Any Northerners NOT Use A Heat Lamp? - Page 4

you're video looks like what we're going to have here by this weekend... I live in Michigan and don't heat my coops. Nor do I insulate, just open stud walls and exterior 1/2 plywood, no problems yet!

Heated dog dish. We got a large one free on craigslist. It's pretty large for 4 chickens and a pain to empty. We just got smart and now we put another dish inside of the heated bowl and put the water into that dish. Makes it so much easier to empty out and keep clean.

The first year I had chickens, I provided a heat lamp.  My birds got frost bite.   did research,did not provide heat the following years, no problem.  For water, I use a heated dog dish like other ppl.    When I did not have that, I only changed water out twice a day.  i still do this for my quail and rabbits.  The horses, sheep,  and cow, have heated water.

My barn is not insulated, but is ventilated.

That's been our hardest problem...Waterers are half 5-gal buckets. We usually fill them up in the morning and if it freezes during the day, we pour warm water on the top and it melts the frozen underneath. We do this as needed.

Our first winter with chickens and were worried, but so far so good. It's been below 20 for the past few days here and we live where we get a wicked northeast wind alot.  No insulation and no heat.  Have a 40 watt bulb on to help with egg laying and bought a metal poultry water heater base and a double walled waterer that sits on that. So far no freezing water.  They are going out even when it's brrrrr out!

I live in Central PA - and it has been COLD. Not only do I NOT use a heat lamp, I don't even wrap my coop up in plastic. They are as exposed as possible. My SQ white bantams are kept in a open air chicken tractor with a heated dog bowl all year around. Here's are pics from 2 days ago. They are fine:

eta: our birds have 3 fluorescent bulbs in the coop that stay on all the time.

As you can see, no frostbite.

no heat here, I just add corn to the menu

I have no heat in my coops at all and no insulation other than a thick layer of pine shavings. So far (knock on wood) all my chickies appear fine, even the big floppy headed leghorns and the 12 weekers. My bantams (7 weeks old) are in my sunroom which is marginally warmer but still below freezing. They also seem fine, pecking around.

I have vents everywhere and heated dog bowls for water. It was 2F today. I may eat my words in a while but so far they all seem less cold than I am! Seven eggs yesterday out of my eight layers, and one of those really doesn't count as I think her plumbing is on the fritz.

No heat on this NE Indiana farm.  We continue to provide ad libitum access to feed and water.  We use a heated fountain base to ensure water remains liquid.  We also have a 60 watt light bulb on a timer to provide 14 hours of light so we continue egg production.

Jim

This is why i see no point in heating! If your chickens are used to say 40 degrees and the power goes out during the night. Come morning they are at 5 -10 degrees maybe? Some places maybe colder! THat would be quite a shock to their bodies! Not to mentoin how dangerous a heat lamp can be if not put up/used correctly.