Light recommendation

[suzychappstick]

Hi all! We live in MN and are having a cold stretch AND we are heading out of town. It is getting -11 to -18 at night and still negative during the day especially with windchill. I have someone come and check on them 1-2 times a day to be safe. I had a white 250 watt heated bulb (don't worry, well out of reach of chickens flying) on a timer to go off at night. The temp in the coop is right around zero, but water was starting to slightly freeze even though it is on a heated base. So I unplugged the timer and put a 2nd chicken safe cozy panel heater inside. Not enough room for the timer, it takes up two spots. I went to turn the lights on this morning and our rooster with gorgeous comb and waddle looks like he is getting frostbite. Our coop is not lock tight and there is circulation. He was huddle closely to the heater. I know it is not good to have a light on all the time, but right now I feel they could use the extra heat. During these really cold snaps is it ok just to leave a red bulb on the whole time for added heat? Also, I keep the coop door shut during these really cold periods. Some light they does peek through where the roof and walls meet, but not much. Just having a red light on, no windows....is that enough light for them during the day for about 3-4 days? Let me know what you think. It is a 4x6x8 coop and have 2 roos and 5 hens in it right now.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Just having a red light on, no windows....is that enough light for them during the day for about 3-4 days? Let me know what you think. It is a 4x6x8 coop and have 2 roos and 5 hens in it right now.

Red would be a better choice than white.. regarding night time.. but having it come on and go off might just make it harder to adjust when it's off.. plus what if there's an outage?

Maybe the lack of ventilation (windows closed, etc) is causing the moisture problem that could lead to frostbite?? A lot of moisture is exhaled from the birds alone. That sounds like a very tight space to be closed up.. unless my calculations are off.. it's 24 sq feet (8 feet tall or please specify LxWxH and linear roost space in feet long?) and 7 birds with 2 being male.. are they mature (older) roosters/hens, or pullets and cockerels? What breed? Currently laying? What is the flooring/bedding?

If there was a rooster closest to the heater.. I would presume he is top of the pecking order and not that he needed it most.. BUT I am here to learn, my climate doesn't get that cold. I'm sharing what I have learned so far and my questions are meant as helpful not judgement or even truly suggesting anything.. but it might help others make suggestions. Are you able to post photos of your set up/birds?

Since you will have someone checking on them once or twice is it possible they might turn on a light for day time enhancement.. per the question you posed??

I mean, 3-4 days of dimness is not "ideal" but it might be a better choice than an equal period of excessive lighting, if those are the only options.. Sometimes we do what we need to in order to ensure safety to the best of our ability! Birds get shipped across the country in dimly lit boxes every week.. good nutrition/hydration and ventilation are always key factors.. make sure it's clean/dry/fresh before ya go.

Hope this helps some and that more folks chime in! I think @Folly's place lives in snow country, maybe has some helpful tips or pointers. it's always challenging to make out of town trips with animals and full peace of mind, but it can be done!

 

[suzychappstick]

Thanks for your feedback. I feel like there is pretty good ventilation. We purposely did not make the walls meet the roof to allow for ventilation. We have some of that area blocked off or it would let all the heat out. We also have a 5 in diameter hole covered by a fan towards the top of the. There is about an inch gap at the bottom of the door and some air can still get through the chicken door. Unfortunately this rooster is more towards the bottom of the pecking order, so he does not get the top roosting spots where the temp is more comfortable. I do have a Blink camera in the coop, so I can tell the temp and if the light is on, which should tell me if power goes out.

Yes, both roosters will be one yr in a couple months and one pullet. The rest are mature hens. We have a ladder type roost with about 8 steps that can hold two birds each. Then we also have 2 shelf like areas that run the length of the coop that also holds a couple nesting boxes the birds use to perch on. I did put one of the heaters by the lower nesting box. This is where the non dominant guy was hanging out. There is one spot in the rafters, so to speak, where either the dominant roo or dominant hen hang out. I only have a couple laying right now. Some of the hens are a little older. I use the deep litter method. It seems that allows them to kind of take dust baths.

We only wired in one light fixture. I could have the person checking on the chickens turn it off and on, but I feel like at night they might need that extra heat? -18 is pretty chilly, especially with a slight wind chill. That is why I was thinking a red heat lamp on all the time might be better than white light going on and off...at least maybe until it gets back up to zero??? But it isn't very bright in there and how that might affect them??? My dad help me build the coop. I asked for window, but he thought that would be an unnecessary hassle especially if he wired up a fan for good ventilation.

I love having chickens, but these darn cold winters. I hate locking them up, but kind of necessary to keep them and the water from freezing (even with a bottom heat source).

 

[Alaskan]

General chicken keeping guides are making sure that the chickens:

-are safe from predators
- out of the wind
- are protected from the elements
- have good ventilation
- get access to food for the entire time they are awake
- have liquid water as much as possible
- a minimum of 10 hours of light so they have enough time to eat enough to stay warm

I do worry from your description that there is minimal ventilation.

But, the point I want to make is that chickens will not eat in the dark... no matter how hungry they are.

So whatever your other decisions are regarding heat... they need enough light to eat.

And at cold, below 0 F, but even more especially when you are dropping towards-20F, they need a bunch of time to eat a huge amount of high protein (18 to 20 percent) feed.

 

[suzychappstick]

Very good point. I didn't think about them not eating enough if it is not light enough. I just went to the coop and adjusted the camera. Looks light enough in there for them with the red light and sunlight peeking through.