Pseudo Brooder Heater 'Plate'

[aart]

There have been several discussions during the past couple weeks in multiple threads in multiple sub forums about using a people heating pad to simulate the Brinsea or Premier brooder heater. I was able to fashion this one and thought I'd put it in it's own thread for ease of updating this particular design idea.

I really like the idea of the heater plates because of the 'natural' day/night cycles and the lower power cost. I've read folks saying that the chicks are quieter under a plate than a light and so far, I couldn't agree more. It's a great concept but I can absolutely not justify the expense of the Brinsea or even the Premier when I probably will never hatch chicks again.....the 2 hatches I've done have been with a borrowed incubator. Plus I am a designer by nature and trade, working in the pharmaceutical equipment design field for 20 years. I love to solve problems by building 'stuff'.

Now this device has only been in use for a mere 36 hours, but I think it's going to work out fine. I will continue to update this thread to report any pros and cons or changes needed. The only con I've found so far is you don't get to see them sprawled out or tip over asleep like you do under a light...cause like most babies, they're cutest when they're sleeping. They all come out to eat, drink and run around, then dash back underneath to warm up and/or sleep.

Heating pad is 12" x 15" and draws 40 watts, metal baker cooling rack is 10" x 14" and attached to wood with small U-tacks, the approx. 2" x 2" scrap wood are off cuts from some rafter extensions I made - the curve in the off cuts part just accommodated the slant from front to back, the adjustable furniture feet were perfect for....um, adjusting the height. I had all this stuff on hand so it didn't cost me a dime and only took about 30 minutes to put together. I do have the back lower than the front so they can find the best fit for themselves, which they do. There's a towel on top because the surface of the heating pad is about 110 degrees and makes them squeak rather loudly when they're little feet ran over it and will be easily swapped out and washed as needed.

I'll just let the pictures explain the rest.

 

[MissJane]

I have to give @Chad Duncan the credit for the idea to hang the heater with chains. This is working great with the dog crate. I can easily adjust the hight.

My set up:
Xl dog crate
Grate from old mini refrigerator
4 24" choke chain dog collars
8 carabiners

I use the carabiners and collars to hang the grate from the "ceiling" of the crate. Be sure it is up against the wall of the crate. The chicks love to climb on top and if it's not against the wall you may have a gap they could get trapped in. Draped the heating pad on top of the grate. Then a towel on top. Paying attention to push it around the chains so it covers the back as much as possible to trap more heat in their cave.

 

[Beekissed]

I like how you slanted your legs to allow for a front and a back for different levels of heat. It looks good! I'm so glad you did a test run on this idea for me.

 

[aart]

great design

with better insulation on top you may even be able to direct more heat downward and turn the pad down a notch further.

I am all for saving energy

The towel is just to protect the chicks from walking on the hot surface of the heating pad, you'd need some sort of reflector to direct heat downward.
There's no thermostat on the pad and it's on it's lowest setting of low-med-hi.

 

[aart]

OK.... new year, new ideas, new chickie babies in the incubator.

Got this heating pad that Blooie had success with.

Found a rack that's been kicking around in my garage for years that fit perfect.
Used some 2x2's, tnuts, and carriage bolts to mount adjustable feet.
Bolts can be easily changed out for longer ones if needed.




Used bottle caps as washers and dry wall screws to attach rack to 2x2's.


Nice little lip on back of rack holds pad from sidling off.
ETA link to heating pad I purchased:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005NZ66KU/?tag=backy-20


Piece of 3/16 luan plywood to protect pad, will cover wood with peel and stick plastic for washability.
Wood is heavy and 'sticky' enough to not slide around without attachment.

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Not sure how I have missed this thread up until now --- have been avidly following the MHP thread, though. I went with more of the "plate" approach (vs cave) myself -- having taken the idea for my frame from a recent post to the MHP thread and using threaded rod, washers and nuts to create adjustable "legs" :


I was very pleasantly surprised with the stability offered by the legs once the washer/nut sets were tightened top and bottom -- have zero concern about tipping/collapse, etc even as the babies get bigger and more rambunctious in their over/under games.

Most importantly, the chicks LOVE their "house" -- I'm brooding directly out in the coop and temps are swinging from mid 50's during the day to low 30's at night right now, put the chicks out there yesterday when we brought them home and they are doing fabulously! Their age ranges from 3 days to a little over a week old, I was curious how well the older ones would adjust to the change in heat source, having been at the store, under lights, for so much longer than the little ones, but all it took was one time of placing them underneath for them to get the idea. I went out last night thinking I might have to "tuck them in" to bed the first time, but they had already filled their crops and put themselves to bed, and nary a peep was heard until it was time to get up this morning.......such an improvement over the restless nights under a light!

