Brooder system for 20 (ish) chicks?

[chandlerchickens]

Is that 45 as the low and 63 as the high or are those the daytime high range?

What brooder heat source are you looking to use?
Brooder plates are designed to be used in an already heated structure so are unlikely to be warm enough in an unheated structure.

I brood in the coop with a very securely hung (I use chain) heat lamp. For 20 chicks 2 lamps would likely be needed.

Sorry, yes 45 is the low and 63 is the high. I’m not sure if my anxiety could handle using hear lamps- but there may be some system I feel comfortable with.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Sorry, yes 45 is the low and 63 is the high. I’m not sure if my anxiety could handle using hear lamps- but there may be some system I feel comfortable with.

Most heat plates are designed for 50F+. Mama heating pads will work but for 20 you'd want at least 2 of them. Crushing is a fear when you have larger groups of chicks, which is why heat lamps are recommended for bigger broods, but if you wanted to go with heating pads you might consider doing two separate groups of 10 each (using the aforementioned cardboard to make smaller brood areas on the floor) for the first week or so, and then after that both groups can use the larger space as previously described.

 

[21hens-incharge]

If your forecast continues to show 40's for the lows that's good!

Have you looked at the mama hen heating pad set up?

This is a good article to start with.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/brooding-chicks-the-first-6-weeks.74640/

 

[21hens-incharge]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...d-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update.956958/

This is an insanely long thread but there's great info to be found in the early pages.