Please Help - I have a super paranoid husband afraid of brooder bulb

[Axona]

I'm certainly no expert since I am raising my first batch of chicks now, but I think you could get away with turning the light off altogether during the day. my chicks are 5 weeks old today and they have spent the last few nights outside with no heat source. Temps are down in the low 50's at night here. They seem to be doing just fine. Good luck!

 

[Akane]

My 4week olds were extremely inactive and huddled together without a light at 65F. They were also mostly feathered since my japs seem to grow fast and they were eating gamebird starter instead of chick starter. They were still way too cold without any heat and did not adjust even after several days. As soon as I put the light back on them and they got warm again they devoured all the food and water as fast as I could refill it for the next 2 days. I would not leave 4week olds without any heat source under 70F unless you're really watching them and giving them plenty of time to adjust. Just pulling the 250w bulb will likely cause problems. They need to adjust down to having no heat. I generally switch from a 100w to a 60w to a 40w about every week and then sometimes leave a 25w blue or red bulb over them just for light.

 

[mrsgibber]

Quote:
Thanks, that's what I'm thinking. I'll keep a close eye one them.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

How does he feel about a regular 100-watt light bulb?

 

[Oceanseve]

Yes, last year we used a 150 watt ceramic left from when we had reptiles and even though it was maybe 1-2 feet above the floor of the brooder the chics were ALWAYS huddled under it. I would not recommend it from my experience.

 

[mrsgibber]

Quote:
Ok I drove all the way home and replaced the infared with a 100 - watt bulb. I think I may still use the infared 250W at night if it's super chilly, but I'll just see how they are when I get home from work again tonight.

I also moved the box I put in the brooder that they are using as a roost right under the light so they are that much closer to the warmth when they are on it.

 

[pascopol]

Quote:
250W bulb base gets very hot and can melt plastic socket.

Is your socket ceramic? If it is not I am on your husband side.

I run my 250W infrared through a dim switch adjusting ( lowering) the output, for indoor use this bulb is just too strong and waste of energy, unless you are hatching 50 chicks or so.

 

[Rte.66_chicks]

If your brooder is inside the house, the 250 watt heat lamp is probably too much. The 100 watt bulb should be good. Just watch the chicks-if they are huddling right under the bulb, they're too cold.

My brooder is in the garage, so I need more heat. Home Depot had a fixture just for brooders, built to withstand the heat of the heat lamps.

The last thing you need is a fire. Paranoia may be good in this case.

 

[mrsgibber]

I took everyone's advice and switched on over to the 100 watt bulb and the chickies are all doing fine. I have to admit, I was starting to get scared of the 250 watt too!

 

[Moonwalker]

I've always used a 100 watt bulb for the chicks and other small animals, sometimes a red bulb at nite. The only thing I use the big 250's for is to heat my outdoor dog house in the winter when it gets down in the 20's and colder (my doghouse is 4 ft high and about 6ft square, so it's not anywhere near the floor.) CHE's (ceramic heat emitters) are great for keeping a small area comfortable for small animals and reptiles at night, but not really sufficient for daytime needs of reptiles, or nite time needs of babies. They are nice to use as a warm corner in a larger pen/enclosure so they can go to it if they need to. The bad thing about them is that you can't tell when they burn out!