 

[Blooie]

I have some concerns from looking at the reviews on Amazon. At least four people have posted that the controller portion overheated (they have photos of scorched controllers). I do read those with a grain of salt (as I do all reviews that seem to be outliers) because four out of 12,000 seem statistically safe. Also all those reviews were from 2016 which makes me think that they have since addressed this safety concern. I do wonder if that is why they say they are only making versions with an auto-off feature.

I’m assuming you are talking about the heating pads, not the heater that was mentioned before, so I’ll respond accordingly. Those reviews were pointed out to us on the Heating Pad thread, but as the poster said, she noticed that those reveiws weren't even for the Heating Pad that we recommend. Another member called Sunbeam directly and was told there were no plans to discontinue those pads and go to Auto Shutoff Only models. The reviews were listed as being for a Pad with a different serial number altogether, a Pad which the Sunbeam rep said had been pulled. And Sunbeam does indeed still make a Pad without any bells and whistles, and which does not have auto-shutoff, at least as of now. The pad I strongly recommend, the Sunbeam X-Press Heat, allows the user to set it to “Stay-on” so I doubt that if a Pad staying on long term caused serious overheating issues in the controller was an issue, it would still be on the market.

I always, always remind potential users of this system that ANY electrical device, from a coffee pot to a phone charger, can overheat. From the moment something is plugged into a wall, it carries an inherent fire risk. Shoot, wiring inside walls can cause fires even with nothing plugged into an outlet. I caution folks never, ever to use an old Heating Pad they may already have, but to spring for a new one if they want to use either Mama Heating Pad or @aart’s pseudo- Heating plate.

Older pads which have been rolled or folded up and stuffed in the back of a linen closet somewhere, while relatively safe to use on our aches and pains, are not safe enough to be plugged in, turned on, and then left to run for a few weeks out of sight of the user. Rolling, folding, and being shuffled around, possibly stored with stacks of heavier things on top of them, may have developed minute cracks or weak spots in the fine wire heating elements, causing shorts and/or overheating. If we are sitting with that pad on our shoulders or backs, we can tell pretty quickly by feel or a smell that that pad has an issue. If it’s out in the coop or in a brooder in another room, those initial signs wouldn’t even be noticed until it’s too late. So use a new pad, store it laid flat, and never, ever roll or fold it.

When it comes right down to it, heating pads are designed to come into direct contact with humans, fabrics and upholstery. Can they fail? Of course they can, and only a fool would say otherwise. But plug in and run a heating pad, then plug in and run a heat lamp. Which one will you touch directly or pick up with bare hands, even after just minutes? Yeah. That’s why I’ll take my chances with a heating pad every time. And if I need any further reminder, there’s the burn scar left on my little granddaughter’s arm from a heat lamp. She is the reason I decided there HAD to be a better way.

 

[we3ernes]

That’s why I’ll take my chances with a heating pad every time. And if I need any further reminder, there’s the burn scar left on my little granddaughter’s arm from a heat lamp. She is the reason I decided there HAD to be a better way.

That's why I said I'm am taking these reviews with a grain of salt. My main concern is with Amazon sellers substituting similar item numbers for what you order (sometimes thinking they are doing you a favor by giving you the "better" option), not with the heating pad that you recommended.

I definitely don't want to use a heat lamp, I did that in the past with an indoor brooder that had many extra safety precautions, but I never felt comfortable with that option, it was just what was provided to our 4H group to use.

If I can find the heating pad locally that has the ability to disable the auto-shutoff then I will be getting one, my main thought was - here is a less expensive version of the Eco-Glow that others may want to investigate!

I know that tone of voice doesn't come across well in forums, but I don't want you to think for an instant that I was questioning the safety of what you are using with your coop. I was inspired to do the MHP from your article and Aart's post and I really appreciate all the help, inspiration, and encouragement you two provide!

 

[aart]

Beware the single rod racks......heads can get stuck.
Look at link in first post on this thread...I have updated my rack a couple times.

 

[aart]

I tried to measure the temp underneath kinda hard with chickies running around.

About 1/2" from the bottom of the rack is about 95 degrees.
The floor of the brooder under the plate, about 2" from rack where I measured, is about 85 degrees.
The rack underneath is very warm to the touch but it didn't make me want to take my hand away....YMMV.

They seem very content under there......I can only assume that I'd be hearing distress cheeps if they were too cold or too hot.