.

In this article, we examined the basic rules of ventilation in animal sheds, provided standard values ​​for temperature and humidity indicators for rooms in which animals are kept. We also described the procedure for arranging an effective air exchange system, providing instructions with visual photos and useful videos.

The value of the microclimate in the barn

Often, the owners do not bother to create optimal conditions in the barn. In the best case, holes are made in the wall in the room.

But one cannot underestimate the importance of oxygen indoors, because animals must live in an insulated and well-ventilated shed. In the construction of which it is desirable to use sawdust, hay or straw. Materials of natural origin perfectly absorb and retain moisture.

Maintaining proper air exchange reduces the incidence of animals, improves the indicators of weight gain and the number of offspring.

A grille should be installed on the ventilation holes. A device made of metal or plastic will help protect against rodents. Using the valve installed inside, you can adjust the supply of fresh air in winter

In the warm season, to prevent the appearance of a musty smell in the room and the spread of mold can be done by ventilation.

In winter, opening doors and windows is undesirable. After all, the temperature should be maintained within + 18- + 22 degrees Celsius. Deviation of indicators from the norm increases the risk of colds.

Common mistakes in construction

The barn can be a separate building or attached to the house building. As a rule, a building is built on the principle of "how to save." It is often erected independently and in a short time.

Mold spores can be prevented by vents. The so-called vents should be placed around the perimeter of the barn

There are several main problems of such an object:

1. Cheap foundation. As the basis of the premises use blocks, tires with concrete. In the best case, make a strip foundation. Waterproofing and insulation of this part of the building is practically not done. And this causes the free transfer of cold and moisture from the soil to the room.
2. Paul often remains earthen. If you do not raise it a little higher, the air inside will be cold in winter.
3. There is also no external waterproofing, wall insulation. Or they do it in the simplest way, with big mistakes. As a result, significant expenses will be required for heating, and the building cools down very quickly.
4. Inadequate natural light or its complete absence. One small window is made in the barn. And the importance of sunlight is difficult to overestimate, because ultraviolet radiation repels mold.

The presence in the construction of all of these shortcomings or part of them leads to an increase in humidity, a violation of air exchange, which is manifested by a complete absence or lack of fresh air, severe cold.

Destructive effects on the building

The listed violations will affect directly the economic unit:

1. High humidity and regular temperature changes, especially if the structure is built of wooden materials, will accelerate the destruction of the barn. Finishing will also suffer, of course, if it was made. Adverse climatic conditions lead to spoilage, shedding of building materials. It will be necessary to carry out restoration repairs.
2. The spread of mold also leads to the destruction of the room. Disputes can be transferred to other premises, including a residential building.

Insufficient air exchange causes the accumulation of gases from manure. And this is fraught with the creation of an unpleasant odor, which is extremely dangerous for human health.

Mold on the walls and ceiling increases the incidence of animals. In addition, milk yields in cows are reduced, calves and piglets gain weight worse, the productivity of other animals decreases

If part of the barn will be used as a warehouse, the property can quickly deteriorate.

This applies in particular to wood products, in particular wood and furniture, metal objects prone to rust. The fabric will also suffer, for example, old clothes, which are often stored in barns.

Standards and principles of ventilation

In the non-residential premises where they will keep things, the ventilation system should be a multiple of 1. This means that within 60 minutes the air in the barn should completely change. Ventilation according to this technology should have a capacity that exceeds the volume by 15-30 points. If objects that become unusable due to a high level of humidity are stored inside, the frequency of circulation should be increased by one and a half or two times. For more details on warehouse ventilation, we reviewed this stuff.

In the case of small private farms, when the premises contain various animals - from bulls to sheep, the air exchange rate should be 4.Owners of mini-farms, where there are only two or three cows or ten rabbits, can also use this indicator.

But for a large number of cattle, creating optimal conditions involves not only focusing on air exchange rate. In this case, they are important temperature and humidity. The optimum humidity level is about 80. You can determine the coefficient using a psychrometer.

The level of indicators will differ for different animals - for example, the standard temperature of cattle is 8-10 degrees with a humidity level of 70%. More details about barn ventilation can be found in our other article.

Norms of microclimatic conditions, including temperature, relative humidity and gas concentration for keeping cows in the autumn-winter period

The calculated air temperature in the premises for the maintenance of sows and boars, young animals, the maximum and minimum levels of relative humidity

The data presented are used in large livestock complexes with modern ventilation and heating systems. In a conventional barn in a summer cottage, creating similar conditions will be much more expensive and more difficult.

Arrangement of natural air exchange

This option can be called the simplest and cheapest, but also the least effective. Indeed, natural ventilation largely depends on the location of the building, as well as weather conditions.

