Warning-We had a tragic electrical fire

[rebecca10782]

This weekend our coop burned down due to something faulty with the electricity. It was at nine in the morning before we let the girls out. They all burned to death. I have never been more upset in my life. It was our fault for not having to proper electrical setup. I want to let you guys know, maybe I can prevent this from happening to anyone else. We were using an extension cord for the two light bulbs. Apparently, it was not the proper cord to use in that situation. We were not told what the cause was by the fire department when they were there. We called the police later because we thought it was arson. A neighbor had threatened to kill our chickens in the past. I never thought that an accidental fire could burn that quickly, but apparently electrical fires are much hotter. They weren't very helpful in telling us exactly what went wrong and how to prevent it again, but we are definetly going to consult an electrician when rebuilding.

 

[okiron]

Oh man I'm so sorry. So devastating.

 

[jacyjones]

That is awful!! You poor thing - do not beat yourself up too much - you did nothing wrong deliberately and now you will always do it right.

 

[silkiechicken]

Sorry for your loss. Don't feel too bad, as it has happened to others.

Could have been many things to cause the fire in the coop. The extension cord could have not been rated high enough to keep two heat lamps running on one cord. if the end of the cord and the lamps plugged into it had a gap or a bird some how pulled it apart a bit, it could have had a spark catch the litter. If the heat lamps were not metal or ceramic based, they could have been not rated for higher wattage heat lamps or intended to be on 24/7. If the lights were only clamped on and not chained to the coop, it could have been knocked down and caused the dry bedding to burn. A bird could have knocked a light over. Or even a slight build up of feathers, dust and bedding on the lamp itself could have caused some burnt wood that landed just right to ignite the coop. Even a 100W bulb has the ability to start dry pine shavings on fire, and dry bedding burns up literally in a flash.

Hope you can rebuild the coop and start again.

 

[rebecca10782]

Luckily, our little rooster was in the house because we can't let him crow at six in the morning. He walks around the yard calling his girls and gathering food for them. It is so sad. He is very lonely and we are going to have to find one hen for now at least. We called around to the shelters and they don't have any hens. Everytime I open the refrigerator and see their eggs, I cry. They were like our cats and dogs. They all had names and different ridiculous personalities

And one had two newly hatched babies. We also found three eggs with developed babies in them.

 

[hollymh]

I'm so sorry, maybe someone on here could help find a nice hen for your boy! Best of luck and lots of

 

[zowieyellowflame]

Quote:
Wondering what someone does to prevent this risk of a lightbulb lighting the bedding? I will hopefully have chicks in a week, I have got to rig something up.
Rebecca, sorry for your loss.

 

[babyspice35]

 

[ranchhand]

I am so sorry, what a terrible thing to have happen. Thank you for sharing though, I need to upgrade to a "real" electrical connection, too.

Hope things go well with rebuilding and that you can start another flock soon.

 

[Holly O]

Quote:
Was told Fertilized eggs that where refrigerated can still hatch after two weeks in the fridge. Bring then to room temp and then put them in the incubator. 21 days from the date you put them in the incubator, you should get chicks.

Just a thought