Basement?

[bigzio]

Mr. dad, keeping your peeps in the basement should work out fine. The main thing to keeping a brooder from smelling fowl is to maintain a 4"to 6" layer of pine shavings.

Your nose will tell you when it's time to replace with fresh. It will suprise you long the shavings will do their job before they need replaced with fresh.

If your brooder is large enough for the peeps to move around, in and out from under the heat as needed, the poo won't be concentrated in one area, and the bedding will last longer.

bigzio

 

[Mr.Dad]

Thank you all for the replies...once again this forum has been a wealth of info.....

 

[silkiechicken]

I never thought they were too bad...one year I raised 20 standard chicks in the center of the living room for 6 weeks. They were a bit dusty but as everyone says, as long as there is enough bedding and you clean it, it's fine.

 

[pegbo]

Hi! I think as long as your basement isn't damp there should be no problem. I,ve used a little enclosed side porch for my chicks and it worked out well. They were close and I could keep checking on them through out the day!

 

[Chicken_Lover]

I started 15 chicks in a spare bedroom (door always closed), after 2 days, I couldn't stand the smell in the rest of the house anymore and moved them to the garage. In six weeks I never cleaned the brooder and they were all healthy. I used aluminum window screen (ends folded under to prevent injury) on the bottom for a no slip device. Before the screen they where eating everything, paper towels, newspaper and cardboard.

 

[Foghorn]

Window screen. What a great idea! How come I haven't heard that before?

 

[keljonma]

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[grandmaduck]

Mr Dad I have 15 chicks I am raising in my laundry room in the basement. I read that if you put a sprinkling of fresh pine shavings in the brooder each day, on top of the previous day, you can go without a complete cleaning for about a week in the beginning more frequently later. My chicks are two weeks old and tomorrow will be the second complete cleaning for the tub. So far no smell in basement or upstairs.

 

[3riverschick]

Sounds right grandmaduck. Best, Karen