What age to the coop?

[Ridgerunner]

At six weeks I’d let them have the run of the place, inside and out, during the day but lock them up in the coop section at night. That’s what I did with my five week olds. The overnight lows were similar but daytime temps a little warmer. Mine were already acclimated. The reason I locked them up at night had more to do with predator protection than temperature.

 

[tstalker]

Where in NY ? Big differences in temperature between upstate and down state

I'm in the Albany area and it has been unseasonably cold lately. My one year old birds don't care but I have some 2 week old Black Austorlorp chicks in the garage.

Nights can still get cold in April around here. I'd have a heat lamp available for nights

 

[jaslyman]

I have a very similar challenge, so I will add it to this thread if no-one objects. We have 14, one-week old chicks, who are currently in a spare bedroom in a large Rubbermaid tote. I'd like to move them out to a larger brooder (6'x3' -see below) in a detached, unheated, uninsulated garage with four windows. We are using the MHP approach with the 12x24" heating pad, and it's been working great.

Inside, the room temps been mid-upper 60's. Outdoors, the upcoming forecast is mid 70's daytime and mid 40's nighttime. We plan to use the MHP in the new brooder as well, and throw a tarp or something over the brooder before we go to bed to hold a bit of warmth in there. Hard to predict what the brooder temp will be with the heating pad as the only source of warmth. Mid 50's maybe? Obviously it will be warmer under the actual MHP where they sleep.

I'm thinking that for the next two nights, maybe we crack the window a bit to start getting them used to cooler temps before we take them out this weekend. Does that seem reasonable? Other suggestions for surviving the transition?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Cracking the window and taking it slowly sounds on target.

Are you following Blooie’s heating pad cave thread? If not you might want to check it out. I don’t use that method so I won’t comment on particulars, but you are not trying to warm the entire brooder. You are trying to give them a warm place to go to warm up if they get cold. It’s pretty much the same thing I do with my heat lamps. I heat one end to give them a warm spot and let the rest cool off. They self-regulate.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/956958/mama-heating-pad-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update

 

[jaslyman]

Cracking the window and taking it slowly sounds on target.

Are you following Blooie’s heating pad cave thread? If not you might want to check it out. I don’t use that method so I won’t comment on particulars, but you are not trying to warm the entire brooder. You are trying to give them a warm place to go to warm up if they get cold. It’s pretty much the same thing I do with my heat lamps. I heat one end to give them a warm spot and let the rest cool off. They self-regulate.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/956958/mama-heating-pad-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update

Yep - actively following that thread, thank you. I didn't mean to imply I was using the heating pad to heat the whole brooder, just that there might be some 'spillover' heat into the rest of the area - not that I would rely on it.