by Jennifer BurckeA few weeks ago, I was browsing through the local newspaper and happened upon the type of story that sends a chill down a chicken keeper’s spine. A family in a neighboring town had endured an unthinkable tragedy. Their newly built coop had burned down to the ground, killing all 38 of the young birds housed inside. A heat lamp was to blame.
As chicken keeping becomes more prevalent, so do the coop fires caused by a heat lamp and the friable bedding so often found in close proximity to the lamp. It’s hard to imagine losing your entire flock as well as your coop. It’s sad to think of a family on the verge of becoming proud chicken keepers suffering such a great loss.
Fortunately, chicken keepers have other options for providing heat to their baby chicks. Heat lamps are not the only method for keeping a brooder warm. My favorite piece of brooding equipment is our Brinsea EcoGlow. It gives me peace of mind and provides the warm, comfortable environment that a baby chick needs to thrive. It also allows me to refrain from using the heat lamp I purchased when the first chicks came to live here at 1840 Farm.I remember all too well our first brooding experience. We were painfully new to chicken keeping. I had spent hours reading about the practice of keeping chickens and we had made a trip to our local feed store to purchase the equipment necessary to tend to the needs of our baby chicks. One of those items was the heat lamp we purchased to provide warmth for the brooder. At the time, I thought that it was my only option. It seemed that every article I read assumed that I would be using a heat lamp, so I did.
We spent those first few weeks in awe of the chicks. We couldn’t get enough of watching them as they wandered around the brooder. I couldn’t get comfortable with the heat lamp we were using the keep the brooder warm for our young charges.
The lamp was a clumsy contraption at best. I found myself forever worrying about the temperature inside the brooder. Was it warm enough? Was it too hot? Was the lamp far enough away from the brooder bedding to be safe for the chicks and our farm?
I knew that the chicks’ behavior was my best guide, so I watched them closely for any signs that they were too hot or too cold. I adjusted the lamp regularly. The chicks continued to progress until we no longer needed the heat lamp. I continued to worry that the lamp would burn out in the middle of the night or fall to the brooder below in spite of my efforts to reinforce it and provide secondary means of securing it above the chicks.
When the lamp was unplugged and packed away, I was relieved. It was wonderful to no longer be monitoring the heat provided by the lamp or burning my fingers are I adjusted its position. For the first time in weeks, I did not worry about the potential fire hazard lurking in our brooding pen.Last year, we added our second batch of chicks to our farm. We also added a new method of providing heat in the brooding pen: The Brinsea EcoGlow. I shared our experience using the EcoGlow in my review of the Brinsea EcoGlow 50 last year.
I can’t speak highly enough of this piece of equipment. It is easy to use, and incredibly effective both for the chicks it provides warmth to and the chicken keeper it provides peace of mind for. During the weeks that the EcoGlow warmed our brooding pen, I never worried about the risk of fire. I could put my hand directly on the EcoGlow without burning my fingers, yet the chicks below were warm and content.
I found the EcoGlow to be a much gentler way to provide heat for our brooding pen. The baby chicks were safe and warm and seemed comforted by taking refuge under the EcoGlow. The EcoGlow provided the cover and warmth of a mother hen, giving the chicks a safe place to take cover when they perceived a threat or felt unsure of themselves. They also loved to roost and play on top of the warm EcoGlow.
I can’t imagine myself ever using a heat lamp for brooding again. I won’t miss the constant adjustments or worrying that the lamp bulb might burn out in the middle of a cold New England night. I also won’t miss worrying about the fire risk residing in the brooder with the baby chicks. I don’t like to make proclamations about always and never, but I will always use our Brinsea EcoGlow when brooding a group of chicks and never return to the use of a heat lamp.
I can’t imagine myself ever using a heat lamp for brooding again. I won’t miss the constant adjustments or worrying that the lamp bulb might burn out in the middle of a cold New England night. I also won’t miss worrying about the fire risk residing in the brooder with the baby chicks. I don’t like to make proclamations about always and never, but I will always use our Brinsea EcoGlow when brooding a group of chicks and never return to the use of a heat lamp.
Thanks to Brinsea Products, you can add a Brinsea EcoGlow 20 to your chicken keeping toolkit. I know that you will enjoy using the EcoGlow as much as I have. I also know that you will be able to breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy the brooding experience, content in the knowledge that your chicks will be warm and comfortable and that you are providing that warmth in a safe manner. Trust me; you’ll sleep easier knowing that everyone is tucked in for the night, safe and sound.
52 Comments
I love your blog so much, and there are just some differences with others’. Hope there will be more wonderful things in your blog.thanks a lot.
Love this idea. maybe Ill win one.
This is awesome! Would love to have this!
It isn’t just the lamp that can fall. I’ve seen photos of the glass bulb falling out of the socket, once that happens only two little wires keep it from falling which can still start a fire.
ah shucks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Still can’t enter. The thing you use for contests always does this to me….won’t load and if I click on it it says the ‘ah shucks’ thing and that is starting to make me angry…the ah shucks. I wanna enter!!
I would soooo love to win the Brinsea Eco-Glow 20. I have 3 baby Polish coming soon. I keep my baby chicks in the back room and the heat lamp really scares me.
