Ventilation systems in dairy barns, hog barns and avian barns help maintain a comfortable environment to keep animals healthy and productive. Animals continuously produce heat and moisture. Therefore, a ventilation system is necessary to constantly exchange warm, humid air inside the barn for cooler, drier air outside of the barn. This exchange must occur regardless of outside temperature or weather conditions. Good air exchange also removes nuisance odors and manure gases that can have negative effects on animal health and performance.
Proper ventilation is also essential to the barn’s structural integrity. Materials in poorly ventilated barns are likely to deteriorate faster than in those with good ventilation systems because inadequate air exchange keeps in corrosive gases and allows water vapor to condense on interior surfaces. The lifespan of hardware and wood structural members is often shortened as a result.
Poorly ventilated barns are easy to identify. They are damp and foul smelling and are likely to have condensation on interior building parts. However, ventilation can often be improved by increasing the size and/or number of ventilation openings to reduce these problems
Curtain systems and environmental systems from Advancing Alternatives are designed to counter these challenges. They provide natural, ventilation by utilizing a dairy structures sidewalls; as an economical cross ventilation system or in conjunction with mechanical systems and ridge ventilation.