BackYard Chickens › Coop Designs › My homemade Brooder made from an old kitchen cabinet

My homemade Brooder made from an old kitchen cabinet

nirvana4me2
By: nirvana4me2
Posted 03/05/12 • Last updated 03/05/12 • 1781 views • 9 comments

This is my easy/cheap brooder idea. I didn't want to use a rubbermaid tub or cardboard box because I have a 20 lb cat that A) loves cardboard boxes B) loves to chase birds.  So I needed it to be Kitty Proof.  Once my coop is almost all complete, we will converting the brooder into a nesting box.  I will add those pictures as soon as I am done. Not bad for 35 bucks and a beginner at raising chickens and working with tools.

 

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I got an old kitchen cabinet from the restore and removed all the hardware.  Primed and Painted.

 

broodertop.JPG

 

brooder.JPG

 

I cut the bottom out and added hardware cloth on all sides except one. I then cut a hole through one of the cabinet doors and added hardware cloth over that and re-attached the door to one of the openings. I used some nails and wire from the hardware cloth to create a cat-proof brooder. I used left over puppy pads for the chicks. I don't have my heat lamp on for the sake of the picture. Total cost: hardware cloth, paint, cabinet, etc: $35.

 

My plan is to convert the brooder into the girl's nesting box.  

 

 

Comments (9)

judyki2004 3/5/12 at 12:33pm
very nice! love it !
lornafarris 3/5/12 at 6:09pm
Great idea! I was literally at the ReStore about an hour ago looking for inspiration and something to transform into my own coop. I'll have to go back and grab a cabinet I was looking at to use for this... :-)
nirvana4me2 3/6/12 at 10:53am
Thanks guys! I can't wait to get started on the coop!
horseshowmomnv 3/6/12 at 12:32pm
We also purchased a used kitchen cabinet, we got ours from the Habitat for Humanities store. Not only did we donate to Habitat for Humanities, we recycled, and saved $$$. Purchased our for 20.00. We put a vinyl table cloth down to protect the wood, we are using shavings but will switch to sand (from our arena) at the next cleaning our chicks are 1.5 weeks old.
Hazelrah 3/7/12 at 7:18am
What a great idea! I like the mesh on the side for chick viewing and it definitely looks cat proof even for a 20 lb cat.
New adventure 3/7/12 at 7:41pm
what a great idea!
dustyroad 3/8/12 at 8:04am
Nice reuse. On the little panel that protects the latch, I might have used something else or splurged for those plastic edge guards. I always get poked by those wire ends! Shame that I can't figured out a recycled workaround for those guards that holds up.
redstargirls 3/12/12 at 4:31am
What a wonderful and inventive and economic idea.
nirvana4me2 4/14/12 at 11:17am
@ dusty road, yeah, about the latches, I only spent money on the cabinet and the hardware cloth, I used the wire from the hardware cloth so to not waste materials. and yes, I was poked a lot! I will be posting my coop soon, which the girls live in now, we are working on their run with a garden box on top! will add pictures soon!
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