Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE

[lazy gardener]

Quote: It is Shiptons Big R, but we just left there about an hour ago and this year even if I had been chick shopping, which I wasn't, I'd have walked out empty handed. Usually they are really good, but not this year!!! Two bins of EE and while I'm used to seeing them wrongly labeled as Ameracaunas, I'm NOT used to seeing the label read " Auracanas, WHICH WILL GROW OUT TO BE EASTER EGGERS!" Huh??? Read it twice and that's what it said. Is that like a Buff Orpington growing out to be a Red Sex Link? And 90% of the chicks had such severe pasty butt I'd never bring them home and try to save them. Heartless, but I'd rather expend my time and resources on the healthiest chicks possible. I was so saddened by this change there as opposed to last year, when I took that photo v
Blooie, I wonder if the store is under different management now. Sad, to be sure, and the biggest reason why I prefer to order direct if not hatching my own eggs. I've seen too much stupid and neglect at local stores here.

 

[hpierce88]

The one my honey is using is the Pad I bought last year for the chicks in the XL size with the option to disable the auto-shut off, and because I used the Press 'n Seal, it was absolutely spotless after the chicks moved outside.... In hindsight, maybe I should have smeared some chicken **** on it to thwart him? Lol.

 

[Blooie]

Um, I wouldn't recommend it! Welcome back!

 

[yakmayar]

Very glad I found this thread as I was planning on getting an Ecoglow, but felt like this was my best choice.

I purchased the XL Sunbeam Xpress that was recommended on here from Amazon. It was $39.99. Nothing local around here had it in stock.

I was a bit worried that it was not getting warm enough, but decided to trust what others have said. I sewed a thin piece from an old felt blanket around the entire thing so that if it gets dirty, I can just replace it for the next batch.






Used leftover 1/2" hardware cloth from our coop to build a frame. I used electrical tape around the edges so that nothing would be sharp. I cut a hole in one corner for the plug to fit through.


Used another piece from the old blanket to cover the entire frame. My hope is there would be no chance of any bird getting stuck/hurt and it would help keep in some heat.


I added some velcro to the frame/heat blanket so that it would stick on the underside since it would keep the heat closer to the chicks. Just as a safety precaution, I also used a few pieces of string to help hold the blanket on in case the birds decided to start pulling on the velcro (even though it is very strong).


Here is the final product.

My chicks have now been here for over a week.
Here is what it looks like in use.




We ordered 16 chicks from Cackle Hatchery (3 black australorps, 3 buff orpingtons, 5 white silkies, and 5 splash silkies). They ended up sending us 4 extra silkies, so we have a total of 20. They arrived in 24 hours and I picked them up at the Post Office as soon as I got a call. They seemed to be in pretty good condition. We followed the instructions they gave us with the exception of putting some electrolytes in their water the first 24 hours.

All 20 chicks are currently alive and seem to be doing well. We have had a little pasty butt, especially the first 3 days. We were wiping off 2-3 each day and they were all silkies. I did a little extra research (after reading 2 books about chickens before we received them) and I bought some Probios on Amazon and that has been in their food since. We get our food from a local small family business called Little Birdie Hatchery. The quality is fantastic.

They are currently housed inside a large shed in our back yard that has a couple windows. We are using a playpen we ordered from Amazon for $27. It will not be big enough after this week, so we ordered a second one that we will connect. After they no longer need the heating pad, we will put them in their coop/run home. We plan to only keep 8 or so, and hope to be able to sell/give away the others. We do not know the sex of any of the silkies, but the australorps and orpingtons are supposed to be female.

Here are a few more pictures for fun.



Gives you an idea of their current residence. I love that we can collapse and store both playpens in a small amount of space when we are not raising chicks.









This will be their permanent home. Thanks to my father and pictures from a lot of other coops in the forums, we were able to create a nice final product.

 

[junebuggena]

Very glad I found this thread as I was planning on getting an Ecoglow, but felt like this was my best choice.

I purchased the XL Sunbeam Xpress that was recommended on here from Amazon. It was $39.99. Nothing local around here had it in stock.

I was a bit worried that it was not getting warm enough, but decided to trust what others have said. I sewed a thin piece from an old felt blanket around the entire thing so that if it gets dirty, I can just replace it for the next batch.






Used leftover 1/2" hardware cloth from our coop to build a frame. I used electrical tape around the edges so that nothing would be sharp. I cut a hole in one corner for the plug to fit through.


