What if there were no heat lamps?

ArizonaNessa

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10 Years
Apr 7, 2009
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First let me say that I am not trying to get into a debate on ANY safety or environmental views. This is just simply a question.

Okay so I was watching this show last night that was explaining the pros and cons of the fluorescent light bulb versus the incandescent light bulbs and how by 2014 all incandescent light bulbs will be completely phased out of our country. So this got me to thinking about brooders. Heat lamps are just high powered incandescent bulbs right? Please correct me if I am wrong. What on earth is everyone going to use in their brooders to keep the babies warm? Give each chick it's own candle? lol I know there is a simple answer but I guess I am just not up on light bulb technology. At one point in history people raised baby chicks when tons of farms had no electricity. Such as my grandmother. Too bad she is no longer with us or I would just ask her how she kept them all warm.

Just looking for a bit of enlightenment.
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Ya know that is a very good question.... I cannot see all incandescent light bulbs being gone though. What about black lights and colored lights, etc. I haven't seen the newfangled ones to replace those yet.
 
Quote:
Make that a Silkie and I agree with you
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For the longest time, I didn't own an incubator. I just used a flock of 10 Silkies to incubate and brood anything I wanted. Square footage under their bums was limited, but the results were amazing and required very little effort from me. With just 10 hens, I had at least one broody at any given time year round.
 
I spoke with my mom and though she was only 9 or 10 at the time this is what she told me she could remember about it. Day one of chick arrival the kids were allowed to see them briefly then they all went into a wooden shed that was lined with burlap on all the walls and floor. She said inside that shed was big round circles made of wood with big silver saucer looking plates that hung over the top and coal oil was used to heat them. Once all the chicks were in that building the kids were not allowed to see the chicks again until they came out of the building.

Okay now my question has changed....What on earth is my mother talking about? A fire of some sort? like a smudge pot or something? She said that she can't remember exactly what the thing did but she did say that at the time they had no electricity and the only light in their house was in the kitchen and it was something that my grandpa rigged up with old truck batteries.
 
The incubators used to be kerosene heated, too. Yeah, I think they're talking fire
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would make me leery, but whatever worked for them, I guess.

They do have ceramic disk heaters that screw into the heat lamp frames - I suppose one of those would work (barring your actually going with and using fire).

Maybe a ceramic box heater (got one in my office for under the desk, has a fan that blows the warm air under the desk and onto my feet
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I suppose if it came down to it, I would rather have hens hatch the babies - it is far less work and mess for me. I do have a small flock of standard cochins, so I am hoping they will do most of my broody work next summer.

meri
 
Interesting. I would be scared to use a flame as well and I thought about the ceramic things too. If I really had to go through not having electricity I would probably go with broody hens. I wasn't making any plans. Just looking to find out how they did it way back when.
 
Agree w/ others--Cochins work great. I have Cochin hens that mother both their own and mail order chicks, and they do a wonderful job. No muss, no fuss, and if the LGD Pyr decides to investigate the little meepers too closely for Mama's liking, oh BOY does he get schooled!
 

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