You can equip it as follows:

1. Air is supplied through a gap under a door or window. Also, the ventilation system may include supply valvelocated at the bottom of the wall or grille in the door.
2. As a hood, it is desirable to use a pipe that is led outside through a roof or wall under a ceiling. The outer hole should be located above the ridge of the roof. To improve traction on top of the hole should be installed deflector.

But the natural ventilation scheme is far from suitable for all rooms. In some cases, it will only exacerbate the problems.

It is undesirable to choose this method of air exchange in the following cases:

1. If the barn area is more than 30 square meters.
2. Around the building are higher buildings or branchy trees grow. Exhaust ventilation will not work well if the area on which the utility yard is located is in a lowland.
3. There is no foundation or it is not waterproofed and insulated.
4. Indoors, a high level of humidity. With natural ventilation, humidity will increase even more during rainfall.
5. Moisture condenses on the ceiling and walls of the building, which means that the problem can only be solved by external insulation of the building.

It is also undesirable to use only this type of ventilation if animals will live indoors all year round or if objects that are afraid of mold are stored.

Forced ventilation circuit

The mechanical system provides forced air circulation regardless of weather conditions.

In sheds with a small area, ventilation can be equipped with your own hands: mount a fan on the hood, and leave the inflow natural.

In a room with a large area, for example, from thirty square meters, or if the building is very elongated, several inflow and exhaust points can be made. It is very important to "get rid" of all the angles in which air stagnates

In a barn for animals, it is not so difficult to make ventilation on your own:

1. Inflow is provided through a window or slot under the door. At the bottom of the wall, you can install a supply valve or mount the grille in the door.
2. To remove air, a pipe is used, which is preferably installed through a wall under the ceiling or roof. A duct fan should be placed inside. The element should be covered with a protective cap from above.

The easiest way to install the exhaust pipe yourself is as follows - bring the pipe through the wall under the ceiling. In this case, you will not need to seal the hole passing through the roof. To mount a forced hood in a small shed should be opposite the tributary, that is, on the opposite wall.

In fact, the only difference compared to the natural system is the installation of a fan in the exhaust pipe. A device with a small capacity is enough for a small square barn, the price of such an aggregate will be about 5 thousand rubles. Even with its continuous operation, the cost of electricity will amount to only a couple of hundred rubles a month.

Automation of ventilation systems in the barn

It is advisable to improve the ventilation system if animals are constantly in the room or valuable property is stored.

There are several options on how to make ventilation in the barn:

• using a humidity sensor;
• using a temperature sensor.

If you configure the start of the exhaust fan using a humidity sensor, then in this case the device will turn off at a normal psychrometer value. And increase the speed if, with an acceptable value for air humidity, the fan runs at minimum speed.

For small sheds, a fan with a temperature sensor or humidity sensor is optional. Or at least this should be done when absolutely necessary.

You can start or stop the fan and change its speed using the temperature sensor. Especially if the building will be used for keeping animals. In the summer, the fan will turn on or increase the speed during the heat.

In winter, on the contrary, when the temperature in the room decreases, the fan stops working at all or slows down.

There are several ways to maintain the temperature at the proper level:

1. Ventilation units are combined with heaters - steam, water and electric.
2. The heating and ventilation device is installed in a special chamber or under the guise of a monoblock directly in the room.
3. Thermal energy can also be saved with the help of heat recovery plants built into the ventilation system.
4. By installing a supply and exhaust ventilation with recuperation and heat recirculation.

After installing the ventilation, it is important to test it before starting operation.

Violation of the installation of mechanical fans can increase their noise to 100-120 dB. The intensity of a properly adjusted system should be on average 57-80 dB

Recommendations for choosing the type of ventilation

Each type of air exchange has its own advantages and disadvantages, several factors should be considered before installation:

1. The amount of incoming fresh air into the room - in the warm season, the flow increases.
2. The impact on the ventilation system of natural conditions, including the average annual temperature and wind direction.
3. The location of the barn is in a lowland or on a hill.
4. The size of the utility room.
5. Number of livestock.

And only after finding out the climatic features and how the air circulates inside the building, you can begin to install one of the types of ventilation systems.

Do you have a bird in your household besides animals? In this case, we recommend that you read our other article about the device. chicken coop ventilation.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

Useful information on how to deal with high humidity in the barn:

More about the principles of natural ventilation in the plot:

Without a ventilation system, maintaining the proper level of humidity, air temperature, and freshness in the room is problematic. To ensure proper air exchange in the animal shed, it is necessary to equip the ventilation system, taking into account the regulatory requirements for the room.

If you have encountered any difficulties in creating optimal microclimatic conditions, tell your story. You can leave a comment in the block under the text. Here, ask your questions regarding the proper arrangement of ventilation in a barn or utility rooms.