Used another piece from the old blanket to cover the entire frame. My hope is there would be no chance of any bird getting stuck/hurt and it would help keep in some heat.


I added some velcro to the frame/heat blanket so that it would stick on the underside since it would keep the heat closer to the chicks. Just as a safety precaution, I also used a few pieces of string to help hold the blanket on in case the birds decided to start pulling on the velcro (even though it is very strong).


Here is the final product.

My chicks have now been here for over a week.
Here is what it looks like in use.




We ordered 16 chicks from Cackle Hatchery (3 black australorps, 3 buff orpingtons, 5 white silkies, and 5 splash silkies). They ended up sending us 4 extra silkies, so we have a total of 20. They arrived in 24 hours and I picked them up at the Post Office as soon as I got a call. They seemed to be in pretty good condition. We followed the instructions they gave us with the exception of putting some electrolytes in their water the first 24 hours.

All 20 chicks are currently alive and seem to be doing well. We have had a little pasty butt, especially the first 3 days. We were wiping off 2-3 each day and they were all silkies. I did a little extra research (after reading 2 books about chickens before we received them) and I bought some Probios on Amazon and that has been in their food since. We get our food from a local small family business called Little Birdie Hatchery. The quality is fantastic.

They are currently housed inside a large shed in our back yard that has a couple windows. We are using a playpen we ordered from Amazon for $27. It will not be big enough after this week, so we ordered a second one that we will connect. After they no longer need the heating pad, we will put them in their coop/run home. We plan to only keep 8 or so, and hope to be able to sell/give away the others. We do not know the sex of any of the silkies, but the australorps and orpingtons are supposed to be female.

Here are a few more pictures for fun.



Gives you an idea of their current residence. I love that we can collapse and store both playpens in a small amount of space when we are not raising chicks.









This will be their permanent home. Thanks to my father and pictures from a lot of other coops in the forums, we were able to create a nice final product.

Nice, but it would be better if there were two open ends to avoid chicks getting overheated and trapped in a back corner. And you need to be able to adjust the height. Not going to be very easy to do with the way that you have fashioned that frame. They start small, but grow very quickly.

 

[bajabirdbrain]

Originally Posted by yakmayar

Very glad I found this thread as I was planning on getting an Ecoglow, but felt like this was my best choice.

I purchased the XL Sunbeam Xpress that was recommended on here from Amazon. It was $39.99. Nothing local around here had it in stock.

I was a bit worried that it was not getting warm enough, but decided to trust what others have said. I sewed a thin piece from an old felt blanket around the entire thing so that if it gets dirty, I can just replace it for the next batch.


Awesome post, thanks!

I wish that posters would show where they are from. It is interesting to see what part of the country you are from. My $.02 BB

 

[lpyrbby]

So, I had an idea and I ran with it. I'm a little more than 3 weeks from being able to test things out, but I wanted to go ahead and share what I came up with for my in-coop brooder (whenever we actually finish the build!).

Keeping in mind about having both ends open and struggling a little with how best to raise the first MHP I cobbled together, I decided on one that would be held up by chains so it could be raised/lowered easily. Here, have some pics so you can see what I'm talking about

We've used so much wood in the ArithmaChick House that there were plenty of scraps to choose from. Here's the basic frame.


In this photo, the top of the frame is actually on the ground. I took some eye bolts and screwed them into the wood, then attached carabiners.


Just a close up


I snagged this 16x20 baking rack off Amazon for around $16. It's pretty sturdy and I think it'll handle a bunch of chicks standing on it with no problems.


The baking rack has the little hook loops to keep it lifted off of whatever surface it sits on. I took advantage of these and hooked the carabiners onto those. The chain allows for the whole thing to go pretty low so new chicks can huddle right in. I also took some scrap cardboard and placed it over the rack, both to hold in some heat and to be something disposable when they do start hopping up and pooping on it.


The heating pad will be installed on the underside here.


This is the relative location for it in the in-coop brooder.


I tried to make it in such a way to minimize movement of the baking rack/heating pad.


It'll be much lower for day old chicks and I can move the stand forward a bit to make sure there's room in the back to get out initially.


It also has the real possibility of becoming a roost when they get really adventurous!

I hope this works and will report back once I have babies under it

 

[aart]

It'll be much lower for day old chicks and I can move the stand forward a bit to make sure there's room in the back to get out initially.


It also has the real possibility of becoming a roost when they get really adventurous!

