I'm afraid of murdering my chicks

[LilMissChz]

Have you thought about getting an ecoglow? I went ahead and got one as I'm anticipating a new job soon. I didn't want to fuss with heat lamps or make my husband responsible for checking them.

 

[Desirai]

Yes I thought about the ecoglow.

But the problem isn't the heat lamp.. it's the temperature of the room

 

[Bantam Username]

Try putting some cardboard or boards up so they don't get any direct sunlight, it'll keep the section they are in a lot cooler if they are shaded.

 

[jesirose]

Can you bring them into another room for the day? We are keeping ours in the garage and decided if it drops too cold at night we would put the brooder in the guest bathroom tub (easy to clean) for the night. Fortunately we've had good weather.

Does the sunroom have shades you could pull down to reduce the sun coming in?

 

[PrettyCoy]

I'd turn off the lamp and put an ice bottle in one end so they can cool off.

 

[chikenscratch]

I could be wrong, but this is what I am doing and its working...we have the "recommended heat level" maintained ONLY under the light not around the perimeter. Then every so often we reduce the heat by about 5 degrees. Our chicks are 15-22 days old and the brooder temp is somewhere between 80-85 degrees under the heat lamp.
I definitely agree that moving them to a more controlled environment is a priority, but then I think that you should only monitor the heat levels under the lamp and let the outer areas be cooler.

 

[LilMissChz]

So your temperature is too high? I'm with some of the others... why not move them, albeit temporarily while you're at work. The bathroom is usually a nice stable environment.

Yes I thought about the ecoglow.

But the problem isn't the heat lamp.. it's the temperature of the room

 

[Rachel96]

the water bottles sound like a good idea.

I wonder, could I take some ice packs and wrap them in a towel? Then the chicks could climb and sit on them and not get dangerously cold.

I think that would probably work well. You could also wrap water bottles in a tea-towel.

I actually disagree with the others about putting them in the bathroom - I've found that when it's hot out, the bathroom is often the hottest room in the house! It's where we put the bread to rise. I think with a brooder as big as yours, you could easily aim the heat lamp into one corner and put an ice pack or water bottle in the opposite corner, that way the chicks can choose where they want to be, and most animals are sensible enough to seek heat or coolness as they need it. If you wrap the ice pack or water bottle in something, it won't melt as quickly - but you'll still probably have to change it a couple of times a day.

from Rachel.