Questions about artificial light in winter months

[kittycooks]

Quote:
What do you mean by a lighted socket? I am debating how to light and heat my coop in the winter too. Not sure if I can run electrical out there.

The socket is the end part where you plug your stuff into. You can get an outdoor contractor extension cord where the socket is clear and glows when it is plugged in. I put it by a window in the coop so I can see it in the dark and know everything is working.

 

[kichohana]

According to "Living With Chickens" by Jay Rossier, "Hens need light to produce eggs. Light stimulates the pituitary gland, which stimulates the ovaries and makes for maximum egg production. In the height of summer, nature helps out the chicken farmer with sunlight, but as the number of hours of daylight drops to less than 14 in a day--as it does in some parts of the United States from September or October through April or May--a hen may stop laying altogether. [. . .] For backyard operations, a 40-watt bulb suspended about 7 feet off the floor will provide light of enough intensity to substitute for daylight in a small coop with about 100 square feet of floor space. If your coop is a little bigger, a 60-watt bulb will suffice for 200 square feet."