Can you use a heat lamp in a prefab coop?

[FC16]

Unfortunately I’ve had to switch my eggs from my broody into the incubator meaning I will have to raise them myself. I plan on having the chicks outside in a prefab coop, they will obviously need a source of heat and I was wondering the best option.
I’ve put a picture of the set up I have for them (the door of the coop will be shut for a while until they’re big enough to be outside)
Would it be safe to have a heat lamp in this coop, or would I be better off with a brooder plate or something?
My only worry with a brooder plate is they won’t get any light, would I be able to put a standard red bulb light in there?

 

[3KillerBs]

What are the exact dimensions of that space?

What ventilation does it have?

I don't get any sense of scale from the photos -- can you get interior photos with a ruler of some kind to show the size clearly? -- but there would be 2 concerns about a heat lamp in an enclosed box.

First, fire danger if it's impossible to get it far enough from all potentially combustible surfaces. Second, overheating the chicks. They need a place that is warm enough in the coldest conditions and a place that is cool enough in the warmest conditions.

 

[SueT]

I use a ceramic heat emitter, aka reptile bulb, which provides warmth but not light. It can screw into your clamp light fixture in place of a heat lamp. It is still a fire hazard, but I think a little less so. You want to make sure it is absolutely fixed in place and monitor the temp under so you know where to place it. It only warms the area directly under, as would a mama hen. They get used to the ambient temp away from it fairly quickly.

 

[FC16]

What are the exact dimensions of that space?

What ventilation does it have?

I don't get any sense of scale from the photos -- can you get interior photos with a ruler of some kind to show the size clearly? -- but there would be 2 concerns about a heat lamp in an enclosed box.

First, fire danger if it's impossible to get it far enough from all potentially combustible surfaces. Second, overheating the chicks. They need a place that is warm enough in the coldest conditions and a place that is cool enough in the warmest conditions.

I have some photos I took a few days ago, the coop still has old bedding and is a bit dirty from my broody who was using it, I’m cleaning it all out tomorrow. (I would block the nesting boxes as they probably wouldn’t need all that space and wouldn’t be able to access them easily anway)
There’s a photo of the dimensions too from the listing where I bought it.
There’s a ventilation hatch at the top, and on the other side there is too ventilation holes which were already drilled in when I got the coop.
It was too small for the bigger chickens so I thought newly hatched chicks could make use of it.
I’m worried about using a heat lamp because of the possibility of a fire starting, do you think a brooder plate would be a good idea so they can sit under it when they get cold. I’m just a bit worried that it would be unbearable to come out from underneath it as they are oitside and we have low temperatures of around 8°c at night and 12-14°c in the day

 

[FC16]

I use a ceramic heat emitter, aka reptile bulb, which provides warmth but not light. It can screw into your clamp light fixture in place of a heat lamp. It is still a fire hazard, but I think a little less so. You want to make sure it is absolutely fixed in place and monitor the temp under so you know where to place it. It only warms the area directly under, as would a mama hen. They get used to the ambient temp away from it fairly quickly.
View attachment 3285915

This sounds a good idea, would it work to have this running 24/7, along with a standard red light bulb to provide them with light?

 

[SueT]

That’s what I’ve used for several batches of chicks, for the entire 4 weeks or so. And the people who use them for reptiles probably leave it going all the time, all year…

 

[FC16]

That’s what I’ve used for several batches of chicks, for the entire 4 weeks or so. And the people who use them for reptiles probably leave it going all the time, all year…

Will it cover 5 chicks?

 

[3KillerBs]

So, the area not counting the nest boxes is about 1 square meter?

I would be reluctant to put a heat lamp into a space that small unless I was using a quite low-wattage bulb. A brooder plate would probably be a lot safer.

Don't worry about it being cold outside the brooder plate (unless it's the sort that's only rated for use down to a certain temperature). The chicks go under to get warm and then come out to roam around and do chick things before going underneath to get warm -- just like they do with a broody hen.

I've had chicks in an outdoor brooder with a heat place in temperatures not much above freezing.

I'm concerned about the ventilation. If I'm doing the metric conversion right, for a square meter of coop space there ought to be about .2 square meters of ventilation.

 

[FC16]

So, the area not counting the nest boxes is about 1 square meter?

I would be reluctant to put a heat lamp into a space that small unless I was using a quite low-wattage bulb. A brooder plate would probably be a lot safer.

Don't worry about it being cold outside the brooder plate (unless it's the sort that's only rated for use down to a certain temperature). The chicks go under to get warm and then come out to roam around and do chick things before going underneath to get warm -- just like they do with a broody hen.

I've had chicks in an outdoor brooder with a heat place in temperatures not much above freezing.

I'm concerned about the ventilation. If I'm doing the metric conversion right, for a square meter of coop space there ought to be about .2 square meters of ventilation.

How would I be able to make more ventilation from them, should I drill some holes into the coop?

 

[3KillerBs]

How would I be able to make more ventilation from them, should I drill some holes into the coop?

Here is my article on coop ventilation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/

Better to cut out large rectangles than to drill little holes -- and use the cut out piece to make a top-hinged cover to keep the weather out of the new vent.

As long as the vents are above the chickens' heads there won't be a draft. This is my Outdoor Brooder: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/run-to-outdoor-brooder-conversion.76634/