Want to move them outside!!!

[wisecane]

Newbie here. I'm in central Florida so not many freezing nights lol.

I've been raising 11 chicks in an inside brooder. Plastic tub with pine shavings and a heat plate. My chicks are two weeks old and can hop/fly up a few inches (they started "roosting" on top so I covered it with a towel). I have since provided them with roosts via dowels and they love them.

They have most of their wing feathers and are sprouting tail feathers.

The problem is they are getting bigger and my wife wants her bay window back lol.

I have constructed a large outside brooder. It has a hardware cloth floor with some boards for support. It is made for plenty of air exchange but not drafty. It is large enough to place my current brooder inside of it.

Let me explain my set up. My outside chicken area is approximately 50' x 25'. Fenced and keeps them contained while they forage. Inside of that is a 6.5'T x 9'W x 18'L wire run. It is steel framed and I have it mounted on PT 2x8's with a completely sealed wire floor (no digging in or out). I have this run covered in a heavy-duty tarp to eliminate rain inside/provide shade. My henhouses are outside of this run, however the chickens access them from inside the run (also sealed so predators can't get to them). I have Run Chicken auto doors on both henhouses. I also close the gate to the run at night to keep predators out of there.

I have my large brooder inside of the run. My idea was the mature chickens would be able to see, smell and interact with the littles but not have access to them. I am putting a top on the large brooder tomorrow and I think I'd like to move them outside to it.

I was thinking to make an opening in my plastic brooder, put it inside the large brooder and let them access that in the evening for roosting (mimicking the transition from run to roost like the matures).

My main question is temp. Right now I have a large (12" x 18.5") brooder plate from Producers Pride that has worked out awesome. I suspend it with chains like this pic:

but it also has legs for vertical applications. I just raised it as they got taller.

I also have two regular red-bulb lamps I can clamp and use.

Right now our temps are calling for Highs in the mid 80s and 90s during the day with lows in the upper 50s-60s for the next two weeks or so.

If I continue to use the heat plate and augment with a lamp if the temp dips, will that be sufficient?

I had an original batch of 15 but lost 4 due to shipping/weather delays, but I'm really digging these chicks (8 Calico Princess and 3 Sapphire Olive Eggers) and I want to make sure they're safe.

Like I said, they will be "outside" of my house, but under a roof and not exposed to wind/drafts.

I'm open to all opinions/suggestion!

Thank you!

Bonus pic of them on their roosts:

 

[azygous]

The chicks are ready for outdoors and so are you.

Their needs are simple. At two weeks, your daytime temps require no extra heat. The night temps, moderate heat. They need free choice shade from the hot sun, though, as they still are in down and down won't insulate them from absorbing too much extra heat from the sun.

After three weeks, the chicks need no heat during the day, even when the temp drops into the 50s-60s. Your heat plate should be adequate as long as it can produce a heat footprint of at least 80F at night until the chicks are fully feathered at around five weeks.

As long as the coop and run are secure from predators and you have no adult chickens that might pose a threat to the babies, they can be moved outdoors today.

 

[wisecane]

The chicks are ready for outdoors and so are you.

Their needs are simple. At two weeks, your daytime temps require no extra heat. The night temps, moderate heat. They need free choice shade from the hot sun, though, as they still are in down and down won't insulate them from absorbing too much extra heat from the sun.

After three weeks, the chicks need no heat during the day, even when the temp drops into the 50s-60s. Your heat plate should be adequate as long as it can produce a heat footprint of at least 80F at night until the chicks are fully feathered at around five weeks.

As long as the coop and run are secure from predators and you have no adult chickens that might pose a threat to the babies, they can be moved outdoors today.

Thank you so much!

We're covered all the way then. My wife will be ecstatic lol.

I'm going to wait until late Spring/early summer to do the next batch. With night temps in the 70s-80s. I'll be able to raise them outside from the jump.

As far as sun, they won't get direct sunlight as long as they are in the brooder in the run. It gets light in there, but the sun can't hit it.

I have set up a circular area in the yard to take them out and let them forage/explore safely while I'm outside with them. No mature chickens/predators will be able to get to them, and I'll be with them anyway.

Really appreciate the advice/info!

 

[bhaugh]

I would ask what their body feathers are doing. If the still have fluff and no real feathers night time temp could still be too cold as they still can't self regulate heat. If they get chilled you could loose some or if they pile from being cold you could smother some. I would leave out at day but bring in at night with no heat if the room temp is 70 or so.

