Regulating brooder temperature

[HickoryGuy]

I wanted to get some feedback from others who may have dealt with this before. Chicks are coming this week and I have my brooder set up in my enclosed back porch. My concern is the rise in temperature during the daytime. I have no problem keeping the brooder at the required temp at night. However, in the afternoons, the porch warms up a good bit while the sun hits it. The last thing I want to do is overheat them. On the other hand, I don't want to raise the light too much and let them get too cool.

I come home at lunch and can make adjuments to the light, but from 12-5 p.m., they'll be on their own to deal with the temperature.

Any suggestions?

 

[bigredfeather]

Keep your heat lamp in a position that allows the chicks to escape it if it gets too hot. I have mine to one side so they have the other to get away from the heat lamp. I don't even keep a thermometer in the brooder anymore. If the chicks huddle together under the light, you need to lower. If the chicks are not under the lamp and are panting, you need to raise it. They will tell you what they need.

Goodluck!

 

[HickoryGuy]

Thanks. That's the way I have it set up, I was just worried that if heated area got to 100+ degrees for a couple hours if it would harm the chicks. It's a very large box, so there's a good bit of room that isn't directly heated.

 

[bigredfeather]

If it is a big box, you will be fine.

 

[tammyd57]

I've never put a thermometer in my brooders. I just make them big enough that the chicks can decide for themselves how warm they want to be by how close to the light they get.

 

[write2caroline]

I did have a thermometer in my brooder - I got it in the reptile aisle at petsmart. I really used it for me to have an idea of how warm the warm area was. My chicks only liked it hot the first couple of days and then I found I could use smaller wattage bulbs further away and at the 4th week no heat lamp at all. I did not use it during the day because the room was warmed by the sun.

Caroline