Brooder Box Sizes

[anthonyjames]

So I know everyone has different style brooders.
Brunty from what I remember uses a hoop house with tek foil and moves them the length of the hoop house to out side.
Others I have seen use their tractors and fully cover them.

Well I have one brooder in our barn that is 8 x 8 x 24 solid(then another 18 with chicken wire and wood at the top so vistors can see the chicks running in/out from the 4 x 4 Ohio style brooder. Well at my home I am looking to build a fully enclosed box with some plexi glass viewing windows and wrap inside with with tekfoil so kids from my kids schools can come over and see them.

What is the mimimum size fully enclosed box for 50 / 75 chicks (meat and pullets) for at least 2/3 weeks of life.

Currenlty the one I have is 40 x 40 and is 8 inches off the ground and it roughly 20 inches tall all the way around. I a sheet of plywood covering the top and 1/4 of it is hardware cloth where the heat lamp sits on.

If you have some images I would love to see them to get some added inspiration.

Thanks

Thanks.

 

[bigredfeather]

Quote:
I like the "Ohio style" brooder description. Very true.

 

[anthonyjames]

Bigred,

I bet you do. Hope weather there is better then here. 20's and snow again in WI go figure.

 

[tgrlily]

Quote:
We have a 4x5 similar to that... it's in my garage so we can go out & watch chickavision!

On ours, the long sides are solid wood, the back panel is solid plexiglass & the front has plexiglass doors. The top has 2 panels made of 1/2 inch hardware cloth on wooden frames. The most I've had in it at a time is 25 chicks. I have a much bigger brooder -- think it's 4x8, but it may be bigger... it's still out in the polebarn. I also have three 3x3 heavy wooden crates that I use as brooders & the two I made out of big clear totes for the hatchlings.

I'd also like to know the minimum size for 50 or so chicks.

 

[bigredfeather]

I like your idea for a new brooder. I'm not sure if it's correct, but I figure 3/4 of sqft per chick if I want them in there for 3 weeks. However, I have learnt the hard way recently that for at least the first week in cooler weather, you want to "corral" them as much as possible. For 100 chicks less than a week old, I am now giving them about a 1/4 of a sqft per chick. To accomplish this, I simply put a divider in my "Ohio style" tractor.

 

[tgrlily]

I start them in the totes inside for the first week, sometimes 2 weeks if there aren't many of them or are silkies. Then they move out to the garage in one of the 3x3s. Silkies don't move up to the chickavision brooder thill they're pretty big, my LF birds move up progressively till they go into the outside grow-out pen. We're in NYS, so it's too flippin cold here for most chicks to be outside. Heck-- it's too cold for ME to be outside!

 

[anthonyjames]

tgrlily,
I love the entire plexi glass front idea for the brooder. You got an image of that?

Bigred,
As for sectioning that is a good idea as well. Maybe make my brooder box 4 x 8 and have 2 dividers in there. At the end of week 1 and 2 remove a divider to give them more space to run. I guess could just make section divider only 12" tall instead of 18" so the 2 heat lamps could continue to heat entire box.

 

[tgrlily]

Chickavision Brooder

Back

Front

My husband built this for me when we were both total rookies.

 

[anthonyjames]

Wow.. Double sided and man that is tall.

I like.

 

[super meaties]

sorry i know this is an older thread, but what will the dimensions be for 30 meaties?