Red light

[Spiva]

I have seen red lights in coops to prolong winter egg laying. Does anyone do this? Do you use a timer?

 

[nuthatched]

Red lights are typically heat lamps, which they don't need in most places.
You really don't want to encourage off season laying, they need breaks for their health.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Please know that I have the utmost respect for @nuthatched and her opinions and I usually agree with her. However, my birds have been known to take a 6-month "break" from laying, which I find excessive and unacceptable. So when all of them are done molting in the fall, I figure that's a long enough break, usually several weeks (up to 6 weeks), and then I add a little light to the coop to reset the production process. It doesn't take bright light, a night light will do. If you can read a newspaper by it, that's sufficient. Commercial producers give their birds 14 hours of light a day; I feel that's excessive. I give mine enough light to equal 12 hours. Many people say the extra light should be given in the morning. But I am not and never will be an early riser unless my house is on fire and even that is debatable. So my birds get a night light in the evening. I have found that it takes about three weeks to get production started and about another week to get it really going again.

I just use a regular household bulb. Today's LED bulbs don't get hot so I'm not worried about the potential for fire. At 7 pm my DH goes out to "de-light" the chickens, lol.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

PS, it's Jan. 9 and I'm getting 12 eggs a day from my 12 or so hens and 6 pullets.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I have seen red lights in coops to prolong winter egg laying. Does anyone do this? Do you use a timer?

Personally I do not use any lights to prolong laying but many people do for their own reasons. The pineal gland in the brain is what is affected. The light for the pineal gland comes through the head, not through the eyes. I was surprised by that.

If I were to try it, a timer is the only way I'd even consider it. If you do it you need to be consistent. I could not do that without a timer. Some people extend light in the morning, some in the evening, and some do both. No matter what you do someone will tell you that you are wrong but people are successful using different methods.