Using a Light to keep production up? Pros/Cons

[Acre4Me]

well a happy hen tends to give ya more eggs than one that's always escaping cause isn't happy and giving the eggs to the neighbor lol. It's just a saying

But as it relates to supplemental light, I don’t think it applies.

Of course, if supplemental lights are kept on 24/7 you’ll have “unhappy” chickens, or at least stressed chickens anyway!

 

[EggstremeHen]

Speaking of storing eggs, thank you @igorsMistress , can someone share the basics and outside ranges? Washed or unwashed eggs?
In my case, my unwashed (I want to preserve the bloom so only a light rinse if eggs are dirty) eggs don't last very long with the amount of baking and egg eating going on. There is always the "egg float/sink test" to administer if you are not sure of egg freshness. But do share, flockmates, how long do you store eggs and how?

 

[Tesumph]

So, happy vs unhappy (human emotions) are emotions tied to egg laying in chickens??

Presumably happy in this context means healthy and not stressed.

I don’t use artificial light because of the potential for negative effects on health. The constant hormone production needed to produce eggs is unhealthy and you will see consequences eventually if you’re keeping birds past their prime.
If your goal is maximum egg production and high turnover, go for it. I personally aim for longevity in my flock.

 

[IamRainey]

I'm lighting for the first time.

I'm using LED Christmas light strings -- the kind with the little rice-sized bulbs on stalks. Three strings aren't all that many lumens combined. I don't want to shock or stress my birds, just extend the day a bit. The lights are strung outside the windows to the coop to just get their attention, then around the run looping from top to bottom in a far more generous distribution.

A timer turns them on at 4:30am for 90 minutes until daylight begins to break. Then on again at 4:30pm for another 90 minutes.

I haven't seen a big increase in their production. Don't know how they react to them in the morning but they stay down in the run until it's genuinely dark.

 

[bobbi-j]

I have used lights, and I have not used lights. I will probably do so this winter, as I really don't like store-bought eggs. I am also planning to freeze some. My chickens don't live long enough to suffer ill effects from using light in the winter. Some get processed at 2-3 years, some get killed by varmints.

 

[igorsMistress]

Speaking of storing eggs, thank you @igorsMistress , can someone share the basics and outside ranges? Washed or unwashed eggs?
In my case, my unwashed (I want to preserve the bloom so only a light rinse if eggs are dirty) eggs don't last very long with the amount of baking and egg eating going on. There is always the "egg float/sink test" to administer if you are not sure of egg freshness. But do share, flockmates, how long do you store eggs and how?

I store my eggs unwashed in a couple of baskets I have hanging on a kitchen wall. Fresh go into the top basket, when it's full I rotate those to the bottom basket and start filling the top basket again.

I've kept eggs for about 6 weeks but they don't usually last that long. We eat them, dogs eat them, family takes some home after visiting.

For freezing here's the site I used for instructions

https://www.incredibleegg.org/eggcyclopedia/f/freezing-eggs/

 

[igorsMistress]

 

[aart]

Speaking of storing eggs, thank you @igorsMistress , can someone share the basics and outside ranges? Washed or unwashed eggs?
In my case, my unwashed (I want to preserve the bloom so only a light rinse if eggs are dirty) eggs don't last very long with the amount of baking and egg eating going on. There is always the "egg float/sink test" to administer if you are not sure of egg freshness. But do share, flockmates, how long do you store eggs and how?

There are a hundred other threads about that,
let's keep this thread on topic about lighting, eh?

 

[igorsMistress]

There are a hundred other threads about that,
let's keep this thread on topic about lighting, eh?

Good grief, give em a break. This thread has been inactive for a bit and there was a question asked.

What's up with all the bad attitudes around here? Cripes!

 

[Acre4Me]

Presumably happy in this context means healthy and not stressed.

I don’t use artificial light because of the potential for negative effects on health. The constant hormone production needed to produce eggs is unhealthy and you will see consequences eventually if you’re keeping birds past their prime.
If your goal is maximum egg production and high turnover, go for it. I personally aim for longevity in my flock.

24/7 lighting IS stressful. Lighting at a consistent 14-15 hours per day IS NOT stressful. They get needed darkness for sleep and most backyard chicken keepers only do this during part of the year anyway. Birds take a break at molt, or if they are broody. There are so many ways a chicken’s life can be shortened, that supplementing light doesn’t make the list of concerns for me!