Question about putting baby ducks outside and water

I have 6 2.5 week old ducks that are totally stinking up my spare bedroom and outgrowing their box. My husband and I built a nice big coop for them with a fenced yard and pool that drains. We ARE putting them in the coop tomorrow but how warm does it need to be before we let them loose in the yard and pool? It's only supposed to be in the high 60's low 70's tomorrow. We haven't been keeping a heat lamp on them for the past week because we also have chicks in that room and they are plenty warm enough with the heat of the room from the chicks lamp. We def plan on putting the heat lamp in the coop for a bit -esp. at night. ANY info would be greatly appreciated--I'm stressing the move just a little bit.

i moved my 3 ducks outside at 2 weeks for the same reason. we didnt use a heat lamp but they are housed with 2.5 mo old chicks to help stay warm. the temp has dropped into the low 40's and the birds have been fine outside for 2 weeks now. as long as you have the heat lamp they should be fine

I wouldnt give them access to a pool yet. They are still too small. A kitty litter pan for water will be enough. They could get soaked and chilled and they really arent smart enough at this age to get out and warm up.

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Good advice. Mine are ~3-4 weeks old now.
They like to wade in the water tray so I was thinking of putting out a snow saucer and filling it with water to see if they would like to splash around.

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That is great advice. Ducklings also get tired and could drown. Without mom's oil they get soaked and chill very easily especially with highs only in the 70's. Ducklings are hardier than chicks so their temps don't have to be as high as long but they still need warmth. Mine went out at 5 weeks almost fully feathered with temps in the 60-70's and I still put out a 60 watt bulb for heat during the day and I had another larger one for nights. I occasionally saw them huddled under it even when temps were in the 70's but not for to long. I guess it was used as a refresher for them

Trust me the move will be stressfull.... but more for you than for them They will love the move because they get more space and don't have to be in the same room as the messy chicks

The snow saucer worked great. About 5 minutes after filling it with water they found it and jumped it.

After Sitting & just observing Mommy Duck & her NEWBORN Ducklings (which are NOT even a Full Day Old yet) I gotta tell you I'm so shocked of what the ducklings were doing. They weren't sitting & sleeping in a 95 degree brooder. In the morning 1st thing the ducklings climbed in to a bucket of water & was swimming they continued to get out of the bucket of water & in the bucket of water. (by them selves) the bucket use to have ice cream in it i think it might be a 1 gallon bucket. Also the ducklings were free ranging, climbing over things even eating the big ducks food. Running around outside having what looked like a good time, and not even a FULL DAY old. Even later in the day around 6:30 pm the ducklings were still swimming. TRUST ME.. THEY ARE NOT TOO YOUNG TO SWIM AT 3 or 4 WEEKS OLD.(I'm Not saying that You shouldn't keep an eye on them) And What Do you think They Do in THE WILD About Heat & Swimming? But my "Lucky Ducky" turned 8 weeks old yesterday 5/5 and still sleeps in the house and goes outside in a little fenced area on the grass, in the morning where he totally loves to swim. I fill his sandbox/pool with slightly warm water. He has been swimming in this pool for a few weeks now & it holds about 25 gallons of water. At 2 weeks old he started swimming in a big aluminum, throw away, Turkey pan. ~Julie~

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well- when they have Mother duck, their fluff gets oil from her feathers.
Human-hatched and raised doesnt have the protective coating.

And feel free to take advice or not. I have seven muscovy babies hatched and being raised by the mother duck. I had ten. They too go in and out of the water pan. They even followed her to the pond and dabbled and swam in that for a couple minutes. Then, about day 4 or 5, my husband found three of them dead inside the kitty litter pan of water out there. Ducklings drown. Not all of them, but it happens. It happens in the wild too, I am sure, there just isnt someone there to find them.

As for heat, in the wild, well they have Mom, or they die.

X 2 mom 2em all. just lost 6 babies out of 30 even with a light in one of the brooders with this cold front that went thru. Oviously it wasnt enough for some but thankfully the bulk survived. These were 8 day olds. I find at 4 weeks most are pretty tough. But if any doubt at all keep the heat till they have feathers coming in. 6 weeks mostly.

My baby pool is still in the dining room with the 9 ducks. The six chicks are confined while the ducky darlings roam free. While it is warm in my dining room, the ducks have total pool access. They seem to like to swim at night. I do have a ramp to let them get into the pool, and most importantly, I have rocks inside the pool so they can get out. I understand ducks can tire and drown. While the Pekins can stand flat-footed, the mallards have to swim.

This weekend, I am planning to re-locate the pool out-of-doors. I may add hot water if it is chilly out. We are expecting 70s. In any case, I will return the ducks to the heated dining room if I see any indication of chill.