I actually brood new chicks outdoors in the run when our temps are in the teens and twenties, and I don't use a heat lamp for them at all....just a heating pad, a wire frame, and a straw cave. Haven't lost a single one.Because I told her I wasn't putting a heat lamp in my coop over the winter. Now I feel utterly irresponsible.
I have 5 Buff Orpingtons (3 already laying, 2 still not, but I'm wondering if they won't until spring now because the days are getting short) that are 27 weeks old. They have a 4X8 foot coop which is up off the ground 2-3 feet, and a 8X16 foot run enclosed with chicken wire/landscape fabric (including the door). Right now their water and food are hanging under the coop on hooks (plus fermented feed in a tray on the run floor), but I imagine I will have to hang at least the water in the coop once it gets cold.
I live in coastal NJ. Today it's 70 degrees, but most of the winter it hangs out between 20 and 40 degrees, but it's not rare during a cold front to get into the teens and single digits. We rarely get below zero. Their coop/run is well protected from wind because it is in the corner of our backyard, 2 sides blocked by a 6 foot vinyl fence, the 3rd side facing the fenced backyard, and the 4th side only about 8-10 feet from the house.
I figure that they are a cold-hardy breed, and are fairly protected from gusty winds. They aren't tropical animals....the pilgrims had chickens, didn't they? And most of them survived.....
Do I REALLY need a heat lamp in the coop that will keep me awake all night with worry about a fire? I wasn't planning on putting a light in there anyway for eggs over the winter. I don't want to disrupt their natural rhythms. I can go to the supermarket for eggs for a month or two
My coop is not insulated and I have no supplemental heat out there. Same with their run. Their pop door is open 24/7, and the run is covered with greenhouse plastic in winter. They do just fine.
