Outdoor brooder ideas

[picklestheduck]

I’m looking at building an outdoor brooder, but I want to have a good plan and want to do PLENTY of research before I build something and long before I have chicks. I’m not even sure if I’ll get chicks this spring, but I know we will be expanding the flock more in the future and I’d really like to finally try breeding some of my birds. My main concern is weather getting to the chicks, and I want to have a good plan for a heat source. I want to stay dang far away from heat lamps as a friend of mine lost over 75 pullets and cockerels to a faulty heat lamp in a massive coop fire. I was wondering, if I made a predator proof almost like tractor, if I could stick it in a mini greenhouse I have. Maybe it’s a terrible idea I don’t know. I do have a heater plate I would have in there. Any thoughts or ideas from anyone very much appreciated!

 

[azygous]

Do you have a coop and run? Do you have an adult flock presently?

If you have a coop and secure, covered and enclosed run, you might easily convert some space inside the run or coop for a chick brooding pen.

Here is my article on brooding in your run. https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...and-start-raising-your-chicks-outdoors.71995/

 

[JoeCT]

My grandpa used to heat his small greenhouse overnight with 5gal buckets painted black, filled with water and capped. He would set them out in the direct sun all day then put the back in the greenhouse overnight to release the stored energy. His dad used 55gal black drums in a larger greenhouse. I figure this will also work if its filled with sand but I never tried.

 

[rosemarythyme]

No idea how you're currently set up, but I have part of a prefab coop as my brooder and it's kept in the run. I run a heating pad out there as the heat element. Took me a while to figure out how to deal with rain but it turns out, chicks don't melt if they get a little wet (that, and I learned how to best deal with ground moisture post-rainstorms).

Bonus with my set up is there's zero need for clean up. When the poop starts to build up, I simply move the brooder.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/short-on-time-recycle-a-prefab-brooder.73985/

 

[Huntmaster]

I do have a heater plate I would have in there.

Not sure if you are talking coop heater plate or brooder plate. I would be careful relying on a brooder plate being in Michigan winter. As most brooder plates have recommended working temps above 50 degrees. Alot of folks use Mother hen heating pads as a heat source you can get heat pads that have adjustable heat settings as you can see in @azygous article. I have seen too many brooder plates failing to keep chicks warm enough in colder climates. Most of them just are not made for cold ambient temps as you cannot regulate heat with them.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Any thoughts or ideas from anyone very much appreciated!

Out of curiosity, what was the fault in that faulty heat lamp. That might help someone else avoid a fire.

What ambient temperatures are you looking at when you brood? The extremes are what are important not some average. The middle of a Michigan winter is quite different than the middle of your summer. It helps to know what you are working with. And how many chicks?

An outdoor brooder needs the same things as an indoor brooder: food, water, protection from predators, and protection from weather. Weather means rain, wind, and you may need heat. Weather is what you are asking about.

To me the best brooder is one that has a spot warm enough in the coldest temperatures and a spot cool enough in the warmest temperatures. In a climate controlled house that can be pretty simple but outside where the temperature can swing 40 or 50 degrees F in a day it can be more challenging.

You can use a heating device that heats the entire area. I understand heat lamps are out for you but heat emitters or radiators can be used. You can keep an area cool enough by having a brooder big enough and with ventilation so the far end can cool off. This is what I do, some mornings there might be ice or frost in the far end but the area next to the heat is warm enough.

Or you can use something like a heat plate or heating pad to literally create a spot that is warm enough. As Huntmaster said the heat plates have limitations in cold weather but in warmer weather they can work great. I'll include a link to Blooie's thread about the heating pad that Azygous and Rosemary use. Those have been used in very cold weather. Another option is the hover, if you do a search on "Ohio brooder" it should come up. Think of a shallow box raised so the chicks can get underneath with the open side down. Warm air rises and is trapped under the box.

The reason I asked about number of chicks is that some things like heating pad or heat plate have limits while the others may be able to handle more chicks.

Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens

Good luck!

 

[picklestheduck]

Out of curiosity, what was the fault in that faulty heat lamp. That might help someone else avoid a fire.

What ambient temperatures are you looking at when you brood? The extremes are what are important not some average. The middle of a Michigan winter is quite different than the middle of your summer. It helps to know what you are working with. And how many chicks?

An outdoor brooder needs the same things as an indoor brooder: food, water, protection from predators, and protection from weather. Weather means rain, wind, and you may need heat. Weather is what you are asking about.

