Winter coop lighting

[harleyjo]

I need to know more about lighting my coop when my days are getting shorter. Please don't bash me for wanting to keep more "daylight" for my girls. We got into chickens for the eggs. The economy is tough and the chickens are to provide food for us. That said, I take very good care of my chickens. I currently use a florescent small wattage light in the coop all night. I need to know what wattage I need to have to keep the days longer for them as my days of daylight grow shorter here in IA. I also need to know if I can use florescents or if I have to change the type of bulb I use.

 

[dirtsaver]

Harleyjo I don't agree with the commercial practice of constant lighting.. Those yahoos have things lit up like a Christmas tree 24/7/365 ! For most of us "extra lighting" only adds a couple of hours each day and that's nothing to worry about.

Any light source will work but my thought is just a couple of incadescant bulbs should do the trick,and, since we are talking about using the lighting in the winter the heat off of a couple of 40 or 60 watt bulbs may help keep the cluckers warmer too out on the plains. Get a timer outlet to plug your lights into and set it up to add maybe an hour in the morning and a few hours at night, say maybe it gets dark at 5pm you'd set the timer to turn the lights on at 5pm and off at 8 pm, then set it to come on at 6:30am and off when it's light...maybe 7:30 or 8am. That should not burn out the girls but still give you sone good egg production.

Larry

 

[True Grit]

I plan to give mine about 15 hours of light total per day in the winter in the way dirtsaver mentioned..

 

[woodmort]

I use a Light Stick--it is a florescent light that comes with its own cord and switch--that I plug into a duel timer set to come on at 6 am, go off at 9 then on again at 4 pm and off at 9. The light stick last about 2 years or so. Works good for me and doesn't seem to over work the girls. I generally start this at the end of Sept and keep it going through April. I suppose I could turn on the lights earlier and off earlier but I'm an evening person and prefer the lights on when I close the birds up at night.

 

[harleyjo]

My husband grew up in the country and his grandparents had chickens. They always had a small night light on in the coop. I am talking very low like 15 watts. Basically all I am wanting to do is give them a few more hours a day like we have in the summer here in IA.