Cold chickens.....when to use heat lamp?

[Smitty's Farm]

OK, I have a flock of 16 chickens (RIR, SLW, & EE) that are almost 9 months old. I lock them up tight in their coop every night for protections from predators & elements. My coop is about 8 x 10 and insulated. I'm using deep litter method. On super cold nights I give them scratch to help heat them up. I usually leave one window slightly cracked for ventilation, but I shut it tonight. There is small vent holes up high in the front of my coop above the main door.

Today is super cold. The water froze in the run & in the coop earlier today. I don't have a water heater yet, but I'm looking for one that will work with my plastic waters, b/c I didn't want to have to switch to galvanized ones.

It's about 20 degrees F outside, but it says it feels like 4 degrees. Inside coop is about 32-34 degrees F...just barely above freezing. The wind is blowing about 26 mph. On other cold nights the coop seem to hold at 38-40 degrees on the inside, but I guess it's the wind causing it to drop lower??????

Tonight I fed them some warm oatmill about 45 min before bedtime to help warm them up. I don't know if it was a good idea or not b/c all the EE got it all in their muffs on their face, then water was sticking to them when they were drinking. I had to dry their little faces so they wouldn't have popcycle muffs.

I have not used heat yet, b/c I wanted them to acclimate to the weather. This is the coldest inside the coop it's ever been. They seem so miserable today. Hubby even felt sorry for them today and wrapped a tarp around 2 sides of their run to help block the wind.

What is the coldest temp in the coop before you use a heat lamp? I have an infrared heat Lamp 125W, but hubby says he didn't think it would warm anything up in there. I also have a 250W infrared clear heat lamp.

I know chickens are pretty resilent and they huddle together to keep warm, but just want to make sure they are warm enough.

At what temp do you experienced chicken owners use a heat lamp?

Suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks! Worried chicken mom.

 

[speckledhen]

What you don't want is for them to get used to really toasty temps then for you to have a power outage and plunge them into bitter cold that they are not used to. That's one way to really get sick birds.

 

[DougD]

There are ceramic heat bulbs that you can get. You use them the same way you would heat lamps, but they don't give off light. I have a 250 watt and a 150 watt in my main coup which is well insulated. They are plugged in to a thermostat regulated outlet, so they turn on at 32 degrees, and off at 45.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I have been around the sun 63 times.
In Canada I am subject to -40º cold snaps. I do NOT heat my coop. Murphy's law says my birds will find out what -40 is all about when my hydro goes out. Regardless what you decide feed extra Corn over the winter you will not be sorry.
Lost birds to heat never to cold.
Works for me.

That being said I just get cold snaps lasting a few days or so. However climate similar to Saskatchewan Canada where the average daily winter temperature is -22º C lately has made me question my own beliefs.

I know if I was raising birds in Saskatchewan and I noticed my flock in distress due to cold I would not hesitate to provide them with heat. One has to take a daily inventory on ones birds to gauge their over all health and well being. One has to pay due diligence when you are responsible for your flock.

I consider myself somewhat of an expert in my own area. That being said you can not be closed minded to others who are dealing with different challenges.

 

[jjthink]

I was worried about getting them too acclimated to heat but they seemed so miserable even at 40 or below that I now use a ceramic heat lamp in their coop. They seem so happy for it. If there's ever a power outage I guess I'll have to bring them in the house!

I know having heat at night probably makes the daytime temps harder to adjust to outdoors yet I hate to see them puffed and miserable 24/7. I only have 2 (1 roo, 1 hen) so they don't have the bennies of body heat that many feathered ones together would enjoy.

JJ

 

[countryboy]

here is one of the heated water links
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=14414&p=1
suburbanhomesteader posted one of the heated water ldeas i was thinking about.
this thread is very good also
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=20332&p=1

 

[wryly]

So, I read about half the posts in this thread. I have Austrolorps, Barred Rocks and Wyandottes. I live in California and in my neck of the valley it gets down to the mid-teens on the coldest night of the year. My dozen hens are 3 months old and I have had a light in the coop since they moved into it. I think, from reading this thread, that I don't need the light on anymore and it may reduce their ability to cope when it gets really cold. Is that right?

Thanks!

 

[Fred's Hens]

Quote:
There two concepts here. First is light for egg production and the other is heat, which can come from a heat lamp bulb or any other device. No, you'll never need heat where you live. We've already had 15F for overnight lows and it is still just fall. The birds could care less. They don't mind at all. They just snuggle and tuck their heads under a wing to sleep.

The pre-dawn light for egg production is usually on a timer. It produces little, if any, realized heat. Some folks have the 25watt light come on at 5 am and snap off at 9 am, just to make their days a little more like summer.

 

[wryly]

The pre-dawn light for egg production is usually on a timer. It produces little, if any, realized heat. Some folks have the 25watt light come on at 5 am and snap off at 9 am, just to make their days a little more like summer.

I really appreciate that. Simulating the additional hours of daylight will keep egg production up? I don't think I'll get eggs before Christmas. Should I start that before they start laying or wait till next fall?​

 

[One of the girls]

Since I've only got a handful of birds (five now but will up this to six or seven this spring). I have been known to bring them into the mud room on super cold nights. I'm talking 20 below or worse.

I get egg boxes from my local market. (

) These are large boxes divided down the center; each half the exact size to hold one hen in comfort. So in they go. If I were to photograph them you'd smile seeing how they react to the warm temp in the house. They settle right down and are perfectly happy in the boxes overnight in the house.

I have used a shielded lamp in their shack with success too. It's difficult for me to sleep when it's super cold and I know my girls might be shivering somewhat! Their little shack is only about 4 x 4 x 3 so it's easy to keep warm with a light bulb or even a sealed gallon of HOT water placed in there at dusk during most cold nights. It's those arctic cold fronts that worry me and I bring them into the house.