How much light?

[tedln]

We live in North Texas. We typically have ten hours of sunlight in mid winter with a little over fourteen hours in mid summer. I have set my coop up with a timer for supplemental light starting probably in early October. My intent is to insure fourteen hours of light per day.

My wife thinks it is okay to leave the light on all night. Don't the chickens need some darkness to maintain a biological rhythm? Is it necessary to induce moulting by withholding supplemental light yearly. It seems if chickens were designed to moult, they should be allowed to moult occasionally.

We have very mild winters with an occasional mid winter period well below freezing. My coop is 6' X 8' floor space and 312 cubic feet. Should I use a 60 watt or 100 watt bulb for supplemental light and supplemental heat? We have twelve chickens which will radiate some heat in the coop.

Thanks

Ted

 

[DraigAthar]

You are correct, you chickens will do much better if you give them alternating periods of light and dark. They do need to sleep, after all! And 24 hours of light does not improve their laying as compared to 14 hours, so there's really no point to it.

Your chickens should not need supplemental heat in the winter, unless they are extra fragile breeds. I live in NH, my winter nights regularly get down to minus 25 F, and I never give my chickens supplemental heat. They have a well-sheltered coop and they do just fine. They grow a thicker layer of down feathers as the temps gradually cool off in the fall, so it's best to leave their little bodies to it.