Poultry Light Control of the Layer Chicken House

Power and regulation of lighting in the layer chicken coop
The breeding efficiency of laying hens may be improved with the use of scientific and acceptable supplemental lighting, which not only helps the chickens live longer and be healthier, but also increases egg output and the length of time they spend laying. Inadequate lighting, on the other hand, can cause hypogenesis in laying hens, such as a premature or delayed start to laying, which can have far-reaching effects on the laying rate and egg production throughout the entire laying period, as well as increase morbidity and mortality in laying hens and result in substantial financial losses for breeders. In this article, we provide an overview of the technology used to regulate the lighting inside a henhouse, which may be used by anybody interested in this topic.

1. The adjustable light on/off timer
1.1 The Incubation Stage (0-6 weeks old)
Chicks' activity and feed intake, as well as their health and development, are all impacted by the lighting system in which they are housed. If the light period is too lengthy, chicks will be sexually precocious, which will damage laying performance in the future. In the first three days after hatching, chicks are often exposed to accept light for 23 hours and darkness for 1 hour so that they can acclimate to the dark surroundings and not freak out if the power goes off; From day 4, the amount of time light is on decreases by 30 minutes every day, until it is only on for 18 hours by day 14; Beginning on day 15, lighting should be dimmed by 2 hours each week until it reaches 10 hours per day at the end of 6 weeks.

1.2 Developmental Stage (7-20 weeks old)
If laying hens are exposed to light for too long during this time, they will reach sexual maturity too soon; if they are exposed to light for too little time, they will become overweight, lay heavier eggs from the get-go, experience a higher rate of dystocia and mortality, and lay fewer eggs overall. Therefore, the light should be administered for 10 hours from age 7 to age 17, and then increased by 1 hour each week beginning at age 18, culminating in 12 hours by age 20.

1.3 Laying period (21 weeks old- eliminated)
During the laying season, an increase in the amount of time the hen is exposed to light may encourage the production of eggs by triggering the release of sex hormones; however, a prolonged increase in the amount of light can increase the rate at which the eggs are broken. Therefore, the amount of time exposed to light during the laying period should be gradually increased, starting at the age of 21 weeks and increasing by 30 minutes per week until it reaches 16 hours during the peak period of laying, after which the illumination should be maintained at 16 hours, and then again when it is close to the elimination period (around 59 weeks), the illumination should be increased by 30 minutes per week until it reaches 17 hours.

2. adjusting the brightness
2.1 The brooding period (0-6 weeks old).
Chicks' neural systems get overstimulated by too much light at this time, leading to undesirable behaviors like feather and beak picking, while too little light makes it hard for them to feed and drink. In general, 20-25 lux (the light of 0.16 watt per square meter of electric incandescent lamp equals 1 lux) should be used during the first three days or the week leading up to the birth; after 6 weeks, the light intensity should be reduced to 5-10 lux.

2.2 Growing period (7-20 weeks old).
The growth of chickens is sensitive to the amount of light they receive during this time, with too much causing behavioral issues like irritability, pecking addiction, prolapse, nervousness, and so on. Too little light, however, and the chickens won't consume enough food and water, resulting in slower growth and a later production date. When the plant is actively developing, it needs between 5 and 10 lux of light per square meter.

2.3 Laying period (21 weeks old- eliminated).
If the lighting is too bright during this time, it wastes electricity and stresses out the laying hens, leading to more aggressive behavior from the flock as a whole (including more fighting, pecking, and prolapse). If the lighting is too dim, the laying hens aren't stimulated enough to lay eggs, and egg production suffers. The optimal light level during the laying phase is 10–20 lux.

