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  1. Bs Peeps

    Ventilated but Free of Drafts

    Look at it this way. You open a window in your house for ventilation - for air exchange - to let hot air out, to let cool air in, whatever the case. BUT if it's windy outside, you don't want that window in front of your desk open and blowing your stuff around. That would be a 'draft'. So you...
  2. Bs Peeps

    Ventilated but Free of Drafts

    I believe you'll want the open space of the vent louvres to be screened. They are open enough for rodents and snakes to gain access. Some are already screened, some are not. You don't any openings allowing rats, mice, and any other critter small enough to squeeze in.
  3. Bs Peeps

    Purina Flock Block?

    I just came upon this topic and am pondering adding one for my 6 confined girls to break up the monotony of workday confinement. From what I've read about folks' experience with rain/snow, etc, I'm considering drilling down the middle of the block and running an appropriate-sized chain through...
  4. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Well. We finally made the move from the crowded brooder to the hen house. Not as smooth and as organized as I'd hoped, at least not to me; but it's done. I think. Tonight's low is expected at 26 degrees. It's 32 now, 39 in the hen house; if my bi-metal thermometer is accurate. High today was 45...
  5. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Thank you Blooie. It was YOUR post on the heating pad system that gave me the confidence to do this. I wanted to skip the brooding process altogether. I have been given a number of great ideas, including your outdoor cave idea. :)
  6. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Thank you, everyone, for your kind sharing of your experiences and suggestions. I have created, in my head, a comfortable solution to a heat source in my hen house. I'm thinking of a clay pot, inside which will be a light bulb sufficient to produce the desired heat; suspended/mounted from a...
  7. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Yes, I am considering opening the window, just a crack. For two reasons: acclimating to cooler temps, but also for air exchange. Since closing the heat register to that room, which is closed off from the rest of the house, I notice the air in that room is more stale and odiferous. Not good for...
  8. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Hi AART - I took your advice on the 'huddle box' and downsized a large box to what I think will suit 8 birds. I will not have 8 birds when all is said an done because, so far, I have two boys which will be re-homed, if not become dinner. I put my thermometer in the hen house yesterday and this...
  9. Bs Peeps

    Ventilated but Free of Drafts

    Thank you for your reply. Very informative. I would not say we 'rarely' see below 20, it happens but not typically for long periods of time. Except for 2013/2014 winter. That was extraordinarily a cold winter here. This morning it's 28 in the hen house, with the window open and no source of heat...
  10. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Hi, thank you for your comment. On the size of my coop/run, I built it to accommodate 6 hens - max. I was 'sold' into buying two more chicks than I originally planned on. But that's okay because so far I have two boys which I will not be keeping. And there still the possibility of another boy in...
  11. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    Brooder room was just turned down to 65 degrees by closing the heat register to that room. I can't make it any cooler than that. So to put them out now is a dramatic decrease in temp, all at once, roughly 20-30 degrees throughout the day. (We're now supposed to have freezing temps this weekend...
  12. Bs Peeps

    Outgrowing brooder space

    What to do about outgrowing the brooder and not being ready for the coop this time of year? I have my first chicks (ever), now 4 weeks old, 8 total; one breed (2 birds) turn out to be slightly larger birds. They are all in a large-dog crate, homemade brooder, and fast outgrowing the brooder...
  13. Bs Peeps

    Ventilated but Free of Drafts

    To Ridgerunner - Thank you for your eggselent clarification on this topic. I don't desire further clarification but because your insight is logical and carries an air of experience with it, I do desire your opinion on my coop construction - with regard to ventilation. Shown in my photo is the...
  14. Two bamboo stakes with a slotted end to support my chicken wire 'dome', providing clearance for a future roosting bar over the cave. The open end shown is closed off using another piece of cardboard and the ever-handy paper clips keep both ends securely in place. Bamboo stakes also support the side edges of the draped chicken wire where the spring tension of having been tightly coiled keeps it snug against the sides of the crate. No fasteners required.

    Two bamboo stakes with a slotted end to support my chicken wire 'dome', providing clearance for a future roosting bar over the cave. The open end shown is closed off using another piece of cardboard and the ever-handy paper clips keep both ends securely in place. Bamboo stakes also support the side edges of the draped chicken wire where the spring tension of having been tightly coiled keeps it snug against the sides of the crate. No fasteners required.

    • Bs Peeps
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    • Album: B's brooder
  15. 8 new chicks; born Oct 21 and purchased Oct 24 at a local feed store. 2 each: Buckeye, Speckled Sussex, Barred Rock, Naked Neck Turken

    8 new chicks; born Oct 21 and purchased Oct 24 at a local feed store. 2 each: Buckeye, Speckled Sussex, Barred Rock, Naked Neck Turken

    • Bs Peeps
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    • Album: B's brooder
  16. Chick cave created using hardware cloth leftover from coop construction. Sharp edges of the wire covered with two layers of duct tape to prevent any injuries. Heating pad laid over the frame, covered with a towel and an absorbent pad. I achieved 85 degrees in the cave. A little lower than it should be for the first week, so I dragged in my portable oil-filled radiator and am maintaining an even 80 degrees in the bedroom.

    Chick cave created using hardware cloth leftover from coop construction. Sharp edges of the wire covered with two layers of duct tape to prevent any injuries. Heating pad laid over the frame, covered with a towel and an absorbent pad. I achieved 85 degrees in the cave. A little lower than it should be for the first week, so I dragged in my portable oil-filled radiator and am maintaining an even 80 degrees in the bedroom.

    • Bs Peeps
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    • Album: B's brooder
  17. B's brooder

    B's brooder

    Large-dog travel crate turned into chick brooder. Inspired by the 'Mama Heating Pad' video/post. I was terrified of leaving a heat lamp unattended in my home; that, along with lacking a garage/basement or other suitable space to keep the chicks safe from my large dog is why it's taken me this...
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  18. Bs Peeps

    Finally, B has her Peeps

    After pondering and passively researching the topic over several years, I finally committed to raising chickens in spring 2014. I began construction on my coop in August 2014, took the following winter and spring off from construction, and resumed and finished early summer 2015. I am a one-girl...
  19. A platform beneath the roosting bars on which to place a light-weight poop board I can slide toward me for daily cleaning. Or until I find something that works better. The floor is made of exterior siding, exterior side in, and lined with a scrap of vinyl flooring, then wood shavings. Again, end goal is to use sand in here as well. The red board at the opening lifts out for easy raking out and while in, keeps bedding from falling out.

    A platform beneath the roosting bars on which to place a light-weight poop board I can slide toward me for daily cleaning. Or until I find something that works better. The floor is made of exterior siding, exterior side in, and lined with a scrap of vinyl flooring, then wood shavings. Again, end goal is to use sand in here as well. The red board at the opening lifts out for easy raking out and while in, keeps bedding from falling out.

    • Bs Peeps
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    • Album: My DIY Coop
  20. Hen house 5x4 (20 sf) and the run floor is 5x10 (50 sf). The window has its counterpart cut out I just haven't mounted yet. Now that winter is not far away, I'll need to get on to that.

    Hen house 5x4 (20 sf) and the run floor is 5x10 (50 sf). The window has its counterpart cut out I just haven't mounted yet. Now that winter is not far away, I'll need to get on to that.

    • Bs Peeps
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    • Album: My DIY Coop
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