we are thinking of putting a light up and are wondering were to put it, in are run, coop, over the perch?
Hello there and welcome to BYC! Do you mean a heat lamp for light and heat? You don't need to really bother with a light for lighting your run as when it is dark, the chickens will gravitate to the coop. You can install a heat lamp about 3 feet over the roost bar. You don't want it direct on them, just some ambient heat. Generally chickens don't need heat unless your over night temp is going to drop 30 or 40 degrees colder than your AVERAGE over night low. They are very adaptable and can survive brutally cold temps. Too much heat and they can get sick, can't go outside and really causes health issues. So let them adjust to the cold as much as possible. If you do attach a light or heat lamp, make SURE to permanently attach it to the wall or ceiling. Never rely on the clamp as it can fall and cause a fire. If you need to leave a lamp on all night, use red or infra red spectrum bulbs so it does not disturb their sleeping patterns. White does not allow for proper sleep. Make yourself at home here and if you have any further questions, feel free to ask. Welcome to our flock!
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help. Two Crows has given you great advice. Your chickens do not need light when it's dark. And if your coop is properly ventilated and has lots of warm bedding then you don't need a heat lamp really either. And too much light can cause issues in their laying habits. It can also, like Two Crows mentioned, make them sick. Good luck!
X2 - the purpose of the light will dictate the best approach to installing it. As pointed out above, light for the purpose of heating is generally unnecessary and can be more trouble than help in the end. If you are thinking of lighting for the purpose of providing supplemental light to encourage production in the season of shorter daylight hours (winter), that would be an entirely different application. For that purpose, most folks install lighting to come on in the wee hours of the morning to add to the expected hours of daylight bringing the total hours of light to a level that will encourage production. Adding the light for the "morning" vs at the end of the day allows for a natural cycle at the end of the day where birds roost with the setting of the sun. Timers can be quite helpful in doing this so that you aren't getting up in the wee hours to turn the lights on manually - set them to go off a bit after the sun has reached a good level of daylight after rising.
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