Do you use supplemental lighting?

[analyticalblonde]

I have 10 girls who will be 1 year old next month...no extra light given to them. I run a cord to the run to a heated dog water bowl so their water doesn't freeze. Production did decrease to 1-2 eggs per day but just this week, one day I got 7. I am in the camp of letting them do as they would naturally.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I have a solar light and a battery operated lantern that I turn on 30 to 40 minutes before dawn from November through December. This is more to give them a gentle wake up since the sun takes awhile to rise up over the tree line. I don’t think this has an impact on their egg laying. The pullets layed an egg every day or sometimes every other day. The hens stopped laying early November and started back gradually around early February. I like giving the girls a rest so they can stay healthy. Winters here are rough enough. So In the true sense of supplemental lighting, I’m a “no.”

 

[Roosterbreaux]

Wondering how many of us use supplemental lighting when the days get shorter...

Do you use supplemental light? And comment below why or why not

Hoping to gain some knowledge from this because everyday I think we all learn a little more

Read This from one of my earlier posts !

Hope this helps ({^0^})
Roosterbreaux Out !

 

[ASteelman]

I don't supplement light in the winter. I'd rather them have a longer laying life overall than to push for eggs in the winter. My husband does complain about buying eggs when laying ceases entirely, but I pay the feed bill so it's my choice.

This year we will have pullets who just started laying, and in my experience they lay through their first winter, so we should be good.

 

[FortCluck]

I don't supplement light in the winter. I'd rather them have a longer laying life overall than to push for eggs in the winter. My husband does complain about buying eggs when laying ceases entirely, but I pay the feed bill so it's my choice.

This year we will have pullets who just started laying, and in my experience they lay through their first winter, so we should be good.

Yes all my pullets laid through the first winter. I'm going to continue adding pullets every year.

My red sex links are almost 2 and they have laid constantly. They don't live long though... Maybe 4 years.

 

[BDutch]

From advise from this forum I put lights in my coop and it seems to help. Actually it just 2 heat Lamps. I have a small coop, 4'x8'x8'. Out of my 12 hens I'll get 6-12 eggs a day, this time of year.

I believe the heat doesn't influence laying eggs. Its probably the breed (hybrids for laying?) that does the trick. But don’t pinpoint on this. I’m not an expert.

 

[BDutch]

I use a 100 watt bulb just to keep everything from freezing solid. It's mounted on the wall, almost at the ceiling. I also have a heating pad under the 5 gallon waterer to keep it from freezing solid. We don't have electricity installed in the coop. We run a 100' electrical cord out there to support the heating elements during the winter.

The light is off at night I hope. Chickens need some sleep too. A strong light in the night makes them restless.

 

[chickencoop57]

I believe the heat doesn't influence laying eggs. Its probably the breed (hybrids for laying?) that does the trick. But don’t pinpoint on this. I’m not an expert.

Its all good, as long as theyre laying.

 

[BDutch]

My birds stopped laying in October/November (moulting season). And I had only 1 egg every other day from one chicken since. I started to give my birds a little extra light in the morning 2 weeks ago.
+ ☀ Adding it up it’s only 10-10,5 hours of light in the first and 11 hours in the second week.
The light is very weak bc the automatic door to the coop opens when I put a brighter light in and the run is not safe enough for some nightly predators. Just 2 hours extra with a weak light has effect. A second chicken started to lay too now.

 

[GC-Raptor]

I started to give my birds a little extra light in the morning 2 weeks ago. Adding it up it’s only 11 hours of light. + ☀

I add lights inside and outside the coops at 5 am year round.
First half of December is the earliest sunset 4:20 pm/1620 hours.
My 3 Barred Rocks, 28 months old laid their last egg Dec 1st, until the 24th. I've gotten 3 eggs from 1 hen so far. Sunset is 4:29 pm today.
My 5 Red sex-links 8 months old have laid daily this month.
I have found over the years that my egg production starts to slow in hens during their second laying season when available light drops below 12.5 hours, and start to molt when daylight savings time ends, and they lose an hour of light. From 5:45 pm to 4:44 pm.
I decrease light by 20 minutes daily over 3 days to lessen to shock.
My Barred Rocks laid through their first winter, My first Flock, 5 Golden Comets laid through 2 winters. GC