Coop fire due to heat lamp

[aart]

Yup ... and hopefully threads like this will open their eyes to potential problems ...

We can hope<nods>

 

[gimmie birdies]

I also see reports of a car going off the road, in the news, not "a person lost control of the car and it went off the road." Hmm. Blame the car then.

 

[wamtazlady]

Heat lamps are very controversial. I brought this to the forum's attention so that those who do choose to use heat lamps can learn how to do it as safely as possible. Thank you to those who have pointed out the dangers and the precautions to take. Just making the heat lamp secure is not the only precaution as has been pointed out. Dust in the air and on the bulb needs to be addressed. Ground fault outlets and heavy duty extension cords are a must. Someone even mentioned special outlets that should be installed in a heavy dust area. All these are great suggestions and I do hope those who use heat lamps read this and learn.

@gimmie birdies Not quite the same thing. A car is assumed to be safe in normal operating conditions. Car manufacturers spend millions of dollars testing a car so that it is as safe as possible, and we know that even that doesn't always work out well. Many people would think a heat lamp is also safe if you plug it in and make sure it will not fall down. There it more to it. This whole discussion has been wonderful in pointing out the extra precautions that someone using a heat lamp should do so that it is operated as safely as possible.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

So true!

Here is something to think about ...

First of all extension cord are designed for temporary use ... they have both indoor rating, and outdoor ratings ... besides they come in different gauges ... how heavy/thick the wire is, which means how much electricity can safely pass through, WITHOUT heating it up so it can catch something else on fire!

Secondly ... anybody who has kept chickens for very long ... KNOWS that there is LOTS of dust ... dust is flammable ... just ask any woodworking shop or flour mill ... too much dust in a switch, and when it is turned on ... poof ... and if the wiring is not sized right ... it will also ignite the dust!

If you don't use dust proof or "hazard location" rated receptacles ... you need to clean the receptacles before they burn down your chicken coop!

EXACTLY! This is why I don't believe in mixing electricity and chickens. And sadly, just because some one hasn't had a fire from this yet it's a big risk. Hindsight is always 20/20.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Ugh... I was in the interior of BC and it dropped to -20 for three days during my second winter there... I did the sane thing and moved back to the coast as soon as I could! One of my life goals as a teenager was move to Florida... don’t heat your coop-just move somewhere with livable temperatures!

Florida is too far south. Too many hurricanes. Give me good ole New England where 35 degrees is sweater weather and the hearty chickens cackle and laugh at you when you show up in a coat.

 

[WindingRoad]

EXACTLY! This is why I don't believe in mixing electricity and chickens. And sadly, just because some one hasn't had a fire from this yet it's a big risk. Hindsight is always 20/20.

It's like the cop who says, "I've never pulled a dead person out of a car who is seat belted". No you just haven't been to enough accidents yet.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Many thousands of dollars in damage because someone wanted their chickens to be warm.

Safety chain in addition to the mounting method or a ground fault outlet may have prevented this fire. Sadly the only persons that tend to learn from this tragedy are the people involved.

People still tend to heat chicken coops because they feel cold in the coop.

Not the first time nor will it be the last.

 

[joojy]

I am dealing with this now. Has anybody used the sweeter heater? I also saw a thermal ceramic heat lamp. It looks like the bulb is enclosed, and it blows out hot air.
My ex thought a buddy heater with the propane tanks would work. My coop is not enclosed, but I do have tarps all around it except the very top. My turkeys sleep up there. They aren't always too bright.
After I got the buddy heater, I was reading the directions and they said do not put a 20 pound tank inside. My coop is not inside, but I got nervous. So I used a heat lamp from premier, it is plastic and very study. Unfortunately I only had one lamp because I had not planned on using a lamp. A run to walmart at 11pm out of bulbs, ...... How about an oil filled radiator electric heater?

 

[WindingRoad]

Can anyone supply a news worthy article of a free standing hen house that burnt down without a heat lamp?

 

[Ridgerunner]

A neighbor's shed across a fence burned down due to a space heater. She was keeping plants in it for the cold weather. Of course that is not a coop.