Do 3 wk old chicks really need the heat lamp?

[newchicksnducks]

The heat lamp should not be making them too warm. Use a red lamp, and use a lower wattage. 250 Watt is good for a barn and 50 chicks, but for most home brooders, a lower wattage (75 or so) should be plenty. The red light will allow peaceful sleep times, and adjusting the height of the lamp should allow for warmth or cooler "warmth" as needed. Just my 2 cents worth

 

[shandiane78]

Thanks everyone. I did end up turning it on before bed. I'm only using a 60w bulb, and haven't been able to find a wattage that low in a red bulb. (Except, I think I saw 25w "party bulbs" lol). My instinct is more along the lines of what Silkiefan said. It feels wrong to mess up their natural sleep/wake cycle. They did not cheep when the light was off. They just laid down in a chick pile and slept. Of course when I turned it back on, they were up and at 'em.

Maybe I'll try leaving it off tonight, and using some alternate heat source just in case they aren't comfortable. It probably gets down to 60 or so in here over night.

 

[bel]

Petsmart carries 60 watt red bulb in their reptile dept. Walmart also carries a dark black bulb that is 75 watt and works (makes very little light and wont mess with their sleep cycle, night is coldest so they really need to be kept warm). I use dimmers so if they look too hot it can be turned down and not use as much power too (instead of raising them higher)

If you worry about temps one thing I also found really useful is a reptile thermostat, (petstores charge an arm and a leg but you can usually get the much cheaper on ebay), it kicks off when the temp gets too high, so it usually is off during the warmer times of the day and back on when it cools down.

 

[susan ross]

I have the baby chick in the house in a box they are 4 week old can I turn off the light at night

 

[susan ross]

I have the baby chick in the house in a box they are 4 week old can I turn off the light at night

 

[Demidog]

I'v got some 3 week old chicks and i just got some more few day old chicks and they are in my bathroom without a light. I had the light at first but it was way too hot, it's summer here now and we're sleeping with just a thin blanket on our bed because it's so hot at night. My chicks are fine without the lamp because it's already warm in the house. They go to sleep at night when it's dark, they're not cheeping or anything. I'v got some hay in for warm bedding for them and i cover them at night with blankets to help keep the heat in. They're fine.