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

[Ol Grey Mare]

Huh okay. Just nervous putting babies in a space that feels (to me) not warm enough.
Operating off of this post from OP:

It is a leap of faith, no doubt. My latest brood has been outside, with the MHP, for two weeks now in temps dipping into the low 20s just days after they arrived ...... they are happy, busy little chicks. They are two weeks now and ive already turned the heat down to medium because they were too warm under there

 

[Blooie]

Yep, that OP would be me. Once long ago when I started this thread, a good friend asked about the temperatures under the cave. Shoot, I didn't know...I just watched the chicks and they were in and out, exploring, eating, drinking, pooping, sleeping all night through and totally thriving. But I measured it out of curiosity and to answer her question. It was 82.something on the floor of the cave and the room was 69 degrees. They were perfectly happy, safe and warm. MHP works by warming just the chicks...not the floor of the brooder, not the water, the walls, the air, the food, and everything else around them. They regulate their own comfort. Ever watch a group of chicks with a broody hen or have you seen videos or pictures? They are all over the place..even when it's cold! They just pop under her to warm up for a few minutes or if they get scared by something, or when the sun goes down and it's time to sleep. She has no night light under her wing, no midnight snacks for them.....and they usually do best when she raises them. This is the same thing, but Mama doesn't move so they have to find her when they need her. She's always there, in the same spot!

If you are concerned that it's not warm enough, it might be helpful to see photos of your setup. We can tell you if the frame and pad are up too high, and if that's the case, simply lowering it will help. But remember, you aren't trying to heat the cave and the whole brooder. I'll post a couple of photos of my last batches of chicks so you can see what I mean about the height. Keep us posted, and if you can get those photos to us we can be more help to you!

In this photo I'm holding the awning back to show the babies underneath. Some say it makes no difference, but I think the side of the pad with the lettering facing the chicks is a little warmer. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it! Even more remarkable is that these chicks are outside in an open wire brooder pen. Temperatures were in the twenties, dropping down to the teens a couple of times! Yeah, I raised my chicks outside.

These are my Silkie chicks. Look pretty happy to me! As always, they were in the house for the first day or so until I knew that they could find food, water, knew where to warm up, and weren't suffering any stress from shipping or hatching. Then out they went! I live in Northwestern Wyoming, not far from Yellowstone Park. So yeah, it gets cold here and if I waited until "spring" to get chicks, I'd be waiting a long time! We have had snow in June here!

 

[aart]

If you are concerned that it's not warm enough, it might be helpful to see photos of your setup. We can tell you if the frame and pad are up too high, and if that's the case, simply lowering it will help

Yes, pics!
Indeed....if you can lower it 'simply'.

Height of pad is most important, being able to change the height easily can be tricky depending on how you built.

 

[Blooie]

Yes, pics!
Indeed....if you can lower it 'simply'.

Height of pad is most important, being able to change the height easily can be tricky depending on how you built.

Shoot, you know me....simple, simple, simple! For me it's just pulling up on the center of the frame to make it higher or smooshing it down to make it lower. I'm too old and dull to try anything more complex!

 

[BBZZZZTT]

Hi everyone!

My partner and I purchased the smaller Sunbeam heating pad for our set up (we are only getting a few chicks), but were unable to get the cave any warmer than about 65-70 degrees. Has anyone else had this issue? We wanted to buy the larger pad but couldn’t afford it, so we’ve opted to use the traditional light bulb method for this round of chicks. Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem and if the larger pad would potentially solve it.

I'm using a smaller sunbeam, non digital version. Not sure if it's the same one as you. My chicks have been fine, in fact I turned it down from 'high' to 'medium' after the first week because they were too warm under there. I think it helps that this is my first time raising chicks because I had no anxiety with switching off of the bulb. This is the only way I know and it has been wonderful!
I never measured the ambient temp under this one, but I did notice that at the high setting it does not feel as warm as the larger digital one at 6. (I originally got that one then switched to the smaller one due to power outage concerns, so I have both)

So, if yours truly isn't heating up as much as the big sunbeam like mine doesn't, I don't think it will be a problem.
By the way, my chicks are a bit over 2 weeks and in a 55 degree basement.

 

[buttnugget541]

Thanks for responding Blooie! Just want to say up front how appreciative I am of this thread, been following for awhile now and was very excited to try out the MHP method with this latest batch of chicks.
Looking at your photos, it seems like I don’t have the pad low enough, as well as gaging the warmth by taking the temp at the floor of the cave.
I can’t take a photo right now, but the cave we made was about 4” at the front opening, slanting down to about 2 1/2” at the back. Plywood sides, hardware cloth top, with the heating pad layered with towel, press n seal and wood chips as recommended per this thread.