 

[Happy hen lover]

Make sure you have chick grit for them. Sounds like they're ready with heat at night till fully feathered.

 

[3KillerBs]

I raise my chicks in an outdoor brooder, leaving their plate on at all times so they can use it or not use it as they choose.

This is my brooder as of last week:

 

[Hylee Unlikely]

TreasureCoast here and while I'm no expert, I believe I raise healthier chicks by moving them out of the house as early as temps allow.
My new chicks are not quite 3 weeks yet, they're getting feisty and flybombing around the brooder. The brooder space is around 80 degrees with a brooder plate should they need more warmth.
Most sleep on a small roost I made for them, two prefer sleeping on the bedding, one prefers sleeping on the hardware cloth that their feeder (big rubber feed tub) sits on. They absolutely love going outside already!
After this little cold spell (yay! Finally a little rain), I anticipate being able to move them to the outside enclosure in the next few days. In a pinch I bring them back inside for night time, but my previous chicks were pretty much outside by 3 weeks.

 

[Living that chicken life]

Newbie here. I'm in central Florida so not many freezing nights lol.

I've been raising 11 chicks in an inside brooder. Plastic tub with pine shavings and a heat plate. My chicks are two weeks old and can hop/fly up a few inches (they started "roosting" on top so I covered it with a towel). I have since provided them with roosts via dowels and they love them.

They have most of their wing feathers and are sprouting tail feathers.

The problem is they are getting bigger and my wife wants her bay window back lol.

I have constructed a large outside brooder. It has a hardware cloth floor with some boards for support. It is made for plenty of air exchange but not drafty. It is large enough to place my current brooder inside of it.

Let me explain my set up. My outside chicken area is approximately 50' x 25'. Fenced and keeps them contained while they forage. Inside of that is a 6.5'T x 9'W x 18'L wire run. It is steel framed and I have it mounted on PT 2x8's with a completely sealed wire floor (no digging in or out). I have this run covered in a heavy-duty tarp to eliminate rain inside/provide shade. My henhouses are outside of this run, however the chickens access them from inside the run (also sealed so predators can't get to them). I have Run Chicken auto doors on both henhouses. I also close the gate to the run at night to keep predators out of there.

I have my large brooder inside of the run. My idea was the mature chickens would be able to see, smell and interact with the littles but not have access to them. I am putting a top on the large brooder tomorrow and I think I'd like to move them outside to it.

I was thinking to make an opening in my plastic brooder, put it inside the large brooder and let them access that in the evening for roosting (mimicking the transition from run to roost like the matures).

My main question is temp. Right now I have a large (12" x 18.5") brooder plate from Producers Pride that has worked out awesome. I suspend it with chains like this pic:

View attachment 3408054

but it also has legs for vertical applications. I just raised it as they got taller.

I also have two regular red-bulb lamps I can clamp and use.

Right now our temps are calling for Highs in the mid 80s and 90s during the day with lows in the upper 50s-60s for the next two weeks or so.

If I continue to use the heat plate and augment with a lamp if the temp dips, will that be sufficient?

I had an original batch of 15 but lost 4 due to shipping/weather delays, but I'm really digging these chicks (8 Calico Princess and 3 Sapphire Olive Eggers) and I want to make sure they're safe.

Like I said, they will be "outside" of my house, but under a roof and not exposed to wind/drafts.

I'm open to all opinions/suggestion!

Thank you!

Bonus pic of them on their roosts:

View attachment 3408069

Question....i have the same brooder plate as you have in the picture. What i don't know is when suspended from chains do you have the switch set to brooder or heater. With the plate hanging up farther i just not sure. I have mine setting up heater plate style and have a heat lamp also. Some stay under light some snuggle flat against heater plate. But in about 10 days im gonna be getting a phone call ill have 2 brand new baby chicks born that i need the heat plate for( the others will be fully feathered by then.) I need to know best way to set the plate for them. They are my pure paint silkies i have searched and searched for. The woman only raises show birds so she get rid of her silkies at 4 months old. This time she is selling then as new born chicks to me. Im so excited. I could end up with show quality. Either way these babies are my dream and i dont want to screw it up show quality or not. Sorry about the forever paragraph. Thanks in advance for the advice.

 

[3KillerBs]

With the plate hanging up farther i just not sure.

The heat plates are specifically made to warm the chicks when the chicks are in contact with them rather than to warm the area the way a heat lamp does.

This is why most of use set the plates on a slant so that the chicks can choose how tightly they want to contact the plate and thus adjust their preference for warmth.