Light color in coop and temp. makes a differance or not

[Chickenwhissper]

what color light in coop to use in wintertime to mimic sunlight? Also is there a certain temp. I should coop at for better production in wintertime? we have 8 heavy pullets and 5 Silkie chickens and a nice amish built coop. thanks for your input we r newbies at this.

 

[Alaskan]

what color light in coop to use in wintertime to mimic sunlight?  Also is there a certain temp. I should coop at for better production in wintertime?   we have 8 heavy pullets and 5 Silkie chickens and a nice amish built coop. thanks for your input   we r newbies at this.

The color loght doesn't matter.

You want 12-14 hours of light, bright enough to easily read a newspaper.

Lots of ventilation is WAY better than any heat.

Constant access (during the day) to food and water is most important, they will eat a CRAZY amount of food when it gets cold.

It is also important to make sure that everyone gets food and water, and no one is getting bullied away from the food and water. So watch for that, if there are any bullies, then put in a second feeder and waterer.

 

[MeepBeep]

Red wave length light has the best ability to penetrate the feathers, skin and skull and stimulate the chickens light sensitive glands, but that doesn't equate to red light being best as the glands react to other wavelengths as well...

From the one study I read 'warm white' light (2700K - 3000K) appeared to be the most efficient as it has a marginally higher percentage of red wavelengths, but that is only if you are pushing extreme optimal effect, using pretty much any 'white' light will be just fine for most...

I use a 50/50 mix of warm (2700K) and cool (6500K) lights in my coop on a 16/8 hour cycle, bright enough to easily read a book at arms length and it works very well...

In fact it's working so well my peafowl are still in full tail, when they should have dropped their tail feathers two months ago...

 

[donrae]

Great advice above. Just want to reiterate that temperature does not matter so much for egg production, it's hours of daylight (or fake light

).

 

[Chickenwhissper]

thanks I thought I read that white light stresses the ladies out so Put a red bulb in coop lol

 

[Alaskan]

That is in regard to heat lamps... For tiny chicks.

 

[Blooie]

Folks use short strings of Christmas lights and even rope lights......

 

[MeepBeep]

In regards to X-mas lights and rope lights they can work, but they might not be optimal in all cases, especially in larger coops...

The threshold for photo-stimulation in chickens is about 0.15 foot candles, but maximum egg production is not achieved until about 0.5 - 1.0 foot candles or greater...

1.0 foot candle is about 10.764 LUX, so you should aim to achieve about 11 LUX in your coop if you want to assure yourself of maximum light stimulation levels...

If you have a smart phone you can download a LUX meter app (lots of free ones, at least for Android) they are not all that accurate but they give you a clue, I would aim for 15+ LUX if you are using a cell phone app, just to be sure and account for the fact they are not that accurate... Hold the phone horizontal at the chickens head height around the coop to take measurements around the coop...

Also be aware that the human eye is horrible at gauging light intensity as it dynamically adjust to compensate for the available light..,

Right now as I type this its about 4:30PM on an overcast day with the sun obviously on the way down... In my house in rooms with open windows and no artificial light my phone is only showing about 1-5 LUX depending on the room, enough to see and do stuff but not enough to optimally stimulate chickens or comfortably read a book... I held my phone horizontal next to some windows in the house and the LUX is still only 50-100 give or take... On the other hand as soon as I step outside it jumps to 3500+.... It's amazing how it jumps and it's amazing how inferior artificial lights are, especially as the distance increases, that whole square inverse law. comes into play very fast with artificial lights...