To me the best brooder is one that has a spot warm enough in the coldest temperatures and a spot cool enough in the warmest temperatures. In a climate controlled house that can be pretty simple but outside where the temperature can swing 40 or 50 degrees F in a day it can be more challenging.

You can use a heating device that heats the entire area. I understand heat lamps are out for you but heat emitters or radiators can be used. You can keep an area cool enough by having a brooder big enough and with ventilation so the far end can cool off. This is what I do, some mornings there might be ice or frost in the far end but the area next to the heat is warm enough.

Or you can use something like a heat plate or heating pad to literally create a spot that is warm enough. As Huntmaster said the heat plates have limitations in cold weather but in warmer weather they can work great. I'll include a link to Blooie's thread about the heating pad that Azygous and Rosemary use. Those have been used in very cold weather. Another option is the hover, if you do a search on "Ohio brooder" it should come up. Think of a shallow box raised so the chicks can get underneath with the open side down. Warm air rises and is trapped under the box.

The reason I asked about number of chicks is that some things like heating pad or heat plate have limits while the others may be able to handle more chicks.

Mama Heating Pad in the Brooder (Picture Heavy) - UPDATE | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens

Good luck!

I actually do not remember exactly what was wrong with the lamp, but I’m pretty sure it was it was attached, like the loop or clip thing wasn’t strong enough, or maybe they hadn’t attached it well enough. I’m just terrified I would mess something up. I’m not entirely sure when I would want to brood chicks or how many, but I’m assuming it would be a max of 20 at a time, although I’ve never brooded that many chicks before. I want the outdoor brooder to be something I could have set up sort of permanently and use it whenever. I could definitely have different heat sources to use at different types of the year etc. These are great things to know! Thank you!

 

[Acre4Me]

We just built this in our barn. With a cut out for entry into the run. It is mostly solid sides - important for chicks to keep away drafts. We have some thin boards (1/4” plywood maybe) that can be inserted on top of the mesh in the doors to block drafts -this area of barn is a bit drafty and I insulated. There is a cutout on top for a heating item to be plugged into the outlet just above. There is a perch the length of the brooder that you cannot see-it is below the doors. This is on wheels to be able to clean up easily.

While mine is indoors, I’ll point out that the angled doors are easy for us to use and keep chicks in better than our previous brooder. Door is to one side, so they can move around and huddle up easily. All sides are solid except for doors. If this were outside, I would place the door side where wind or rain would not blow in. Being solid sides I could easily attach anchors/clips for a moveable fence for the beginning introductions before they mingle with the flock.

Heating lamps can be fine. It is easy to double secure them. But, heat plates can work well, but do have limits in cold weather. We have used a heat plate successfully in Feb in This area of the barn, but we always would cover half of the brooder in a double layer of old towels to prevent drafts snd keep in any possible warmth while using a heat plate. Other than deep cold (single digits to below zero), we never had a problem. In deep cold chicks would come in the house bc would rather not find the limits of our system.

Heating pads (meant for humans, but used to create a warm “cave” for chicks) can work, I suppose, but they have limitations (auto shut-off), and I’ve seen plenty of pics of burned/melted controllers for those. In addition, if made into a cave, a chick might get trapped in back in a very warm environment and not be able to get out. Depends on numbers of chicks and size of the “cave” created.

Another idea is to warm up blocks with regular lightbulbs. The block gets heated up due to an enclosed lightbulb, and chicks can sit on them, but might not be a good option overall for chicks in really cold weather, but is used successfully for keeping waterers unfrozen.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I actually do not remember exactly what was wrong with the lamp, but I’m pretty sure it was it was attached, like the loop or clip thing wasn’t strong enough, or maybe they hadn’t attached it well enough.

I use a heat lamp and often warn people to not rely on that clamp, I consider the clamp dangerous. It can easily get knocked by chickens or humans. To me if you attach the lamp with wire or chain it is a lot less likely to fail. To me the fault is probably in not knowing how to attach it more than a fault in the lamp itself. I'm not trying to convince you to use a heat lamp, since you are not comfortable you should not. Maybe this will warn someone else about relying on that clamp.

My average brood is 20 but has been as high as 28 chicks. 20 may be a bit much for heat plates. Hopefully others with experience with them can speak to that. @azygous and @rosemarythyme how does 20 chicks with a heating pad sound?

 

[Florida Bullfrog]

Example of a homemade raised brooder my brother made. Its legs are of a tripod design.

Tractor Supply Sentinel coop.

I’ve had day old chicks started in both. Generally I only use a heat plate, but during the Christmas freeze I added an IR light and cardboard wind shield to the Sentinel. 3 week old chicks handled 17F fine in that setup.