Help this newbie

[myjeangenie]

ive got the red heat lamp. YAY!!! FED EX JUST BROUGHT MY COOP!!!!! now...if i hook up the heat lamp in coop can they go out???

 

[1cityslicker]

I've always raised our chicks in our bedroom but then again I live in the PNW so it's in the lower 50's right now.

 

[myjeangenie]

Ha! If I told my husband I was moving chicks to our bed room! It's upper 40s here in Delaware.

 

[aggiemae]

Unless you can put it up in a way that is stable and can't be knocked over I wouldn't put a heat lamp in a coop because its a fire hazard. The chicks can go out into the coop when they are fully feathers. Some feather slower than others, so 6-8 weeks old.

Meanwhile, in preparation for life in the coop, you should be cooling down the heat lamp in the brooder about 5 degrees a week. I try to keep mine as cool as the chicks will tolerate. Our new chicks are 2 weeks old tomorrow and it's 78-80 degrees right under the light and 75(ish) in the rest of the brooder, That about 10 degrees cooler than most books advise but they are crazy healthy and spry.

 

[aggiemae]

I've always raised our chicks in our bedroom but then again I live in the PNW so it's in the lower 50's right now.

We keep ours in the utility room...but I have to admit that we have had a sick chicken spend a night of two in party size show of our (fancy) bathroom!

 

[debid]

Call me crazy but I'd rather have the coop catch fire and burn down than my house!

There are safer ways to use a heat lamp. Use a fixture meant for the purpose. It should be rated for a higher wattage than your bulb and have a ceramic base to tolerate the heat generated by constant use. Don't use any clamp that a brooder fixture might come with. Springs can fail. My heat lamp is hanging from a length of chain attached to a shelf bracket that's screwed into a wall stud. I used quick links to attach everything and screwed them shut so there are no hooks nor springs nor any sort of balancing involved. Hang the light at a reasonable height above the litter. The package for mine says 18" for a minimum; I believe them. If you must use an extension cord, make sure it's a sturdier cord than the light fixture itself uses. Don't use some 2-wire thing meant for a table lamp in your living room! Make sure the extension cord is long enough so that the connection is someplace it can't get wet or disturbed by the chicks. Plug in the heat lamp where it won't overload a circuit. Not sharing is a good thing. Don't let dust and debris accumulate on the light fixture. Clean it before use if it's dusty and then check it whenever you check on your chicks.

 

[myjeangenie]

I have two super heavy duty holders for the red 250wt bulbs..My husband has heavy duty construction ext cords used for tools..If its space they need.. this is my only option.. Ive got a shed.. but i know for a fact there is mice..any other place in my home is either not going to work cause i have 3 children under 7, and a less then welcoming of chicks, husband. OR I could construct something bigger...but then i would have to contend with 3 cats, and a dog...I ****** if i do or dont at this point. i know we are going to get a cold front and some rain over the next 2-3 days.. so i will wait that out.. after that.. by sunday..they are going outside..I have admittedly gone into this unprepared..I apparently am still learning everything that hard way at 30

 

[debid]

My one-week old peeps are outside in their brooding coop. It's 39 degrees for a high today. They're FINE. Running around and making their happy peeping sounds... I've never had chicks in the house for longer than it takes to open the box and make sure they aren't pasted up before putting them in their coop. I'm asthmatic and don't need the dust not to mention that DH is sensitive about odors.

I know there are lots of house brooders here and that's fine for them but please don't think that you're doing something wrong by letting them live in their home rather than yours.

 

[myjeangenie]

Wow! Best news I've heard all day. I know we have a cold snap coming through. Plus hubby has to put coop together. But by Saturday my plan is to have them out. I'll hook up the lamp.

 

[TexasChickenUnv]

Mine were hatched by a broody hen out in the coop Sat March 2 and we've had several mild freezes since then. They don't get to move into the house after hatching. Granted, they're under mommas(I have 2 hens sharing 5 chicks), and I have a heat lamp out there as well, but as long as you've got a heat source and they are predator proof, I would also think they would be fine. If it got seriously below 32, I'd bring them in.

I agree that securing the heat lamp is a priority.

See, you're doing fine!