I would love to win the Brinsea Eco-Glow 20. I do own one, but I’m always loaning mine out so that friends are raising their chicks in a safe environment. With an extra Eco-Glow on hand, I wouldn’t have to worry about getting mine back in time to put in my own chicks brooder. It’s been tricky scheduling hatches with my friends when we’re using the same equipment!
I would love to win one. I worry about using a heat lamp. I use a spare bedroom in my house to brood my incubator chicks. I keep a smoke alarm on top of the cage I use the heat lamp on, but when I’m not home I worry.
I would love to win this, it has been a long time since I raised baby chicks and the heat lamps always worry me.
Regular lights are dangerous no matter how safe you are. It sounds like Brinsea has come up with an excellent sollution.
I bought the ‘better’ bulb [heavier screw in end and red] for the heat lamp but had concerns about adjustments and it being too hot/too cold for the chicks as well as possible overheating or the bulb breaking and starting a fire. We have way too many predators around here [more for chickens than people – but ….] so once set for the night – that’s it. I have been checking out product ads and the Brinsea sounds like a much better way to go. Would love to win it. Thanks …. eileen123@hotmail.com
What a great heat lamp! I would like to try it.
Getting ready to hatch some more eggs soon. I am ready to get rid of the heat lamp. Thanks for the opportunity.
I have always worried while using heat lamps. This would be a great thing to have.
My new arrivals – Mah, Gu, Gai and Pin would sure love this! Thanks for the opportunity!
Too bad Canadians can’t win. I would love one for my birds.
I am still using the old style heat lamp but I constantly worry from hearing so many horror stories!
Me and my chicks would love to win the Brinsea Ecoglow!!!
Best way is a broody hen as a mother,teacher,protector, as your mother must of raised you to carry on the right way.
I have the smaller version of this, and I will NEVER use anything else!! Being fire paranoid, I am soooo glad I invested in this, using it on my 2nd batch of babies who love it to..would LOVE the bigger one!
Diane Stevens
vmstevens@snet.net
I would love to win the Brinsea Ecoglow. My newest batch of chicks will arrive in early July, and even though it’s warm here in Hawaii, they need that extra bit of protection in their first few weeks!
I would love to win this product. I was never comfortable with the old fashioned heat lamps. oldbluejeans@centurylink.net
I would love to give this Brinsea Ecoglow 20 a try this year with my chicks! They arrive two weeks from today! It would be a wonderful experience to have this lamp to use with our very first flock!
I recently purchased an Eco Glow 50 but could really use the smaller version for smaller hatches. I too am not a fan of the heat lamps, even tho I still use them for lack of funding to purchase more Eco Glows
I bought a Brinsea Ecoglow 20 for the same reasons and fears about the old reflector and red lamp we used years ago. I was overjoyed to find there was a safe alternative. I am 2 weeks into my chick brooding experience, and I’m delighted with my Brinsea Ecoglow 20! I refer to the Brinsea as my chicks “Metal Mama.”
I am so happy to hear that you love using your EcoGlow as much as I do. I agree that the chicks love their surrogate mother hen.
I have never had a problem with my heat lamps. I make sure to snap tie them tight to a wood bar so they dont fall into the shavings. This heat lamp seems like a great idea but the legs need to be rebuilt! I have been told that they can easily snap after 5-10 height adjustments.
That means it is not worth the cost!
One thing most people do not realize is to use the proper extension cord if you have to. The wattage being pulled through the cord is a lot more the just a table lamp bulb. Thin cords can over heat and cause the fire when you think it was the bulb. So please use a heavy duty cord for safety sake.
A great suggestion! If a heat lamp is necessary, a heavy duty cord is the safest way to operate it. Thank you for the reminder.
What a great idea. Sure beats the high intensity heat lamp I have now!
I want chicks so bad! crossing all my fingers and toes…
what is a rafflecopter
This is such an awesome, new and innovative concept! Thank you for creating it! I sure could use one. Thanks for the contest and for a chance to win! D
I just put away my heat lamp and now I too can sleep at night. next batch of baby chicks will be under a Brinsea…hopefully I can win one here 🙂
Btw, the link in the first entry takes you not to Bronzes site but to Pinterest.
Darn auto text…the last sentence was suppose to say Brinsea, not Bronze 🙂
Problem solved. Thank you for bringing that error to my attention!
I will never forget waking up in the wee hours of the morning to many men flashing headlamps all over my yard and a knock at my back door. My coop was on fire. My little mini rex bunny who lived with the chickens had herded most of them outside and saved many. But the firemen were making KFC jokes for the couple of hours it took to put the fire completely out. It was a horrible experience, and costly. That bunny was our hero as well as the firemen.
What a terrible experience for you. I am so impressed that your bunny was so brave and helpful! I am so sorry that you had to go through such an awful experience. Your story is a reminder of how important it is to safely provide warmth to the coop and hopefully avoid this tragic situation.
Thank you for sharing your story. While I am sure that it is a painful memory, your story will certainly help many of our readers.
I would love to win,so would my chicks. vera
vlauterbach1@hotmail.com
This would be great for my quail chicks
this would be terrific! I am always worried about the heat lamp starting a fire.
This would be wonderful. Thanks for the chance to win.
I would love one of these as my heat lamps keep the chicks awake as well as the adult hens nesting near by