Looking for a Nursery Brooder for Newly Hatched Chicks

[Araucana Nest]

Hi,

Looking for a nursery brooder that can be used for when the chicks are newly hatched and may need extra time before going to the regular brooder. Wanting to get them out of the incubator and let them dry off and rest without them running all over the other eggs or putting them in with stronger chicks that hatched a day or two before. I've searched far and wide for something similar to a Brinsea TLC Brooder or the Lyons Clearview Hatcher but they are more expensive than what my budget dictates. Really like the Brinsea though for the clear front. Right now my brooder is a clear plastic tub with a Brinsea EcoGlow brooder. It's okay. But there is a space of a day or two between hatching that some chicks really should just stay in the incubator but I can't do that without them trampling all over the other eggs. I've thought of just another tabletop incubator and may end up going that route if I can't find what I'm imagining.

 

[MGG]

Hi,

Looking for a nursery brooder that can be used for when the chicks are newly hatched and may need extra time before going to the regular brooder. Wanting to get them out of the incubator and let them dry off and rest without them running all over the other eggs or putting them in with stronger chicks that hatched a day or two before. I've searched far and wide for something similar to a Brinsea TLC Brooder or the Lyons Clearview Hatcher but they are more expensive than what my budget dictates. Really like the Brinsea though for the clear front. Right now my brooder is a clear plastic tub with a Brinsea EcoGlow brooder. It's okay. But there is a space of a day or two between hatching that some chicks really should just stay in the incubator but I can't do that without them trampling all over the other eggs. I've thought of just another tabletop incubator and may end up going that route if I can't find what I'm imagining.

Can you post a pic? I'm not sure what you mean. They should be just fine going straight to the brooder. How many chicks do you want it to contain? You want to use a heat lamp for the first 24 hours imo.
Also, welcome to Backyard Chickens!

 

[Araucana Nest]

Thank you. What I'm looking for is a nursery brooder with a clear view of the chicks that may be too weak, or too small to put into the general brooder. Sometimes hatches spread for two days and the older ones will be stronger. I prefer that everyone is dry and walking and ready to mix in with the others so I leave them in the incubator but then they walk all over the eggs that are still pipping and rotate them. My biggest concern are weak chicks that hatch and need a little more time to rest and recover before being placed in the brooder with the others. Brinsea TLC 30

 

[MGG]

Thank you. What I'm looking for is a nursery brooder with a clear view of the chicks that may be too weak, or too small to put into the general brooder. Sometimes hatches spread for two days and the older ones will be stronger. I prefer that everyone is dry and walking and ready to mix in with the others so I leave them in the incubator but then they walk all over the eggs that are still pipping and rotate them. My biggest concern are weak chicks that hatch and need a little more time to rest and recover before being placed in the brooder with the others. Brinsea TLC 30

Oh ok. Well, I have a Nurture Right 360. It looks pretty similar. I use it for incubating, but it could be used as what you want. It's $130. I got mine from TSC.

 

[CluckerFamily]

I use a horse water trough for my brooder now but for my first batch I bought a Baby Chick Starter Kit from Fleet Farm (Wisconsin)
I've also seen people make a brooder from a plastic storage bin or an old small kids swimming pool. I'm not sure about the plastic on these and if they get too hot with the heat lamp, I haven't tried them.

 

[Fayed]

The chick knocking the eggs around shouldn't really be an issue if they are all about ready to hatch. Same thing happens under a momma hen. And the peeps encourage the others to hatch. But if your wanting a nursery pick up a cheaper incubator dosnt need to be fancy to throw the fresh hatched babies in it would just need to hold the proper temp, I know there's some tiny like 7 egg incubators that would probably work fine.

 

[Araucana Nest]

Hi, Thank you. It really has caused issues already. What motivated me to start looking again was just that. Yesterday, one who was weak managed to turn another egg over entirely when another who was stronger was pushing up behind her. The egg that was pipped turned upside down (the pip was down). I caught it in time and all the fluid inside the egg was down there too. It could have drowned. This is about the 3rd or 4th time that has happened. The others weren't as fortunate. As for the weaker one, it took overnight for her to become strong enough to lift her head after that. She is fine now after some tlc.

I've thought a lot about the cheaper incubators but I've had issues with cheap that have kept me from using them. Last night I found an RCom hatcher /brooder that looks like it may have been an early model incubator for them. It has a clear top and is under $200 but I also found the Brinsea TLC Eco for $239, so it's still at the top of my list. What has helped my search a lot is finding keywords for google. I didn't know they were called "nursery brooders" that was a term I thought of on my own to help the search.

 

[MGG]

Hi, Thank you. It really has caused issues already. What motivated me to start looking again was just that. Yesterday, one who was weak managed to turn another egg over entirely when another who was stronger was pushing up behind her. The egg that was pipped turned upside down (the pip was down). I caught it in time and all the fluid inside the egg was down there too. It could have drowned. This is about the 3rd or 4th time that has happened. The others weren't as fortunate. As for the weaker one, it took overnight for her to become strong enough to lift her head after that. She is fine now after some tlc.

I've thought a lot about the cheaper incubators but I've had issues with cheap that have kept me from using them. Last night I found an RCom hatcher /brooder that looks like it may have been an early model incubator for them. It has a clear top and is under $200 but I also found the Brinsea TLC Eco for $239, so it's still at the top of my list. What has helped my search a lot is finding keywords for google. I didn't know they were called "nursery brooders" that was a term I thought of on my own to help the search.

I still have to recommend the NR 360. It's an amazing incubator, and holds the temp super well. Th Incuview is another decent one, although recently I've heard of a number of units spiking and having some other major issues. The NR is the only incubator I'll ever buy more of. If I need to hatch more eggs I'll jut buy more NRs. I absolutely love them. They're right up there with Brinseas IMO.

 

[Araucana Nest]

Thanks, I took a look at them. They have many good reviews. Can you tell me how tall the inside chamber is? And how the base is on their little feet? Temp spikes is one of the issues I've had with cheaper incubators, including one with a temp spike during lockdown that killed the entire hatch. Difficulty cleaning is another issue. I use Brinsea exclusively now.

 

[MGG]

Thanks, I took a look at them. They have many good reviews. Can you tell me how tall the inside chamber is? And how the base is on their little feet? Temp spikes is one of the issues I've had with cheaper incubators, including one with a temp spike during lockdown that killed the entire hatch. Difficulty cleaning is another issue. I use Brinsea exclusively now.

Me? The NR 360?