Heat Lamp & Cold Weather

[Tempest66]

Hello, first time chicken owner here and we live in Minnesota where temps in Winter can range from 35 to -20 degrees and need some advice for wintering them. We have 8 chicken in a 10' x 6' x 6' tall coop and I have 3 heat lamps that I have had on almost the entire time, 24-7. After reading some of the posts here, should I be turning off the lights at night when it gets dark (about 5pm) and then gets light about 7am? My heat lamps are set up with clear bulbs and serves as both heat and light, so if I shut off the lights, there would be no heat. Or should I switch to red bulbs and leave them on 24-7 instead? The chickens are 6 months old and been laying anywhere from 5-8 eggs per day. The girls are spoiled and want to do right by them. Thanks

 

[Tonyroo]

Keep the bulb wattage at 125w don't go any higher. The lumen at that wattage keeps it at a dimmer light and throws heat at night. You don't need the red light.

Just make sure you secure the lamp and cord. To prevent the chickens from bumping into them and knocking it over.

I've been using my light at night to get them dried off from all the rain I been getting here. They just love getting soaked from the rain for some reason.

Use your judgment and take the time to see how they are behaving with all the lights you have up.

 

[K0k0shka]

Folks on here raise chickens in Canada and Alaska with no heat. You don't need the lamps. If they emit white light as well as heat, then yes they are disrupting the chickens' day-night cycle and that's not good for them. Get rid of the lamps, the chickens will be fine. Heat lamps are a fire hazard and not worth it unless you live in extreme conditions like maybe Siberia or the North Pole

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome to the forum, glad you joined.

I'll include a link to an article written by someone who lives in truly cold weather. You might find it helpful. The way I read it around -20 F is when you need to starting doing something from their experience.

Cold Weather Poultry Housing and Care | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens

Chickens need dark downtime. Without a period of dark they "can" develop behavioral or egg laying problems. "Can" does not mean immediately or every chicken every time, but feather picking, bullying, cannibalism, egg quality issues, and egg laying problems can sometimes be traced to too much light.

There are different ways to provide heat without light. The red heat lamp bulbs can work but if you use heat lamps I agree you need to hold them in place with wire or chain that cannot fail. No string or plastic that can burn or melt and do not rely on that clamp. I consider that clamp dangerous. There are radiators, panels, and heat emitters. I don't know what would work best for you.

I don't have weather that cold so I don't heat my coop. The coldest I've seen in about -8 F. My brooder is in the coop and I sometimes have chicks in it when the weather is below freezing. One of my issues brooding outside is the temperature swings. I want a place warm enough in the coldest weather but also a place cool enough in the warmest weather. I use a heat lamp to keep one end toasty in the coldest weather but allow the far end to cool off using ventilation in the warm weather. My chicks find their comfort level. I don't know what kind of temperature swings you will see but I would not want to overheat them when the weather isn't that vicious. I doubt your chickens will get dangerously hot, but I'd want them to stay acclimated to the colder temperatures. Since hot air rises there is a good chance they can cool off during your warm spells in winter just by hopping down to the coop floor. Just try to avoid the other extreme.

 

[Tempest66]

Thanks for the input from everyone! I do have the lamps secured so as to not fall into the shavings and have KFC instead of eggs.. Regarding behavioral issues, we had a serious issue with one of our Blue Wyandottes. She went after an Isa and bit off half her comb, took me almost an hour with baking soda to stop the bleeding.. We moved her in a separate cage away from the others and is doing extremely well now and then moved her back in to the coop after several weeks. I put her back in with the other chicks and watched to see how they would interact and had to move the Wyandotte to the cage, away from the others, because we noticed she was bullying several of the chickens as well as the Isa again. I don't understand why, since we got all 8 chicks at the same time and they have all gotten along just fine, Never an issue. We moved them into the new coop about 2 months ago and started using the heat lamps in the last 40 days or so, so maybe the 24-7 light has created issued for them after all.

