Radiant heat panel: dangerous or not?

[MissGreenJeans]

Hey, Wise Chicken Peeps!

I live in NC, up in the mountains, at a high elevation. It’s been a mild winter—until NOW! It went from a low at night in the 20s (F) to, tonight, subzero temps (-6 to -9 degrees). It was about 10 last night and it’s now 1. I have breeds I believe are cold-hardy (Welsummer, Olive Egger, Easter Eggers, French Black Copper Marans, Ameraucanas), but a few are late molters this year. None have bald bits, and two are fully feathered, but the other five are moth-eaten to varying degrees. My coop’s small with okay (admittedly not great) ventilation high up. It’s not insulated, but I don’t think it’s drafty. I’ve got some tarps to prevent wind from blowing into the coop from the main ventilation holes. In the wee hours this morning, I saw that the coop dropped to 10-15 degrees (this was when the outside temp hit about 4). It’s 11 in there now, with their little door to their run open. I happen to have Cozy Coop flat panels that provide radiant heat (i.e., they’re warm for the girls to snuggle up to, like when they were chicks, but they don’t actually heat the space). They’re supposed to be safe to use, even with combustible stuff touching the panels, which don’t seem to get really hot. I’ve read that sudden loss of heat can be deadly, though. If the power goes out tonight, the girls would go from snuggled up to the warm panel to…well… not, pretty quickly. My question is whether or not that loss of radiant heat is dangerous like the loss of in-coop heat (like from a heat lamp, which I won’t use). I’d like to provide some comfort/warmth, and the most moth-eaten chicken looks super cold already. But I obviously don’t want to lose power and kill my birds! (Next year: GENERATOR.) Any advice would be most welcome.

 

[azygous]

I would go ahead and use the heater and hope the power stays on. Going from slightl warm to cold won't hurt the chickens that much.

 

[MissGreenJeans]

I would go ahead and use the heater and hope the power stays on. Going from slightl warm to cold won't hurt the chickens that much.

Thank you!

 

[AGeese]

I’ve read that sudden loss of heat can be deadly, though.

Where did you read this? Overall the temps you mention are not bad for cold hardy breeds with decent shelter. It's colder here now, and mine are fine without. Take note of the wind chill if you have any as that's what makes low temps brutal.

 

[MissGreenJeans]

Where did you read this? Overall the temps you mention are not bad for cold hardy breeds with decent shelter. It's colder here now, and mine are fine without. Take note of the wind chill if you have any as that's what makes low temps brutal.

I found a few different online posts and articles advising against the use of heat—and one of the prime arguments against was about preventing the birds from acclimating naturally to falling temps. I assumed that meant that if you used a heat source to make ‘em all toasty warm but then suddenly removed it (like when the power goes out), the quick drop could really throw their systems for a loop and maybe even prove deadly for them. Last winter, their first, I didn’t provide heat for that reason. They were fine—but it never got this cold. It’s -6 out there now, and the wind chill tonight may be as low as -35. Their coop thermometer says it’s 5 inside, and there shouldn’t be any wind blowing on them. I’ve just got ventilation up high, with tarps that don’t seal the holes but do prevent drafts from blowing in. Think they’re okay without a heat source—even with that brutal wind chill temp? (Thank you so much for the advice! )

 

[MissGreenJeans]

I found a few different online posts and articles advising against the use of heat—and one of the prime arguments against was about preventing the birds from acclimating naturally to falling temps. I assumed that meant that if you used a heat source to make ‘em all toasty warm but then suddenly removed it (like when the power goes out), the quick drop could really throw their systems for a loop and maybe even prove deadly for them. Last winter, their first, I didn’t provide heat for that reason. They were fine—but it never got this cold. It’s -6 out there now, and the wind chill tonight may be as low as -35. Their coop thermometer says it’s 5 inside, and there shouldn’t be any wind blowing on them. I’ve just got ventilation up high, with tarps that don’t seal the holes but do prevent drafts from blowing in. Think they’re okay without a heat source—even with that brutal wind chill temp? (Thank you so much for the advice! )

p.s. I have a camera on them, and they appear to be perched and sleeping as usual. Five are next to each other in a row, and the other two are cuddled up together at the other end of their roosting bar. Do I assume correctly that I’d notice distress? I planned to check in on them a few times via camera overnight. Hoping they’d show some signs of trouble if they got dangerously cold. Going out there now and opening the coop to put the radiant heat panel inside seems potentially unwise. I’d be exposing them to the super cold air outside for at least a few minutes. Coop appears to be about 10 degrees warmer than the temp outside, at least right now.

