I built a couple of new brooders

[HickoryHollow]

I have eggs cooking, due in about 15 more days. I am going to need brooder space. In the past for brooding chicks I have bought I used plastic totes, then as they got bigger, large cardboard boxes. It was time to make something better and more permanent. I checked out pictures in the home made brooder sections and it was really hard to decide what to build. They are all great. I finely decided on building this:






I have to build the bottom door tomorrow, then I want to seal the entire inside with urethane to seal and waterproof everything inside. Then I have to wire in the heat lamps and hope some of those eggs hatch! It will sit in the corner of my shop, which is slowly but surly become the chick nursery. lol

 

[Granny Hatchet]

will the paint make the floors too slippery? i have this set up too and very nice ! i use a big paint scraper to clean with. mine dont look as good as yours though. i have a piece of leather strap for hinges and no door knob. great job !!!

 

[HickoryHollow]

I went today and bought red heat lamp bulbs for my brooders. Although I have 26 eggs in an incubator, it will be over 2 weeks before they hatch....(if they do). As I headed for the checkout line, I had to pass the water troughs full of peeps. OMG...they are just so cute! 12 of them jumped in my cart. lol....the wife doesn't know about them just yet, but the brooder works!

 

[aussie pete]

what size did u make it ?,how many chics will u hold in it ?

 

[HickoryHollow]

They are 2' X 4' each. I have the 12 chicks I bought yesterday in the top one. When doing young chicks that are only staying a few days, I would think 24 could go in each easily. But the ones I keep that stay in the brooder until they go out to "the brooder house" (when fully feathered) I would split up to probably only 6 in each brooder.

Hope that helps