I hope this works and will report back once I have babies under it

Sweet!
Yep, you need longer chain......or shorten the 4 uprights (hopefully you used screws, so easy to take apart).
That rack is nice.....what size pad do you have?
Mine is 24" long so would have some hangover....but bigger piece of cardboard would take care of that.
I like the cardboard idea......would be good to remove the little pieces on the edges.
Did you cut and bend part of the rack to fashion the hooks?

Great design/prototype!!

 

[casportpony]

Very glad I found this thread as I was planning on getting an Ecoglow, but felt like this was my best choice.

I purchased the XL Sunbeam Xpress that was recommended on here from Amazon. It was $39.99. Nothing local around here had it in stock.

I was a bit worried that it was not getting warm enough, but decided to trust what others have said. I sewed a thin piece from an old felt blanket around the entire thing so that if it gets dirty, I can just replace it for the next batch.






Used leftover 1/2" hardware cloth from our coop to build a frame. I used electrical tape around the edges so that nothing would be sharp. I cut a hole in one corner for the plug to fit through.


Used another piece from the old blanket to cover the entire frame. My hope is there would be no chance of any bird getting stuck/hurt and it would help keep in some heat.


I added some velcro to the frame/heat blanket so that it would stick on the underside since it would keep the heat closer to the chicks. Just as a safety precaution, I also used a few pieces of string to help hold the blanket on in case the birds decided to start pulling on the velcro (even though it is very strong).


Here is the final product.

My chicks have now been here for over a week.
Here is what it looks like in use.




We ordered 16 chicks from Cackle Hatchery (3 black australorps, 3 buff orpingtons, 5 white silkies, and 5 splash silkies). They ended up sending us 4 extra silkies, so we have a total of 20. They arrived in 24 hours and I picked them up at the Post Office as soon as I got a call. They seemed to be in pretty good condition. We followed the instructions they gave us with the exception of putting some electrolytes in their water the first 24 hours.

All 20 chicks are currently alive and seem to be doing well. We have had a little pasty butt, especially the first 3 days. We were wiping off 2-3 each day and they were all silkies. I did a little extra research (after reading 2 books about chickens before we received them) and I bought some Probios on Amazon and that has been in their food since. We get our food from a local small family business called Little Birdie Hatchery. The quality is fantastic.

They are currently housed inside a large shed in our back yard that has a couple windows. We are using a playpen we ordered from Amazon for $27. It will not be big enough after this week, so we ordered a second one that we will connect. After they no longer need the heating pad, we will put them in their coop/run home. We plan to only keep 8 or so, and hope to be able to sell/give away the others. We do not know the sex of any of the silkies, but the australorps and orpingtons are supposed to be female.

Here are a few more pictures for fun.



Gives you an idea of their current residence. I love that we can collapse and store both playpens in a small amount of space when we are not raising chicks.









This will be their permanent home. Thanks to my father and pictures from a lot of other coops in the forums, we were able to create a nice final product.

Welcome to BYC! Very nice setup.

 

[casportpony]

So, I had an idea and I ran with it. I'm a little more than 3 weeks from being able to test things out, but I wanted to go ahead and share what I came up with for my in-coop brooder (whenever we actually finish the build!).

Keeping in mind about having both ends open and struggling a little with how best to raise the first MHP I cobbled together, I decided on one that would be held up by chains so it could be raised/lowered easily. Here, have some pics so you can see what I'm talking about

We've used so much wood in the ArithmaChick House that there were plenty of scraps to choose from. Here's the basic frame.


In this photo, the top of the frame is actually on the ground. I took some eye bolts and screwed them into the wood, then attached carabiners.


Just a close up


I snagged this 16x20 baking rack off Amazon for around $16. It's pretty sturdy and I think it'll handle a bunch of chicks standing on it with no problems.


The baking rack has the little hook loops to keep it lifted off of whatever surface it sits on. I took advantage of these and hooked the carabiners onto those. The chain allows for the whole thing to go pretty low so new chicks can huddle right in. I also took some scrap cardboard and placed it over the rack, both to hold in some heat and to be something disposable when they do start hopping up and pooping on it.


The heating pad will be installed on the underside here.


This is the relative location for it in the in-coop brooder.


I tried to make it in such a way to minimize movement of the baking rack/heating pad.


It'll be much lower for day old chicks and I can move the stand forward a bit to make sure there's room in the back to get out initially.


It also has the real possibility of becoming a roost when they get really adventurous!

I hope this works and will report back once I have babies under it

I like it!