light or heat lamps in the coop

[eggluvr]

I want to at least put a light in the coop, due to the weather getting cold! I can't run it all the time due to cost, so when might the best times/ duration be? my coop is fairly small and i only have 4 girls, so i plan to put in coop not run. any thoughts would be much appreciated. thank you Michigan chicken girl

 

[teach1rusl]

I use a clay pot "heater" in my small coop. I use either a 75 or 100w bulb in it (depending on weekly night time lows). They're just regular bulbs. It gives off a bit of heat that raises the temp in the coop around 15 degrees, and it's pretty safe. It's really just a lamp cord (plug-in and outlet) run through one of those red/orange clay pots. Mine sets on a wooden base for added stability. If you use a 8-10 inch pot with a larger base set on top, you can set your waterer on it to keep your water from freezing over. You can do a search on those or "cookie tin heater."
You can either plug it into a timer set to night time hours, or use a thermocube that turns on/off based on a certain temperature, depending on your goal. I'll take a picture later today and post it here.

Okay, here's a pic. I would suggest a larger planter base for the top though if you'd give it a go to keep a waterer on top (dual purpose - keep water unfrozen and add a bit of heat in a small coop):

 

[elmo]

If you're aiming to extend the photoperiod to encourage laying throughout the winter, there would be one answer to your question.

If you think your chickens need heat because the weather is getting too cold for them, I'd ask you why you think that. Most chickens do perfectly fine in unheated but dry, well ventilated and draft free coops, even in places that get bitterly cold winters.

Putting a heat lamp in a coop (especially a small coop where there isn't room for adequate clearance from walls, etc., around the lamp) can be dangerous. Just do a search here on "coop fires" and you'll read some very sad stories.

I provide a small amount of supplemental heat in our coop for our part Serama bantams, but only on below freezing nights. I use an oil filled radiator set inside a bird cage. The radiator never gets so hot that I can't put my hand on it so the risk of it starting a fire is fairly low.