Instructions
Avoid trying to keep your barn warm in the winter and cool in the summer. The barn temperature in the winter should be no more than 5 to 10 degrees warmer than the outdoor temperature, even if the outdoor temperature is freezing. Individual horses' body temperatures can be controlled by maintaining adequate weight and blanketing. The barn temperature in the summer should only be a few degrees cooler than the outdoor temperature.
Ensure each stall has at least 1 square foot of opening to the outdoors, preferably at the eave, where the sidewall meets the roof. Hot air carrying moisture will rise and exit at an eave opening. Many barns use a slot running the entire length of the barn at the eave, providing equal distribution of fresh air down the length of the barn. Cold air entering at the eave will be mixed with warmer air and tempered before reaching the horses.
Maintain ventilation for air movement within the barn. The easiest way to do this is to use bars or wire fencing instead of wood for the top half of the stall wall, between the stall and the inside of the barn. Bars or wire fencing may also be used for the top half of walls between stalls.
Increase and decrease ventilation as needed by providing doors or windows to the outdoors in each stall. The doors and windows can be left open in the summer and closed in the winter.
How to Maintain Proper Ventilation in a Horse Barn
Good ventilation is necessary year-round for horses in a barn. Barns are continuously being filled with moisture, manure, urine and dust. In the heat of summer, ventilation provides a cooling breeze to remove excess heat from the inside of the barn. In the cold of winter, ventilation allows control of moisture, odor from manure and ammonia from urine. Without adequate ventilation, moisture buildup from bathing, the horses' respiration and barn cleaning increases condensation and causes more intense odor, more ammonia released from bedding materials and an increased risk of respiratory infection.