Safe Heat?

[Suellen KF]

Hello! I am in Central NJ and we are getting some unusually cold weather. We have done everything possible to keep our birds warm. I wanted to put some kind of heat source in there for them, but I have major concerns. We have one bird who goes up about 8 to 10 feet in the air and roosts on an old track for a pulley apparatus that is up there (old barns have some odd things in them, don't they!?) so heat lamps concern me. I am afraid the birds will knock them down and start a fire. I know we could affix them in a better manner than just clamping them in but still.... I worry.
Can anyone suggest anything or tell me what you all are doing to provide heat in the coop safely.
THANKS!

Suellen

 

[NYcue]

I live in upstate NY and we also are experiencing the same cold. I have 4 barred rocks in my coop. I did my best to prevent wind into the coop and run but still left a lot of ventilation. I keep no heat or any lights and my girls all seem fine. This morning it was 0 degrees but with windchill -20.

I'm no real chicken expert but unless you don't have hardy birds, you really don't need to add heat. When I received my birds online from the hatchery it included a note with a few tips. One of those was not to add heat but ensure a draft free coop with plenty of ventilation. They went into detail about needing a lot of ventilation.

 

[foreverlearning]

If you have to add heat you can zip tie the clamp to the board so if it does get hit it will still hang there or use a shop heater. You want a shop heater with a safety tip over. You want a shop heater not a house heater because house heaters are not designed to deal with the dust chickens create whereas shop heaters are.

 

[Suellen KF]

Thanks for the input. I have been in disagreement with my husband about this. I think they are tough enough to handle it but he worries (I grew up on a farm and he is a "city boy"). The shop heater definitely makes sense. I had concerns about all the dust.
Thanks again!

 

[Hokum Coco]

I think they are tough enough to handle it but he worries (I grew up on a farm and he is a "city boy").

Chickens are not polar bears we have to keep in mind. Laying, vocal, and active birds in my opinion is a sign everything is right in their world. That being said when a chicken has 3 trips around the sun it is there as a pet not for egg production. If your birds or animals are showing signs of stress you have to do what is right in your situation. The one size fits all is a recipe for disaster.

Take inventory on your animals daily and make daily decisions is what I do summer and winter. A heat lamp and TLC can happen not only in winter and not always due to cold.

In Canada I am subject to -40º cold snaps. I do NOT heat or give extra light in my coop. Murphy's law says my birds will find out what -40 is all about when my hydro goes out. Regardless what you decide feed Extra Corn over the winter you will not be sorry.

Or something like this may help also; You could even knit a hoodie for those extra cold days..






Reply