 

[WI chickens]

I live in WI with very cold temperatures as well. Do your chickens a favor and get rid of any heating devices. Make sure the coop is bone dry and there are no drafts in their roost area. They will thank you for it.

 

[WI chickens]

Heat lamps are a fire hazard and not worth it unless you live in extreme conditions like maybe Siberia or the North Pole

They aren't worth it there either

 

[K0k0shka]

Thanks for the input from everyone! I do have the lamps secured so as to not fall into the shavings and have KFC instead of eggs.. Regarding behavioral issues, we had a serious issue with one of our Blue Wyandottes. She went after an Isa and bit off half her comb, took me almost an hour with baking soda to stop the bleeding.. We moved her in a separate cage away from the others and is doing extremely well now and then moved her back in to the coop after several weeks. I put her back in with the other chicks and watched to see how they would interact and had to move the Wyandotte to the cage, away from the others, because we noticed she was bullying several of the chickens as well as the Isa again. I don't understand why, since we got all 8 chicks at the same time and they have all gotten along just fine, Never an issue. We moved them into the new coop about 2 months ago and started using the heat lamps in the last 40 days or so, so maybe the 24-7 light has created issued for them after all.

Imagine how cranky you'd be if you hadn't had a good night's sleep in 40 days. Chickens aren't people and they don't sleep the same way we do, but at the same time, they do need a proper circadian rhythm to be well rested and healthy, and on their best behavior. To make things worse, Wyandottes can be bitchy to begin with, so you've got a couple of compounding factors here. Get rid of the lights and hopefully things will calm down eventually (the change won't be immediate, since the chickens will need time to resync their internal clocks to the sun, catch up on lost rest, and go back to normal). But it's worth it.

 

[Tempest66]

Imagine how cranky you'd be if you hadn't had a good night's sleep in 40 days. Chickens aren't people and they don't sleep the same way we do, but at the same time, they do need a proper circadian rhythm to be well rested and healthy, and on their best behavior. To make things worse, Wyandottes can be bitchy to begin with, so you've got a couple of compounding factors here. Get rid of the lights and hopefully things will calm down eventually (the change won't be immediate, since the chickens will need time to resync their internal clocks to the sun, catch up on lost rest, and go back to normal). But it's worth it.

Great information, Thank You all! It is lights out tonight at 6pm then. Regarding or mix of eight, we have two Wyandotte, 2 Isa, 2 Amberlink, and 2 Buff Orphington. Any thoughts about the mix regarding behaviors clashes to watch for? Our other Wyandotte is really mellow but kinda standoff-ish, but not aggressive. We were thinking of adding a couple of Rhode Island Reds in the Spring, and maybe a couple more of the others that we already have but dont want to mix oil and water and steer clear of any potential issues with breeds, if I can help it.

 

[K0k0shka]

Great information, Thank You all! It is lights out tonight at 6pm then. Regarding or mix of eight, we have two Wyandotte, 2 Isa, 2 Amberlink, and 2 Buff Orphington. Any thoughts about the mix regarding behaviors clashes to watch for? Our other Wyandotte is really mellow but kinda standoff-ish, but not aggressive. We were thinking of adding a couple of Rhode Island Reds in the Spring, and maybe a couple more of the others that we already have but dont want to mix oil and water and steer clear of any potential issues with breeds, if I can help it.

Rhode Island Reds are bossy troublemakers and don't tend to mix well with other breeds, especially submissive breeds like Orpingtons. Orps are easy targets and tend to get bullied, especially when mixed with more dominant breeds. If you have lots of space and hiding places, a gigantic coop, and the perfect conditions, they might all coexist happily, but since that's rarely the case, it's best to pick your breeds based on compatibility rather than how pretty all the colors look together Variety comes at a cost if you mix the wrong breeds. Ultimately it's down to individual personality and you can't foolproof them completely, but breeds do have their tendencies, which are not to be overlooked.