What are the main types of common hen houses? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?

Farmers don't need mechanical reproduction to build chicken coops. They should design, build or improve the henhouse according to their own actual situation and the characteristics of healthy breeding of laying hens. They should decide the structure and materials of the henhouse according to the strength and convenience of controlling the internal environment of the henhouse, and comprehensively consider the building types of the henhouse in combination with factors such as controlling the epidemic situation.

Common hen houses mainly have the following types:

(1) Open a henhouse

The open henhouse relies on natural ventilation, and the lighting is natural lighting plus artificial auxiliary lighting. There are two kinds of henhouses in this way, one with windows and the other with shutters. The windowed henhouse opens and closes the windows according to the weather change to adjust the indoor temperature and ventilation; Curtain henhouse takes the tent as the wall, and the temperature in the henhouse is adjusted by rolling up and putting down the tent. The height of the henhouse is generally required to be above 2.4 meters, and it is higher in hot areas. The length and width of the henhouse depend on the feeding quantity, equipment specifications, operation convenience and terrain restrictions. The roof is usually tiled, and the roof is designed with gas buildings. There should be a large area of ventilation belt on both sides of the henhouse.

The cost of open henhouse is low, and the requirements for design, building materials, construction technology and internal setting are relatively simple. However, the henhouse is greatly influenced by the external environment, and the temperature regulation effect is not obvious, especially the light and sexual maturity of chickens are difficult to control. The seasonality of production is extremely obvious, which is not conducive to balanced production and normal supply in the market, and is not applicable in cold areas.

According to the different roof structures, open chicken coops are usually divided into six types: single-slope chicken coops, double-slope chicken coops, bell-tower chicken coops, semi-bell-tower chicken coops, arched chicken coops and double-slope chicken coops (Figure 2-4).

Figure 2-4 Schematic Diagram of Rooftop Form of Henhouse

1. Single slope type 2. Double slope type 3. Bell tower type 4. Half bell tower type 5. Arch type 6. Double slope manifold type

(2) Closed henhouse

Comprise a windowless shed and a windowless shed, and the enclosed henhouse adopts manual or microcomputer control equipment to adjust the internal environment of the henhouse to meet the needs of the best growth conditions of chickens. The ventilation of the closed henhouse depends entirely on the fan. In summer, we use the wet curtain ventilation system to cool down, and in winter, we don't provide special heat, but use the heat emitted by the chicken itself to keep the temperature in the chicken house within a relatively suitable range. The lighting in the henhouse is completed by adjusting the lighting intensity and lighting time of the lighting equipment at any time according to the lighting needs of chickens of different ages.

The roof and walls of the closed henhouse have good thermal insulation ability, which can eliminate or reduce the influence of some unfavorable natural factors on chickens, such as severe cold and heat, strong wind and heavy rain, artificially control the sexual maturity of chickens and provide more suitable living and production environment for chickens; The henhouse is well sealed around, which can basically eliminate the way of introducing diseases from natural media; It can artificially control the light, which is beneficial to control the sexual maturity of chickens and stimulate egg laying, and is also convenient for chickens to implement measures such as feeding restriction and forced molting. In cold season, the chicken's physical activity is limited, the heat emission is reduced, and the feed reward is improved.

The investment in closed henhouse construction and equipment is large, which requires higher building standards and more auxiliary equipment; High feeding density makes it easier for chickens to infect each other with diseases; Ventilation, lighting, feeding and drinking water all depend on electricity, and reliable power supply is needed, otherwise the power failure will seriously affect chicken production.

(3) Open and closed henhouses

Adjust the internal environment of the henhouse by opening the window, and rely on natural ventilation in mild climate season; In the case of unfavorable climate, close the windows of the north and south walls, and open the air inlet and fan for longitudinal ventilation. Open and closed henhouses can make full use of natural resources and realize manual adjustment under bad weather conditions. The ventilation form combines horizontal ventilation with vertical ventilation, so they have dual functions of open and closed henhouses.

(4) Other types of henhouses

① Adobe wall or adobe wall chicken coop: it is suitable for arid areas in northwest China. Low cost, but inconvenient disinfection. (2) Chicken coops for the transformation of old houses: old idle houses, workshops, warehouses, etc. In all places, as long as the conditions are suitable, it can be used to raise chickens with a little modification. (3) Using civil air defense fortifications or basements to transform into chicken coops: this way, the temperature is relatively stable, less affected by seasonal changes, and it is warm in winter and cool in summer. However, problems such as ventilation, lighting and dehumidification must be solved before chickens can be raised. (4) Shed chicken coop: In the late 1980s, chicken coop construction was introduced into vegetable greenhouses, which greatly shortened the construction period and reduced the construction cost. In the use process, the skeleton is changed to bamboo, and the top is covered with thermal insulation materials such as straw curtains, which further reduces the cost and enhances the heatstroke prevention and cold resistance effects (Figure 2-5). If the structure of this henhouse is too simple, the control ability of indoor environment is poor, which will affect the production performance of chickens in winter and summer.

Figure 2-5 Plastic shed chicken house