Judging by your response and the responses of others, it sounds like I need to lower the pad slightly and also have faith that it will provide a warm enough space for the chicks. I admit that although I’m excited to implement the MHP, I am also pretty new to raising chicks and afraid of causing them any harm out of ignorance.

Thanks again for everything! This thread has been immensely helpful.

 

[Molpet]

Thanks for responding Blooie! Just want to say up front how appreciative I am of this thread, been following for awhile now and was very excited to try out the MHP method with this latest batch of chicks.
Looking at your photos, it seems like I don’t have the pad low enough, as well as gaging the warmth by taking the temp at the floor of the cave.
I can’t take a photo right now, but the cave we made was about 4” at the front opening, slanting down to about 2 1/2” at the back. Plywood sides, hardware cloth top, with the heating pad layered with towel, press n seal and wood chips as recommended per this thread.

Judging by your response and the responses of others, it sounds like I need to lower the pad slightly and also have faith that it will provide a warm enough space for the chicks. I admit that although I’m excited to implement the MHP, I am also pretty new to raising chicks and afraid of causing them any harm out of ignorance.

Thanks again for everything! This thread has been immensely helpful.

you could raise the floor by putting more bedding under the mhp... but beware they will kick it out eventually

 

[aart]

Shoot, you know me....simple, simple, simple! For me it's just pulling up on the center of the frame to make it higher or smooshing it down to make it lower.

..and you know me, I like more complex builds for easier precise operation...
...thus the threaded legs.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/pseudo-brooder-heater-plate.67729/

 

[Birdinhand]

Thanks for responding Blooie! Just want to say up front how appreciative I am of this thread, been following for awhile now and was very excited to try out the MHP method with this latest batch of chicks.
Looking at your photos, it seems like I don’t have the pad low enough, as well as gaging the warmth by taking the temp at the floor of the cave.
I can’t take a photo right now, but the cave we made was about 4” at the front opening, slanting down to about 2 1/2” at the back. Plywood sides, hardware cloth top, with the heating pad layered with towel, press n seal and wood chips as recommended per this thread.

Judging by your response and the responses of others, it sounds like I need to lower the pad slightly and also have faith that it will provide a warm enough space for the chicks. I admit that although I’m excited to implement the MHP, I am also pretty new to raising chicks and afraid of causing them any harm out of ignorance.

Thanks again for everything! This thread has been immensely helpful.

we are down in the 30's here and I just got 37 cornish cross yesterday, it has taken a full day for them to get the hang of things with a single XL MHP. I would not suggest just "having faith" that it will work, you really need to pay attention to their behavior. if they get too cold they will get weak and even pass out and may need rewarming to revive them, I've had to do that to a few chicks. most of them have gotten the hang of it pretty quick but not all do right away. Blooie's approach of waiting a day to put them out in the cold may be something I adopt when it's cold out going forward.

 

[Blooie]

@buttnugget541: We've all been there...every single person on this thread - including me - was a little apprehensive at first. That was true whether it was our first batch of chicks or our 50th. It's totally out of the "norm" and unlike in conventional brooding there are no books and magazines to advise you and to refer to. Just us!

We've had issues crop up and solved them together. In the beginning, when I started this thread, it was done to document what I was trying as I was learning to use MHP. It didn't start out as instructions, just as way to show others what I was going to do and to have a solid place for me to refer to when I something didn't work. To my surprise, it all worked! Oh, lots of folks have added, modified, and taught new tricks, but when I look back I haven't changed much - just putting the heating pad on the inside of the frame rather than draped over the top. The only reason I did that was because a few people reported that they had chicks that got trapped between the pad and the frame. That never happened to me or to most others, but the fact that it DID happen was enough to make me say, "Hmmm, it could but I ain't gonna let it." So I adapted. We've all adapted to some degree or another. This thread has been active for a long time. That's because with every chick season good people stop by to figure this out and ask questions, and they can count on good answers from all of those who have come before.

It is a huge leap of faith, as @Ol Grey Mare said. Learn to watch your chicks....it doesn't take long at all for you to be able to read them. And I have always said that if this is outside of someone's comfort zone, we get that and respect it. Personally I'd like to see every heat lamp used for chicks eradicated, pure and simple. But real life isn't that way, and there are situations where MHP isn't as practical. But if you think it will work for you, we welcome you to the Broody Brigade and will help you all we can!