I want to increase light, in coop in the mornings. What is best type of light? Do I need to stick with a red bulb or will a regular bulb be good?
I used an ordinary clear 100w bulb. It worked very well. I read an article on lighting for winter awhile ago and I remember specifically that you need a light that's bright enough that you can easily read fine script by it, otherwise it won't have enough effect on the hens.
My husband hung up strings of clear Christmas lights and set them to come on at 6:30 in the morning, and go off at 8:30 at night. They worked wonderfully, they are very safe, as far as a fire hazard goes, and we hung them high enough that the chickens couldn't reach them. Best of all, the chickens kept laying all winter!
Oh, and just as a side note--I've written about it on another thread, but my parents used a light bulb to heat/light their chicken coop when I was a kid. We awoke to a blazing fire and chicken fireballs running across our lawn. It was horrible, tragic, and I will never forget it. I'm phobic about fire in the chicken coop now, and that's how my husband came up with the Christmas lights idea.
I have read a few stories of that. We have secure set up for now, with a regular bulb. But I have considered the christmas light idea, as well.
