Ceramic heater for brooder

[bantyman]

Has anybody here used one of those ceramic heaters in their brooder ? If so how did it work and was there any problems with it And where did you mount it and did you use a thermostat I know its a few questions but I want all the details I can get before I get one Thanx for any help anyone can give

Mike

 

[Erica]

Hi Mike, as a newbie to ceramic heat globes I have to confess I was

disappointed with the amount of heat put out. I brood with low heat (but lots of nest insulation), so I was after something that would produce similar heat as a 40w infra red globe.

Unfortunately my 60w ceramic put out I would say about half the heat as the infra red globe. I'm not sure of the style of heat produced but all other things were equal (ambient temp, style of brooder, amount of litter, distance from floor) so I just feel the ceramic globe isn't as efficient as red.

Now I'm not at all versed in how these things work, so there may be some good reason why 60w ceramic isn't as warming as 40w infra red, but that's about where I stand...

Of course if wattage doesn't matter (i.e. if cost of electricity isn't an issue) then I would go with ceramic as it stops teaching chicks to follow light, and allows them to be taught ordinary day-night rhythms including to go to bed at dusk.

Just my thoughts, hope they're not too unhelpful!

cheers
Erica

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Infrared are supposed to warm what they're aimed at rather than heat the space.
I plan on moving to ceramic when I can afford to replace my lamps.
I look at the behavior of the chicks to see if they're cold or hot.