There have been a few conversations about how to provide warmth safely to your goats, and I have mentioned the way a nearby farm hangs their lamps as a very safe way to do it. Until now, I haven't had the chance to do more than explain them, and it's not easy. I finally got around to hanging my own heat lamps in this way, and I wanted to share with everyone!
My apologies. I do not remember the threads that mention this topic. I hope those authors see this post!
A full view of one of my kidding stalls with the lamp hung on the wall. As you can see, I used a metal shelf bracket, with the longer side being the side you hang the lamp from.
In this picture, you can see the set up more closely. There are three wood screws holding the bracket into the plywood wall, and a keychain ring holds the lamp to the screw hole on the end of the bracket. This keeps it from slipping or getting bumped off of the bracket. For extra security, I used a twist tie (which I will replace with a zip tie, but didn't have at the time) to keep the cord steady, and upright above the lamp.
Here's an even closer detail of the connection point.
I have hung my lamps between 3 and 4 feet high. (the plywood is 4' at it's highest point) and the goats do not bump them walking underneath them. If I needed to lower a lamp. I would do so lowering the lamp with a second keyring (making sure it was a thick one, in case of pulling) and some chain.
So that's it! One of the safest set ups I have ever seen to hang a heat lamp.
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