Light in coop?

[saraem18]

Does putting a light inside the coop actually work for getting eggs in the winter? How many hours should I keep it on, or should I keep it on all night? I haven't gotten a single egg in almost 2 months, and it's just now getting a little chilly where I live. 2 of the 6 have molted and gotten their new feathers, but the rest haven't shown signs of molting. I can't see any other reason they've stopped laying, so I'm hoping it's just due to shorter days.

 

[DobieLover]

Does putting a light inside the coop actually work for getting eggs in the winter? How many hours should I keep it on, or should I keep it on all night? I haven't gotten a single egg in almost 2 months, and it's just now getting a little chilly where I live. 2 of the 6 have molted and gotten their new feathers, but the rest haven't shown signs of molting. I can't see any other reason they've stopped laying, so I'm hoping it's just due to shorter days.

Yes, it can help but hens take a much needed break during the winter from laying eggs. This is why many introduce new pullets each year and either sell or otherwise cull a few older hens.
If you are going to supplement light, offer it in the morning vs. suddenly plunging them into darkness off the roost at night.

 

[goldysgirl]

I have noticed before when we have had long stretches of subzero weather and i put a heat lamp in to keep water thawed that the chickens start laying again. I am not a huge fan of having eggs in winter though, because while I am at work the eggs have frozen and my last flock developed an egg eating habit from the cracked eggs. Also, i agree probably best to give my ladies a rest. This year I installed a cozy coop radiant heater to avoid my birds having to sleep with a light on all night and to help protect my japanese roo's huge comb. I keep chickens primarily as pets and for their beauty. I like getting eggs, but we get way too many for our use. My family is too far away to give eggs and I don't have many neighbors. I better whisper it, but I get really sick of eating and collecting eggs sometimes. I do freeze them, give some to the dog/chickens, pickle them, scramble them, omlet them, angel food cake them, lemon curd them, cookie them, cake them, make deer spray with them...haha you get the idea. Geesh, I just hate to waste things so I always use them up, but it's a challenge.

 

[aart]

Does putting a light inside the coop actually work for getting eggs in the winter?
How many hours should I keep it on,
or should I keep it on all night?

I haven't gotten a single egg in almost 2 months, and it's just now getting a little chilly where I live. 2 of the 6 have molted and gotten their new feathers, but the rest haven't shown signs of molting. I can't see any other reason they've stopped laying, so I'm hoping it's just due to shorter days.

-Sometimes, but it's not like 'flipping a switch' on the 'egg machine'.
-12-14 hours.
-Absolutely not!

It's length of day not temperature that controls egg production.
Light needs to be consistent in timing and duration.
How old are your birds?

Here's a pretty good article on supplemental lighting.

 

[RoosterML]

I second what @DobieLover said add extra light in the morning NOT at night. I added extra light last winter. I am not going to be doing it this winter. Time to give the girls a hard earned rest.

 

[Folly's place]

I have a light on from 4am to 8am every day, on a timer. I do like getting some eggs every winter! And, I don't think that the hens suffer for it, they molt and take time off anyway, whenever they feel like it.
Mary

 

[aart]

I have a light on from 4am to 8am every day, on a timer. I do like getting some eggs every winter! And, I don't think that the hens suffer for it, they molt and take time off anyway, whenever they feel like it.
Mary

I'm finding when it's on year round it affects the molt less,
they are still able to molt but come back into lay sooner than with no light at all.

 

[Acre4Me]

Yes, light should help. As others noted, you should aim for a total of approx 14 hours of light a day (artificial + natural light). You should get a timer for the light, so it is on/off at specific times a day. Do not leave it on all night.

We had pullets last year that had been laying, but with the reduction in daylight hours they were laying less and less and a few had stopped. We added light on a timer and in 2-3 weeks, we were getting more eggs. However, they laid less, overall, in the winter than in the summer, but I have heritage breeds, not production breeds. This year, we were all set up with light and have been using it for a few weeks already - on around 4 am, off around 830am. It is a single bulb, but lights up the coop.