Chicken house lighting tip

Now that the days are getting shorter, my egg production has dropped off to pretty much nothing. So today I hooked up a light.

I put them on a timer set from 5am - 10pm for the light to be on. But it doesn't make any sense for the light to be on during day light ours. So I picked up one of those light sensors. What it does is screw into a light socket, then you screw the light into that. So when it's light's light say around 7am, the light goes off on its own, and when it's dark at 8:30, the light comes on on it's own. Which is pretty cool.

I got mine at walmart. But can't remember the price, because I bought it last year.

I just thought I would share...

My egg production has also dropped to zilch, but judging by the amount of feathers floating around the hen house, there is a mass moult going on.

I have never given my birds artificial light, only the soft red glow of a heat lamp hung low to reduce the glare. I find if I over light my birds, the feather picking goes off the scale. Especially if they are slightly crowded OR there is a wide mix of ages, the older ladies tearing the feathers out of the younger upstarts.

With the dust level in my hen house I can imagine a sensor getting dusted over pretty quick and thinking it was always dark! I guess you have to keep up your hen house housekeeping!

Very likely egg production has dropped due to moult cycle, not hours of daylight.

I've been using a Noma Outdoor Timer - Product #52-8819-2 from Canadian Tire for years. It turns on one or two of those compact fluorescent bulbs at dusk and depending on the time of year I set it for 4, 6, or 8 hours. Doesn't seem to make any difference if the extended hours are in the evening as I get good egg production in the winter.

I've also found the timer handy to get young turkeys to go into their house at dusk and have it set for 2 hours so they find the roost. They'll hang around outside until the light comes on and then waddle in.

Another useful application is when growing chicks are transitioning from the heat lamp and tend to huddle in a corner. Inevitably the weaker ones get smothered when this happens. I rig up the timer so that the lamp comes on at night to prevent huddling.

If you watch Canadian Tires' flyer's they usually have this timer on sale sometime in the fall for less than $10. Regular price of $14.99 doesn't break the bank either and I've got all my coops equipped with one.

I use a 'double timer' that goes on in the morning, then off at an appropriate time then on again in the evening, and off later.

I am considering just lighting in the AM so the chickens get the natural 'fade-out' of evening light, giving them time to find their perches.

Sue

Good idea. I never thought of light sensors.

When the days get short, I just use a timer to start their day off around 4 AM until midmorning. Then the light shuts off and the birds have their regular sunset so they can find their perches.