Chick Heating Method (Radiant Heat)

[wleigh1021]

@wleigh1021 did you put anything under your heating pad so that your heat wasn't stolen downwards?

The storage tub has a pretty thick bottom. Then the brooder I use is a dog play pen and I put 2 old blankets and a cheap tarp from dollar tree under it covered in shavings. This keeps the whole area from getting too cold from the concrete floor of the garage. If you look in bottom right corner you can see blankets and tarp.

 

[RoosterML]

The storage tub has a pretty thick bottom. Then the brooder I use is a dog play pen and I put 2 old blankets and a cheap tarp from dollar tree under it covered in shavings. This keeps the whole area from getting too cold from the concrete floor of the garage. If you look in bottom right corner you can see blankets and tarp.View attachment 1642874

Just an idea but if you put a piece of foam even if its thin under directly in contact with your heating pad I think you'll be surprised at the results. Plastic thick or thin won't really change much. Take a coffee cup from Dunkin donuts for example, super hot inside and warm to the touch outside.
Again just an idea, it may allow you to turn your heating pad down a notch.
Nice to see that a similar setup is working well for you.

 

[RoosterML]

The storage tub has a pretty thick bottom. Then the brooder I use is a dog play pen and I put 2 old blankets and a cheap tarp from dollar tree under it covered in shavings. This keeps the whole area from getting too cold from the concrete floor of the garage. If you look in bottom right corner you can see blankets and tarp.View attachment 1642874

I bet with the kids going in and out your garage floor gets a nice layer of chips..

 

[wleigh1021]

Haha yes they do! But they don't live here, only visit so it's not too bad.

 

[RoosterML]

@wleigh1021
Not sure if you said it but how many chicks in each batch did you do and how big is the pad? Thanks

 

[wleigh1021]

website shows pad is 9" L x 12" W. They make a larger one that gets to the same temp, so if you have more chicks you can buy the larger one. I raised up to 16 chicks this way no problem. Probably gets tight when they're older cause I would see some on top and around the perimeter but at that point they don't need a lot of heat anyways.

 

[RoosterML]

Had some fairly nice weather today so I decided to bend my own pan/tray from some aluminum coil stock I had. I also stopped by Walmart and they had a nice thick aluminum cookie sheet i think 21"x15" for $10. I had plenty of aluminum around so why waste the money. I made it so I can easily fit 2- 12"x15" heating pads.
Here's some pictures:





Again a tin foil tray will work great along with an aluminum cookie sheet as those will provide the best heat transfer from heating pad to chicks.
Finish size is 21"x24".

 

[aart]

You must have a brake?
What gauge is aluminum?
How is pad/foil held in place?
Why put pad up in corner?
Will you take temp readings on this iteration too?

 

[RoosterML]

You must have a brake?
What gauge is aluminum?
How is pad/foil held in place?
Why put pad up in corner?
Will you take temp readings on this iteration too?

1)Yes I own a brake
2).019 Aluminum
3) The foam I have cut fairly snug which does a nice job of holding it in place while flipping it over onto the plywood. Once flipped over the foam thickness holds the pad up against the aluminum. Once I put it into use and have a t-shirt/blanket over the top I will likely have a couple light weight bungees holding everything down against the plywood along with holding the T-shirt/blanket from sliding around once chicks get on it.
4) I only show one pad in the picture the other heating pad I have is currently wrapped around my rabbits water bottle to keep it thawed. When I put this into use it will have two heating pads in place likely side by side. (I know some people would buy one big heating pad but I believe that is a bad idea) I'm a big fan of having backup to almost everything so when it comes to providing heat for chicks two heating pads is always better than one.
5) I probably will take some readings all you had to do was ask.
I don't expect it to change much from previous readings.
While the temperature is important, I did do this so that it is truly an easy to use no need to monitor temps type of setup. The reason for the testing and getting exact readings at first is because I wanted to make sure that I would be able to transfer at least the minimum temps to support the chicks. In the form of radiant heat I believe the initial temps chicks require is 88°f. (Heat lamps I believe most shot for 90°-95°f) . I have proven that this setup is more than capable of doing so even down at 37° room temp. I'll play around with it some more tomorrow.
Hope I answered your questions.

 

[RoosterML]

@aart results are in, very pleased
The two coins closest together at the top of the picture are directly above the heating pad, one is center of pad and the other is the edge. I also took another reading not directly over the heating pad but still within the "Aluminum pan" area. Temp reading is taken directly under the coin once lifted.

Room temperature= 61.5°f

High= Center 97.5°f
Edge 82.5°f
Off 72°f
Medium= C 87°
E 77°
O 69.5
Low=. C 83°
E 76°
O 67.5
i am ready for