Heating Chicken Coop???

[catballou]

You are right, of course, that one of those was a plain incandescent light fixture with reflector. However, it had adequate clearance and was theoretically safe while it was clipped on the roosting box. That illusion of safeness faded when roosting chickens knocked the clip loose. I was in a hurry setting it up, like I said, and took a risk that chickens would not knock down the hot lamp. Won't be making that mistake again!

FWIW, that fixture is now in the trash and will be replaced by some of the other wonderful tips suggested by others in this thread: Mylar bubble wrap, Cozy Coop flat panel heaters, and oil-filled radiant heaters on low temperature setting.

Moral of story....never be in a hurry and do it right the first time

 

[azygous]

I hate heat lamps. I removed the clamps from them early on and secured them with non-flammable carabiners to an eye hook. I do not use them in the close quarters of the coops, but do hang them in the run during below freezing weather. Despite all my precautions, I had a hen burn her head on the bulb because I had misjudged the height. The hen had stretched her neck to its full length while standing under the lamp. Luckily, she just burned her head feathers, creating quite a stench. It's how I noticed it.

Even when people have been aware not to trust a heat lamp clamp, if a flammable material is used to secure the lamp such as twine, if it contacts the reflector or bulb, it can catch fire and the lamp can then fall, setting bedding on fire or the entire coop. I've been on BYC so long, I've seen several of these tragedies, not to mention my own close call.

 

[catballou]

I hate heat lamps. I removed the clamps from them early on and secured them with non-flammable carabiners to an eye hook. I do not use them in the close quarters of the coops, but do hang them in the run during below freezing weather. Despite all my precautions, I had a hen burn her head on the bulb because I had misjudged the height. The hen had stretched her neck to its full length while standing under the lamp. Luckily, she just burned her head feathers, creating quite a stench. It's how I noticed it.

Even when people have been aware not to trust a heat lamp clamp, if a flammable material is used to secure the lamp such as twine, if it contacts the reflector or bulb, it can catch fire and the lamp can then fall, setting bedding on fire or the entire coop. I've been on BYC so long, I've seen several of these tragedies, not to mention my own close call.

I've never put mine closer than 5 feet from them. It doesnt have to be 60° underneath it. I believe 25° to 35° is sufficient to prevent frostbite.