3. The choice of illumination color
The chicken hypothalamus has extraretinal photoreceptors that react differently to illumination of various wavelengths. Red light is harmful to the development of chicks and raised chickens, delaying sexual maturation; nevertheless, it may be advantageous to laying hens, causing them to be quieter, increasing egg production, and decreasing their pecking addiction. Chicks exposed to green light have a higher chance of reaching a healthy body weight and reaching sexual maturity earlier than their slower-growing and developing breeding chicken counterparts, however laying hens exposed to green light have less eggs laid and produce fewer eggs overall. Even while exposure to yellow light may improve egg production, it has the opposite effect on breeding chickens, delaying sexual maturation, and increasing the likelihood that laying hens will get addicted to pecking. Laying hens are more susceptible to illness and have a lower laying rate when exposed to blue light. As a result, factories should switch to incandescent lighting or high-efficiency energy-saving bulbs. This light source emits a wide spectrum of colors with wavelengths ranging from 500 to 625 microns, including red, orange, yellow, green, and others. It's safe and effective enough to satisfy the illumination demands of laying hens throughout their cycles.

4. Design and layout of lighting system
Chickens' feed consumption, sexual maturity age, ovulation, and egg production are all influenced by the amount of light they're exposed to within the coop. The production performance of laying hens can only be maximized with enough lighting to promote regular laying, timely molting, and full play. To illuminate enclosed chicken houses, artificial lighting equipment like incandescent bulbs or high-efficiency energy-saving lights is often utilized. Because of their durability, low energy consumption, high luminous efficiency, light that is suitable for people's vision, high adjustment frequency, and ability to better meet the physiological needs of chickens, high-efficiency energy-saving lamps are the ideal lighting equipment for chicken houses in actual production.

A chicken house's lighting system is only as good as its layout, therefore it's crucial to give special attention to how you've set it up so that your laying hens have enough illumination. Since battery layer cages and stacked cages are typically used for intensive laying hen production, with the upper and lower layers of laminated cages overlapping, and the net height of the adult chicken's cage frame being nearly 4 meters, lighting issues in the lower layer cages are inevitable if lamps are arranged on the same plane as ordinary cage chicken houses. Therefore, a laminated cage chicken coop will require a two-tiered lighting system with high and low bulbs. The standard height of a chicken coop is 0.2-0.4m, with the bottom bulb placed 1.8-2m above the ground. This is the only method by which all the chickens in a flock may be exposed to the same amount of light.

5. Several problems that should be paid special attention to in lighting management
5.1If you want to control the light in your space effectively from the get-go, start with the chicks. However, this time frame shouldn't go beyond the breeding season.

5.2 The rate at which the sun becomes brighter at night depends on when hens reach sexual maturity. If hens reach sexual maturity sooner than planned, that will slow down the rate at which night falls. Accelerating the increase in illumination time when it's too late to do so and pairing it with the giving of full meal would certainly boost the laying rate.

5.3In order to prevent proctoptosis, it is recommended that laying hens' lighting time be increased gradually from short to long, and that it be supplemented in the morning and evening, without exceeding a 1 hour increase in illumination time every week.

The light level should be adjusted gradually in either direction, and the change from the growth period's lighting plan to the laying period's lighting scheme should also be accomplished gently. Panic, molting, irregular egg production or laying stop, etc., may result if the lights are abruptly switched off or the illumination duration is curtailed.

5.4To encourage hens to lay more eggs, the lighting should be adjusted such that during the final two weeks of the laying season, the light is on for an extra hour, for a total of 12 hours of light every day.

5.5 Bulbs must be adjusted sensibly, and lighting must be spread out evenly without any shadowy spots.

There should be 1.5 times as much space between bulbs as there is between the hens' horizontal plane and the bulbs.

If there are more than two rows of bulbs in the coop, they should be spaced at an angle such that only half the distance between each bulb and the wall is visible. Lower hens in multi-level cage homes must get the required amount of light; Power stability, consistent voltage, consistent brightness, and a timer switch are all necessities for auxiliary lighting. Lighting timers or automated light controllers allow for daily regulation of the lighting schedule in large chicken houses; White fluorescent lights of 40-60 watts or less are employed, and their open or umbrella-shaped coverings allow for maximum light output. Lighting fixtures need periodic maintenance, including cleaning and replacement of bulbs.

5.6Lighting management, when integrated with other aspects of the feeding management system (including a healthy interior environment and thorough disease prevention and control methods), may greatly boost the productivity of laying hens.

Benwei chicken coop lighting for egg production