galvanized stock tank brooder

[waddles99]

i recently saw at the local tractor supply they were using galvanized stock tanks, like the kind livestock drink out of, as chick and duckling brooders. Has anyone used stock tanks as brooders? I used cardboard boxes in the past and they do not work out. They fall apart when wet and dander and pine shavings pass right through the cracks in the box. Pics preferred!

 

[Folly's place]

That's what I have used for many years, with a hardware cloth top. It works very well. Sometimes the leaky ones turn up on craigslist. This year I used a 100 gal. rubber stock tank, and it also worked well. Mary

 

[3riverschick]

Failing finding a stock tank, Last year I used those triple thick watermelon corrals they use at Wal-Mart and Aldi's. I had no trouble obtaining them as they are a hassle for the stores to get rid of. They are so thick, they don't rot out. Plus the corners are angled ( actually they are a modified octagon) for stability.
Put a cheap blue tarp on the ground. Then set the corral on the tarp. add the white bale of hardwood chips from Tractor Supply. The hardwood ( smells like fresh dry sawdust) is better than the softwood chips ( smells like turpentine). Set the feeder and waterer on a block the chicks can reach. As they grow, cut notches on opposite sides of the corral and lay a 2x4 in them. Hang the feeder and waterer from it. You can shorten the length of chain and raise the feeders and waterers as needed. Use chicken wire or hardware cloth to make a lit for the brooder.
I found each corral ( approx. 15 sq. ft.) is big enough to raise 6 or 7 large fowl to 6 months old without crowding or stress problems.
Best,
Karen