My husband and I own a feed store, and recently a customer brought in 3 Seramas and just said they didn't want them anymore (SCORE!!!!) This is my first go-round with Seramas, I'm not even sure if they're American or Traditional, what kind of class they are, nothing...the only things I know is they're all spring hatches from this year, I have 2 hens and a rooster, and they're all friggin adorable 
I live in northern Nevada where we can get some pretty cold winters and hot summers. I did some searching on Google and found out Seramas aren't exactly cold-hardy (which I can understand as much, being how small they are). What I'm wondering though, is when do I turn on the heat lamp for them? Last winter I had 3 heat lamps on 20 standard-size chickens (in hindsight I understand it's better to not do so, as they can withstand sub-zero temperatures just fine). Anyway, those electricity bills were outrageous and hubby is pushing me to not use heat lamps this year, although he understands and accepts that the Seramas will need one. Due to the bills though, I'd like to hold off as long as possible, so at what temp should I turn it on? They're in their own fully-enclosed coop with 2 small windows for ventilation and a small door, with a fully-enclosed run for daytime access. The coop is set up so that when the wind blows in the 2 predictable directions, it skirts past it rather than blowing right in.
We're already expecting snow tonight (yay!!!), so they'll get the lamp on tonight for sure. But would they be okay without one on nights that are warmer? Is it too cold in the 20's? or are they okay into the teens?? What's a good range to consider turning on the lamp?
I live in northern Nevada where we can get some pretty cold winters and hot summers. I did some searching on Google and found out Seramas aren't exactly cold-hardy (which I can understand as much, being how small they are). What I'm wondering though, is when do I turn on the heat lamp for them? Last winter I had 3 heat lamps on 20 standard-size chickens (in hindsight I understand it's better to not do so, as they can withstand sub-zero temperatures just fine). Anyway, those electricity bills were outrageous and hubby is pushing me to not use heat lamps this year, although he understands and accepts that the Seramas will need one. Due to the bills though, I'd like to hold off as long as possible, so at what temp should I turn it on? They're in their own fully-enclosed coop with 2 small windows for ventilation and a small door, with a fully-enclosed run for daytime access. The coop is set up so that when the wind blows in the 2 predictable directions, it skirts past it rather than blowing right in.
We're already expecting snow tonight (yay!!!), so they'll get the lamp on tonight for sure. But would they be okay without one on nights that are warmer? Is it too cold in the 20's? or are they okay into the teens?? What's a good range to consider turning on the lamp?
