Rope lights in chicken coop work great!!!

[imamtgrandma2]

Here's the entire coop and run with the silver insulation that will keep the Girls warm on the coldest Winter nights here.

 

[imamtgrandma2]

Here's my adorable Girls...Princess the Silver Wyandotte, Waltzing Matilda the Australorp, Cadbury the Easter Egger and Shirley the Partridge Couchin.
They are so lovable - I had no idea that chickens could be so much fun.

 

[gryeyes]

Quote:
How very funny - I named my Black Australorp Matilda for the exact same reason! It .. just fit!.... (I miss her... she was such a love. Now I have a young BA pullet named Molly to fill that empty BA spot.)

Never in a million years would I have EVER imagined chickens to be so personable. Individually. They're all characters.

 

[mjac]

I also installed an LED rope light in my coop. It's encased in a thick plastic so pecking has no effect. It's also cool to the touch. To keep them warm, I hung an under-the-desk flat panel heater from the ceiling of the coop. It's plugged into a temperature sensitive outlet that turns on when the temp reaches 35 degrees, and shuts off at 45 degrees. My girls love it. I'm hoping it will help my Easter eggers start laying soon.

 

[ProfNancy]

Do you have a picture of the heater setup?

 

[ProfNancy]

Are the lights to go in the coop or can the go in the run? We have a duplex and long run so we strung them on the run tonight. However, they still went to bed when the sun went down even though run lights are on. Will they eventually adjust and stay on the run until the lights go off?

 

[Jensownzoo]

Are the lights to go in the coop or can the go in the run? We have a duplex and long run so we strung them on the run tonight. However, they still went to bed when the sun went down even though run lights are on. Will they eventually adjust and stay on the run until the lights go off?

If the lights go off and they're still in the run, they won't be able to see to get into the coop. Chickens have extremely poor vision at night. If you're adding lights to keep them laying, have them come on before dawn to provide the proper daylength. That way you can still take advantage of their instincts to coop up at natural sunset.

 

[ProfNancy]

Thank you. Will switch to turning on earlier in the morning and let them go to sleep at natural sunset.

 

[ProfNancy]

Thank you. Lights went on at 5 am and they all came scampering out all happy.

Nancy

 

[Jensownzoo]