I keep a thermometer in the brooder at chick level, they seem to enjoy the sand- the brooder is large enough for them to move away from the heat. They are dusty little creatures and I have been dusting constantly but I would rather have dust than a stinky mess. I am going to see if I can find...
I picked up the sand for my coop out of the desert. There is an abundance where I live, I did pour it through a screen before putting it in the coop though to get any debris out.
I planned to use sand in my coop but didn't even think about using it in the brooder, my girls are 4 days old and I think I am going to switch them over to it today. The pine shavings are a huge mess!