Brooder Lamp?

[Mac in Wisco]

The red lamps heat by infrared rays. The rays warm the chicks themselves and whatever the rays are shining on. Measuring with a thermometer underneath one is misleading since you are reading the temperature of what the infrared rays have heated the thermometer to, plus the surrounding air which really isn't affected by the infrared lamp. A white lamp puts most of its energy into heating the air around it and not much heating by the rays of light.

If you are brooding chicks in a large room, shed barn, with just a brooder ring around them , hanging an infrared lamp is the way to go, the rays shine down and warm the chicks... Hanging a white light above them may give a little bit of warmth from the white rays, but most of the energy goes into heating the air around the bulb which just raises to the ceiling.

A white light will work in a smaller container. Especially one that is partly covered or under a hover that will trap the rising heat.

Temperature control is really not all that crucial. Give them a warm area and a cooler area. They adjust themselves as necessary. If they are piled up directly under the heat source, they need more heat. If they are crowded around the sides of brooder panting and trying to escape the heat, then obviously it's too warm.

 

[Cheryl]

My chicks will be hanging out in the basement until their feathers come in and coop is made, hopefully at the same time! It is presently about 70 in the basement, unfinished, cement floors with a dehumidifier running 24/7. I've got a dog kennel that will work with the heat lamp (but it seems kinda ackward to hang) and I also have a kitchen cabinet that I have laid down on the back, I can remove the doors and cat proof the top with my dh's carpentry skills....I'm thinking the cabinet will make more sense... So where do you actually place the thermometer to get a good reading and about how high above the bottom of the box should I start to hang the lamp to get that reading of 95? Oh, and I'm in Southern NH, so it will get pretty cool soon, followed by pretty darn cold!

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Cheryl, it's not an exacting science. Really, you don't need a thermometer, nor an exact 95 degrees. You'll spend so much time watching them new chicks run around the brooder you'll figure it out really quick. Start by hanging the lamp maybe a foot and a half to two feet high. Don't get out your ruler! This isn't rocket science... Hang the lamp and turn it on and put your chicks in there. After they have run around and checked things out, drank some water, ate some food and have adjusted to their surroundings, they will settle in and you can judge by how they are acting if they are too hot or too cold. If they are all piling up into a big fluffy ball to go to sleep they are too cold. Lower the lamp some. If they are are all hanging out directly underneath the lamp they are too cold. Lower the lamp some. If they can't stand the area underneath the lamp and are all hanging out near the edge of the brooder, they are too warm, raise the lamp. If they all run around at random doing their own thing, some hanging out in the warm parts and some in the cold parts, things are just right. Each bird regulates its own comfort by moving in and out of the heat as necessary.

 

[MandyH]

Mine have their own enclosed, insulated shed. That is my "hatching house" and the a/c is set to 79 degrees. I use a 60 watt regular old light bulb and raise it a few inches every few days until they don't need it. The red 250 watt light bulbs will fry your chicks unless you are in Alaska and they sleep outside. I have hatched out about 1000 chicks this spring/summer and have not had any trouble with this set up. They are in the big oval horse water troughs in the hatching house.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

A 250 watt lamp won't "fry" your chicks. I have chicks under one right now. It may be more than what is needed for my weather right now, but if you adjust it as I described the chicks regulate themselves. I have them in a rather large brooder and just have the lamp set to one side. If it gets cool they move closer to it and if it gets warm they move farther from it, they still have plenty of room to run around either way.

There are many hard numbers and rules of thumb available. Some are more applicable to certain situations than others.

For example: Chicks need to be at 95 degs the first week, after that lower the temperature 5 degs each week out to 5 or 6 weeks old. That's applicable to a commercial battery brooder where they are in a small cage with an electrical heating element. The chicks are very confined, you have to set the temperature and monitor a thermometer on these or you will have problems.

Another example: Hang a 250 watt heat lamp at 18" high. raise it a couple inches each week until they are 5 or 6 weeks old. Works great for farmers who are raising chicks as livestock out in the barn or large coop and check them for a few minutes 2 or 3 times a day for food, water and well being.

For most of us raising a small flock here they keep the chicks close and spend endless hours watching them grow. It's very easy to provide some sort of heat source, whether it be a 60 or 100 watt white bulb to a 250 watt infrared bulb and see how the chicks react to it. Regardless of what a thermometer tells you, the chicks themselves are the best judge of whether they are comfortable or not.

 

[MandyH]

Those thousand chicks ARE my small flock. They all live here quiet and content with us on our 110 acres.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
Come on Kristen, I'm sure most here would call that a large flock... besides, I wasn't making any reference to you or your flock.

I just try to counter some of the absolute statements I hear here, i.e. DON'T use a 250 watt lamp, the temperature MUST be at 95 degrees, etc. Many things work, obviously your setup works for you and I'm sure you judged whether it was working well or not by watching your chicks and their behavior. Right?

 

[MandyH]

Very correct mac. That is why I listed the kind of setup they were in. Enclosed, temperature regulated etc... That is what works for me. Some people being new and not having experienced the 250 watt light bulb melting the floor etc.. might not be on the lookout for it.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

I usually have a few chicks that burst into flames before the floor starts to melt... No, seriously, I have never had a problem with the big lamp.

 

[Cheryl]

If anything, you all are SO ENTERTAINING!!! My DH thinks I'm nuts, he often comes in to hear me laughing at the computer!!! So I have the 250 red heat light, I will start it about 1 1/2 feet above the box and make sure there is room to move away from the heat. I will put a thermometer a bit off center to check out the temp before the little darlings arrive...certainly I don't want them bursting into flames

2 RI Reds, one each silver and gold laced wyondotte and one Ameraucanas will be shipped on Monday or Tuesday. First time with chickens...have 2 boys, 1 golden and 2 maine coons (who will think the chicks are either play toys or a snack!)