ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR ADD ON'S OR IDEA'S FOR MY SET UP COOP AND RUN ?????

[tbridegroom]

Looking for any ideas that you can think of for anything for my space ......feeders, waterers, toys, roosts,, add on ideas.....im looking for anything......im already of thinking of making a mini jungle gym in the covered outdoor run area......and kinda thought of getting the plastic kids play houses for in the run but i dont want it all to look cluttered i like the clean look sorta.....i will post a picture of the covered run area in a minute off my phone... the white box is my soon to be finshed brooder. i plan on making it less drafty by putting boards farther up the sides.

 

[ChicKat]

Nice stuff.

Couldn't see from photos but some kind of poop boards are a good thing to have --- depending upon your approach to chicken-produced fertilizer, and nest boxes where you can gather the eggs externally are also nice to have. Looks like you are going to have very happy chickens.

My chicks enjoyed having perches that they could hop all over on inside the brooder as they grew -- kind of like your jungle gym idea in miniature.

 

[tbridegroom]

the nesting boxes are to the right of where i took the picture you just cant see them from the angle i took it .

 

[ChicKat]

That makes sense. You did a really good job. Nice coop and run. Do you have any concern about predators? a low electric wire on solar -just outside the fence, and some protection from hawks may be useful to you...if you want to go 'over the top' in chicken landscaping.

 

[3riverschick]

What is your heat source for your brooder? I have used the electric light in a dome reflector several times and decided there is a much better way. Looked in all the old classic books and they used a "hover" heater instead of an over head light which the chicks could never escape. The hover heater was suspended from the roof at one end of the brooder. the chick could run under its "hovering heat" if they wanted more warmth. Just like they would run under their mom's feathers. I thought about it and it makes more "natural" sense than a glaring light which they can never escape. ,...and which I think might be the source of some humidity problems we hear about in chick brooders.
Anyway, there are a couple of "hover warmers" on the market today. Brinsea makes one in a couple of sizes. Then I ran across a BYC post about one called a "Sweeter Heater". I have gotta get one of those! The Brinsea stands on 4 legs or solid walls ( places for chicks to crowd against). But the Sweeter Heater suspends from the ceiling of the brooder. I like that better. That's how the old "hover brooders were constructed. Also, from what I read the Sweeter Heater is easy to clean. I didn't see any cleaning instructions on the Brinsea models, so can't speak to that on them. Here's the website for both. I really like the idea there are no electric bulbs to break or burn out on the hover heater type heaters.
Brinsea: 20 chick : http://www.brinsea.com/prod-EcoGlow_Chick_Brooder-239.aspx has 2 solid sides.
50 chick: http://www.brinsea.com/prod-EcoGlow_50_Chick_Brooder-256.aspx has 4 legs.
Sweeter Heater: http://www.sweeterheater.com/bizweb.asp no legs, several sizes, no bulbs.
http://www.enasco.com/product/C15870N
BYC thread: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/396956/sweeter-heater-vs-flat-panel-heater Personal note: I have a flat panel heater on the wall in my Hubby Bob's wood-shop. It gets hot. I personally don't think I want poultry crowding up against it, with the ones closest to it maybe getting too warm. I opt for a hanging light for that reason.
Another BYC thread : https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...heater-instead-of-brooder-bulb-arrangement/10
Personal note. Reading the whole thread is a great idea (12 posts). The idea of an up-side-down warming tray at the end sounds interesting. But it and the Sweeter Heater are too different kinds of heat. SH is infrared heat. The warming tray is direct electric heat. Not sure how direct electric heat translates for chick warming purposes. Think I would check with an electrician first.
Best Success,
Karen in chilly western PA, USA

 

[ChicKat]

I used the brinsea for 20-chicks.

The nice thing about it is that it won't start a fire, the chicks can cuddle right up to it, sit on top etc.

-- cleaning--it gets pooped on, when they are older and running and jumping all around the brooder...-- It's plastic, though so fairly easy to clean.

The chicks all turned out healthy and happy. It does require a plug in.

 

[tbridegroom]

Yes ive thought of covering the fun i saw that netting wasnt to expensive but since it is so big i think id have to support it with like wood 2x4s across the middle and such ....and for heat in the brooder i use a brinsea ecoglow this will be my second time using it ....although i just looked at your sweeter heater and i like that much better for my outside brooder ....i keep the chicks in the house in a dog kennel for the first week then move them outside into the big brooder and since its still cold here im finding they are under the ecoglow alot and plus the sweeter heater looks like it'll work awesome in my brooder since i have plenty of ventilation on the back wall and its in a barn so theres no drafts ....THANKS FOR SHOWING ME THAT