I use a leaking 100 gal. stock tank, with a hardware cloth lid, in my garage. The 250w heat lamp is hanging from a chain over one end of the tank, so there's a warm and a cool area in the brooder. it works very well in cool weather. The brooder plate is safer in summer warmth, never too hot.
Mary
You should have a temperature gradient in the brooder at ground level, from about 95F the first few days, to nearly room temperature at the other end of the brooder. The chicks will warm up under the lamp, and then run around the whole brooder, eat and drink near the other end, and return to...