Straw-lofts
J.W. Farmer, Greenwood County Agricultural Agent, wrote this article for the Nov. 27, 1930 edition of The Eureka Herald.
“Several straw-lofts, the best-known means of ventilating and warming poultry houses, have been added this year. Rawlings Bros. of Eureka have completed a 20x40 foot straw-loft poultry house and Ray Prather of Utopia, is building a 20x50 foot tile straw-loft house. There are at least six other houses in the county.
“What is a straw-loft house? It is merely a layer of straw, with a pair of ventilators placed over it. The straw is placed overhead and high enough so the owner can walk under it. The layer of straw allows air to circulate, but makes it circulate slowly. Therefore the house is well ventilated but there are no drafts. The straw also takes up a large amount of moisture. This is very important because the breath from poultry is extremely moist, and causes dampness and cold in the average house. The ventilators are placed in the ends of the building, over the straw. They make it possible for air circulation to take place and dry out the straw during fair weather. Straw-loft houses are warm because they are dry and because the straw holds the heat down. The temperature of the strawloft house is ten to fifteen degrees higher in the winter than other houses, so frozen combs (fleshy growth on the top of the chicken head) are very rare occurrences.
“The straw-loft can be added to nearly all poultry houses with little or no expense. Some people tack woven wire below the joists to hold up the straw, while others lay 1x4 boards, spaced about two inches apart, on top of the joists. Old wire can be used if necessary, or poles, old boards, or brush can be used. Prairie hay can be substituted for straw, but the straw is considerably better. With a little scheming every poultry owner can make a straw-loft. It’s worth the effort because it keeps the chickens healthier, reduces the feed bill by saving heat and increases egg production.”
