how long do I need a heat lamp?

[schmeeenme]

Hey All, so I started some chicks off season - they were born 10/3. Its currently mid-60's in the day and mid-40's at night. It will be mid-low 50's and low 30's respectively within a few weeks. At what age can I stop using the heat lamp?

 

[sylviethecochin]

Humans use this formula: (from nutrenaworld's website)
Approximate Heat Needs by Age

• Week 1 90 - 95°
• Week 2 85 - 90°
• Week 3 80 - 85°
• Week 4 75 - 80°
• Week 5, 6, 7 70 - 75°
• Week 8 65 - 70°
• Week 9 65° minimum

Their mothers generally wean them off completely at seven or eight weeks.

Since it's going to be winter, you may want to set up an outside brooder (if you don't already have one. If you do have one, my apologies for assuming.) and keep it on until they've got most of their fluff at about thirteen weeks. Your needs are really going to depend on how cold it gets at night, though.

Hope that helps, and good luck.

 

[pennyJo1960]

best to use a heat pad safer you want one that does not have auto shut off shape a piece of hardware cloth in a U inverted lay the heat pad over that then chicks can come and go as they need heat and allot less chance of fire jmho

 

[CHlCK3N]

It depends on their age and breed, more or less. Some chickens can withstand colder or hotter temps than others. While with young chicks, they are poorly equipped to regulate their metabolic processes to adequately control their body temperature. But since your chicks are older than 14 days so that many not be a big issue.
Here's a website you may want to look into about it.(kudos to sylviethecochin)
https://www.nutrenaworld.com/blog/heat-lamps-for-chicks

 

[debid]

I used the mama heating pad in an outdoor brooder so the peeps had access to cold air (it was late February which here means wildly swinging temps down to the upper teens and up to the 80s). They took themselves off heat at 5 weeks on the nose. It was 50-something that first night but was dropping so I left the pad in case they wanted it the next night. Nope, mid 30s was not a problem. That's, IMO, the least stressful way. They choose the roost when they're ready, I don't have to guess.

 

[junebuggena]

I brood chicks in those sorts of temps all the time. Usually they are completely feathered in and off heat by 3 to 4 weeks of age. You have to make sure that only the spot under the heat lamp is being warmed. The rest of the brooder needs to be the ambient room temp. If brooding inside the house, a heat lamp bulb overkill.

 

[PirateGirl]

Do they have a mama to snuggle? Will there be adult chickens in the coop for them to roost between? I would always find what smallest sandwiched between the largest.

I did not have bigger chickenswhen I brought home my pullets. Even when my chicks were fully feathered I would turn on the heat on nights it was going to drop below freezing until they grew a bit bigger. On nasty days I'd lock them in the coop because if they got too cold or wet (snow) they couldn't warm themselves up. Use your judgement. They don't need heat all the Time once feathered, but let the weather dictate. I did lose a chick at 6-8 weeks to cold, so yes they may be fully feathered, but they still may need heat sometimes until they are bigger and can produce more of their own.

 

[azygous]

When considering what level of heat your chicks require, it's helpful to wrap your mind around the "why" of it. First get rid of the notion that chicks are like cakes baking in an oven. The analogy is more like a bunch of little campers needing a camp fire to warm up at.

The temperature chart for brooding chicks is only a starting point to let you know approximately what level of heat you need to begin with. Then pitch the chart in the trash bin. From then on, you will judge what level of heat your chicks need by observing their behavior. When they act chilled, increase their heat. When they act like they're too warm, reduce the heat.

Chicks generate their own body heat from consuming calories, as we do. And like us, they lose body heat commensurate with how cool their environment is and how much feather covering they have at each stage of development. The less feathers, the more the heat loss. The cooler the ambient temp, the more the heat loss. So they need a heat source to replace the lost body heat.

Chicks usually have enough feather growth by age three weeks to keep from losing any body heat at temperatures of around 70F(25C) So they need no heat source. At night, if the temperature drops below that, they will require some heat. Keep in mind that during the day chicks also are consuming calories which helps prevent heat loss, so their heat needs increase at night because of that.

Most folks heat their chicks far too long, and this prevents acclimatizing to cooler temps and inhibits quality feather growth. The best heat guidelines are the less heat, the better.

Between ages four weeks and six weeks, most baby chicks are almost, if not completely feathered out, the equivalent of wearing puffy down jackets, and they no longer require a heat source.

 

[schmeeenme]

Thank you to all! my chicks are now 8 weeks old. they sleep in an indoor coop and I have been finding them wandering (away from the lamp) when I go out there at 6am, so I removed the lamp yesterday. this morning, they were huddled together in the corner where the lamp used to be, but seemed fine and started moving about when I came in. It's been in the low 40's at night and mid 60's in the day. when I used the heat formula to calculate, it indicated I was going to have to use the lamp all winter, and knew that couldn't possibly be correct. I think they are ok now, and again appreciate all the advice!!