I bet the brinsea brooder plate is easy for you to get in Oz land. Here we can get one from Premier1Have you seen these? Are they any good?
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My last hatch I had 6 successful chicks, but one died about two weeks later - I was devastated, it had been cold so we'd lit a fire, I'd checked on them before I went to bed and all was good but then they got hot and when I checked them through the night one of my little silkies had died, had to raise the heat lamp way up and dispose of poor chicky =( so trying to be extra vigilant and hopefully not lose anymore through my own error.
I'd never heard of heat pads, I don't live on the farm and it's about 15 minutes away so I can't even just run out and check them during the night. They've feathered out quite a bit, and seemed to get hot very quickly rather than cold (ie. didn't follow ANY of the recommended heats I'd so eagerly researched before hatching them, because they seemed to run hot - I ended up moving the heat lamp back so much I doubted whether they were even getting any heat).
https://www.premier1supplies.com/p/...cY-b_jgSwEJ9JiBI3pwDLMiGsu1k6eRUaAll7EALw_wcB
The price is less than for the brinsea and it is better made. I am fairly sure it comes from somewhere in Europe. You might be able to find one made for a company where you are.
You can get up to 20 or so chicks under one of the small ones. They do not break as easily as a bulb and there is very little fire danger. There is a smaller energy use to so if electricity is expensive for you they will pay for themselves
I'm glad you have them. It seems to me that back when we used to go down to Minot...we couldn't find them. That was almost 30 years ago. Wikipedia says as the patents have expired...they're becoming more commonplace. We've always had them up here.
Look at all the types of screwdrivers! Wow!
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Jehovah Witnesses. I was nice and comfy in my house coat, and had to get dressed to answer the door. 