Using heat lamp for warming baby chicks

p_parker

Hatching
Dec 25, 2022
4
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Hi everyone, I'm caring for some chicks that are around 4 weeks old. I was wondering if I could use a desk lamp (60 watt) instead of a heat lamp? And if so, how high should I have it held above the brood? Is 12 inches fine?
 
If you have a thermometer that would help a lot but for 4 week old chicks they need about 75degrees. So if there are no drafts maybe 6in away would be good enough. They will move away if it gets too warm for them.
 
If you have a thermometer that would help a lot

This.

The key thing is that a sufficient area of the brooder for all the chicks to fit in is warm enough for their stage of development and large enough for all of them to fit at once.

Before I had the brooder plate I swapped out different wattage of the bulbs made for reptiles and raised and lowered chains to keep things right.

Beware, you have to have either a bulb designed for heat such as those reptile bulbs OR an old-fashioned incandescent bulb. LEDs and such modern, high-efficiency bulbs are no good for the purpose.
 
16 to 18" above the floor of the brooder with a incandescent 60w bulb would be about right. Put a thermometer under the lamp and see what the temp gets to at that height, you can adjust it, if need be....should be around 75 to 80°F.
 
Hi everyone, I'm caring for some chicks that are around 4 weeks old. I was wondering if I could use a desk lamp (60 watt) instead of a heat lamp? And if so, how high should I have it held above the brood? Is 12 inches fine?
What temperature is it where you are brooding? If you are outside where it drops below freezing you will need more than that. If you are in your house with central heating where it stays comfortable you probably don't need anything. If you are in an outbuilding or a garage or are using a fireplace for heating, it depends on how cold it gets in there. Many people stop providing heat if they are brooding inside their house at three weeks and start acclimating their chicks to get them ready to go outside. What you can do depends on your conditions where you are brooding them.

If the chicks need heat they don't care how you provide it. You can use a heat lamp, an incandescent lamp, a heat plate, a heating pad, a reptile heater, a radiator, practically anything. The ancients Egyptians were brooding chicks with piped in heat (think back to when they were building the pyramids). The ancient Chinese were also brooding chicks. There is nothing new about this.

Are these yours or are you chick sitting for someone else? If it is for someone else chat with them and see what they want you to do. If it is for you let us know your circumstances and what facilities you have to work with so we can help you get them ready to go outside, if you want them to eventually go outside.
 

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