DIY Thread - Let's see your "Inventions".

[kmollyhughes]

But then you have silkies....    A sickly, can't roost, special needs bird that can't survive without help, can't forage out on pasture without getting picked off and can't keep itself warm in the winter.  I'll take a heating pad any ol' day over a silkie....at least a heating pad has more than one use. 

My silkies roost, forage all day on our property, and they were in an unheated coop all winter with lows down to -20 with no issues at all. They are great! We have also only lost one, ever, to a hawk. It's the babies of LF we have to worry about, but that's what a big protective rooster is for. Highly recommend silkies.

 

[kmollyhughes]

I MacGyver'd a pseudo brooder heater plate using a people heating pad if anyone wants to see it.

Nice! And very simple!

 

[TexasLisa]

I had researched pallet furniture for a while and finally built my own. This is the first of a 3 piece porch sectional.

I used a lot of sites to get my vision and then, voila!

The best part? The pallets were free from a local store! All this cost was time and sweat!

That is really cool looking. You need to post this on the forum 'The Front Porch Swing'. We are running out of chairs to sit on.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/850759/the-front-porch-swing

Lisa

 

[Blooie]

That is really cool looking. You need to post this on the forum 'The Front Porch Swing'. We are running out of chairs to sit on.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/850759/the-front-porch-swing

Lisa

Yeah, we're down to overturned buckets on the front porch.

 

[Penny Hen]

Pick a few things you know you're gonna need like coffee etc and make up the difference in money. It's worth it to me to do this once a month on heavy things that I don't want to lug into the house. But I see your point in Amazon Prime. (Just got my notice that my $69 yearly fee will be $99.) Bummer.

Yeah I saw on the news last night that some people are suing Amazon for price gouging with that raise.

 

[aart]

Yeah I saw on the news last night that some people are suing Amazon for price gouging with that raise.

Someone's got to pay for all that free shipping!
You can always opt out of Prime and pay your own shipping, or meet the minimums to get free shipping.
Nothing is really free.

 

[Penny Hen]

The one I'm currently using has been on continuously~except for last night's power outage~since my experiment began...over a month. Since I brood my chicks in 2 wks and then they are usually out on their own, I have no concerns over it.

Of course. As with any electrical devise. My last two coops only have electricity because I strung 250 ft. of extension cords and finished it off with a power surge protector bar. Those extension cords to the coop right now have been in place for 2 yrs now.

Anyone using common sense can utilize an electrical devise that generates heat. The heat lamps worry me more than anything I've ever used in regards to electricity...they get extremely hot and the power they pull is tremendous. I'll take a heating pad any ol' day.

If you plug them into a light strip (of course have the light strip sheltered so it can't be rained on), then the fuse in the strip will protect it from electrical surges (lightning) and over heating and possibly combusting. You can wire a safety bi-metal fuse into the wiring itself but that entails knowing where to put it. These function like emergency brakes on a car. Ozexpat showed me these and you can order them on Ebay. I am adding one to my homemade incubator to increase safety margins. This device may not save a batch of eggs from being cooked if your regular thermostat fails but it will keep your house, barn or shed from burning down.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/321058112852?_trksid=p2055120.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

And before you ask: "Yes it can be used with 110V systems. It just means it can take up to a 220V system."

 

[Beekissed]

Yeah, we're down to overturned buckets on the front porch.

Or previously soiled and wet seats with a towel....

 

[Penny Hen]

Someone's got to pay for all that free shipping!
You can always opt out of Prime and pay your own shipping, or meet the minimums to get free shipping.
Nothing is really free.

It is what I do. Your right nothing is ever really free.

 

[ozexpat]

I have some ideas for an economical chick heater.



This is 12" wide heat tape. Its 23 watts per foot. its 3 bucks a foot and 4 bucks for the connector.

My thoughts are to attatch it to a stainless steel cookie sheet, add 1/2" reflective stryro insulation then another stainless cookie sheet on top.

Epoxy the cookie sheets together and you have a cleanable durable low power consumption chick heater