 

[azygous]

When people advise not heating a coop, most people are thinking of a heated space where a human would feel comfortable. Of course, this would be foolish as no chicken with a healthy body and adquate feathering requires the same level of heat as a human to be comfortable during cold weather.

It is entirely permissible to heat a coop to just above freezing. This is what I've been doing for my flock for many years. The coop is no warmer than 35F-40F, and this assures no frostbite, and it also assures no hypothermia.

My coops are insulated, so if the power goes out, the coops do a fair job of retaining heat. The chickens will do fine going from a 35F coop to their run where the temp may be 15F-25F. This is not stressful as the temperature spread is not so great.

On days like our recent ones, it's a challenge to keep the coops above freezing at night and mine both dipped below freezing in spite of the heaters. When the daytime temp is in the single digits or below zero as these recent days, I hang a heat lamp in each of the two runs for the chickens to grab some heat, and some, not all, do take advantage of it, mostly the older ones.

During these severe cold events, as you should also do during heat events, watch for signs of hypothermia and heat stroke. The symptoms are similar - drunken behavior, tipsy, off balance, lameness, stumbling, even extreme lethargy and collapse. With hypothermia, the chicken needs gradual warming and sugar water with electrolytes. With heat stroke, the chicken must be cooled and given the same sugar water /electrolytes. I keep Gatoraid on hand to grab quickly. Not having to mix up a solution can save valuable time and maybe the chicken.

 

[aart]

Any heater, or electrical device, can be dangerous if the lines giving it power are unsafe.

I've learned to give electrolytes before, or early during, temps extremes...it definitely helps.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

 

[sdm111]

Any heater, or electrical device, can be dangerous if the lines giving it power are unsafe.

I've learned to give electrolytes before, or early during, temps extremes...it definitely helps.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

This
And when people go and buy things in the moment of oh crap usually they look at price first since it was not planned. Here comes the 16ga 100' extension cord and the largest 250w. Heat light bulb. That is a fire waiting to happen. The 16ga. Small wire coupled with 100' of cord on top of an amperage eating 250w bulb.

 

[MissGreenJeans]

Any heater, or electrical device, can be dangerous if the lines giving it power are unsafe.

I've learned to give electrolytes before, or early during, temps extremes...it definitely helps.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

So true, aart. I have a firefighter friend who’s educated me enough to instill a healthy respect for all things electric. I don’t know a whole lot about extension cords, I admit. I’ve got a heavy duty one—an 100-ft Southwire 12/3 SJTW, which is weather resistant and rated for outdoor use in subzero temps (15 amps, 125 volts, 1875 watts). The Cozy Coop panel is 200 watts and puts out pretty low heat compared to, say, a heat lamp. I used the same panel in the brooder when the chicks were wee and needed a heat source to snuggle up to.

It was -10 F (wind chill about -30) for most of last night. I opted against using the panel and monitored the chickens via camera. The coop thermometer said the lowest coop temp was 1. The girls slept all night, snuggled up on their roosting bar. No frostbite this morning, but one Ameraucana was trembling a bit, which concerned me, and holding up one leg. I fed the girls some chicken porridge (their regular pellets soaked in water and warmed), and she scarfed that down. Looking a bit better now, and it’s 1 outside the coop. The forecast says we should see a low of 2 Fahrenheit tonight. Hope that’s correct…. Last night, I wished I’d put the panel in the coop, watching it get colder and colder, but I didn’t want to go out and open the coop to rig it up, thinking the space would lose too much heat. It stayed about 10 degrees warmer than the temp outside all night. Still on the fence about putting one in there tonight.

Love the electrolytes advice! Thanks, aart! I’ll get some and keep that on hand for the next cold spell.