Pics of my 1st brooder box

[Kim_1970]

I set up my brooder box today to get ready for the chicks (hoping TSC gets them in early this week).
I have the 54 gallon roughneck tote, lined the bottom with Equine Fresh, have the bowls set up on the non-lighted side and set up the heat lamp with a red 250 watt heat bulb.
I put a thermometer on the floor of it below the lamp. After a few hours I checked and it was 110 degrees.

I took the 250 watt out and replaced it with a 75 watt red heat lamp bulb I bought. Now just have to wait a few hours to see if that one will be better temp wise.

What do ya think?

PS: Sorry for all the junk in the background. We moved here 3-4 weeks ago and I am still unpacking... plus the fist week we moved in I broke ribs and had a partially collapsed lung so its taking me some time to unpack.

 

[poultryfan73]

Looks good for me! Although my only concern would be that if the tub is plastic would it melt?

 

[goldnchocolate]

Looks good to me, also

. What is equine fresh and where do I get it? At a tack shop? You probably don't need the marbles in the waterer if you are getting regular chicks. I'm not sure about bantams. How many chicks are you getting?

 

[NattiFan]

Looks good. How many chicks are you getting? And since your brooder is in the house and appears to be in the living space and not in a basement, your 75 watt bulb might do the trick. What is your light clamped to, and can it be raised up?

 

[Kim_1970]

My light is clamped to my husbands old desk, so I might have to find something else to clamp it to that I can raise it up. I tried the 75 watt and it only got to 80 degrees.
I dont think the tub will melt, I felt the sides of it and while it was warm, it didnt feel overly hot. But I will definitely keep an eye on it

The Equine Fresh I picked up at Tractor Supply. It was recommended in another thread and so I decided that I will give it a try.

I am hoping to get about 8-10 chicks. I only have room in the coop/run for 20 and since these are my first chicks/chickens, I dont want to overwhelm myself.
I dont think I am getting any Bantams. Not sure what chicks I will be getting to be honest. Just gonna head over to TSC when they come in and see what they have and what ones look healthy and happy.

 

[perched]

We used a see-thru bin like that and put it inside a wire dog crate and clamped the light to the ceiling of the crate. It worked perfectly, and we used a 100 watt bulb and kept them in our house for the first 6 weeks. We used a mix of paper towel, bird cage liners and grit paper, but your bedding looks great too. I wouldn't worry about the plastic melting if your light isn't right up against it. You should be able to skip the marbles in the waterer too. I never used them and everyone did just fine. Best wishes with your new babies when you get them!!!!!!!

 

[goldnchocolate]

Quote:
I hung a long plant hanger on a nearby window casing then I tied a string to my heat lamp, threaded it up through the plant hanger hook and then back down to a hook down lower on my window casing. This way I could raise or lower the lamp, by the string, until the temp was just right. I made the string really long and made loops along the length of it so I could just change it to a different loop to raise or lower. You will only need it for a few weeks so as long as there is no danger of the lamp falling, just about any arrangement will work.

 

[Kim_1970]

Quote:
Thank you for the idea! I had DH hang a plant hanger last night and strung the light from that with several loops. After awhile we checked the temp and it was right between the 90-100 mark, so it looked around 95 to me.

Wonderful idea! And we left plenty of rope to raise/lower as needed.

 

[goldnchocolate]

Quote:
Did you get your chicks, yet? I'd like to hear how they do with the Equine Fresh. I had some problems with mold forming on the cardboard box bottom, under the shavings that were near the chicks waterer, last year. I don't usually have that problem but I lined the bottom of the box with that 'waffle-weave' type shelf liner and I think it must have gotten damp under there without my knowing it.

 

[ByHisHands]

Equine Fresh is available at TSC and farmers co-ops. It is made for horse stalls, but works great for other things. I use it for kitty litter it's the best. You mist it with water and it expands and also becomes very fine like saw dust. Use about 1/4 to 1/2 of what you think you need because of the expansion. It dries pretty fast.