Baby Chicks coming I'm a little worried about the cold!

a3prepper

Hatching
7 Years
Aug 14, 2012
5
0
7
Hi everyone,

I've ordered my chicks. I decided to go with 3 instead of 6 since we are just starting out. 1 of each (barred rock, golden comet and rhode island red) I am going to keep them inside the first week and then move them out to our garage for the remaining weeks. We've been having some chilly nights here in Ohio in the low 50's. Will a 100 watt bulb putt off enough heat to keep the little peeps warm? Also for their coop what is the best way to insulate that for them this coming winter? Would keeping them in the garage (not heated) for the winter months be better and then introduce them to the yard in the spring?

Thanks,

Gary
 
I personally prefer a red heat lamp for my chicks. But I know people do use ordinary 100w bulbs too. You would need to put it daily close to them, so make sure you place something between them and the bulb, so they don't burn themselves. Some wire mesh will do.
 
they'll be plenty large enough to go outside before winter. In OH, I definitely woudn't worry about insulating. Just make sure that the building isn't drafty and they'll be fine.

I use a 100 Watt bulb for my chicks. I use one of the metal shop lights with the clamp and just stick it on the side of the crate. I brood mine in a dog crate. If they seem a little drafty, I will cover part of the crate with a towel or blanket and put the lamp in that area. Make sure that they have plenty of room to get away from the lamp if they get warm.
I've found that mine are spending 90% of their time away from the heat in a couple weeks. This spring, mine were outside by the time they were 4 weeks old. The lows at night were in the lower 50s with 80s in the day.
 
Thank you for the advice it is greatly appreciated. I'm still going back and forth on whether to get them now or wait until spring to get babies.
 
I ordered my chicks in Feb, and my brooding hutch is outside. We had some TERRIBLE weather the week after I got them (windy, rain/snow, and cold, cold, cold!), I covered the open/wire parts of the brooder with an old shower curtain and hoped for the best. They did absolutely fine in that hutch with their regular 100 watt bulb. The only problem I encountered was their waterer froze (yes, it was that cold), that was easily solved by moving the water closer to the heat lamp. I say order them now and enjoy them. Good luck!
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom