Thank you, but understand that I am not a large scale or profitable chicken operation, at all! I raise a rare breed for the joy of seeing them improve. I don't regularly sell chicks, only occasionally, and they are mostly the lesser quality birds, Easter Eggers and such.
I just love that it is so easy and worth it on the grounds that my time is valuable to me and my stress level is so much lower. It cost less than a daily anti-anxiety Rx and is less dangerous, and more effective. It was also less than a vacation and lasts longer. If you do decide to get one, it can pay for itself in chick sales and hatching for other people (there's room for that!) The resale on them is very good, too, in case you fear you may not stay in chickens.
I highly recommend it for everyone that hatches more than once or twice in a year. I know the joy it brings me and want that for all my chicken loving buddies!
Also watch Craigslist and be patient, as I found a GQF 1402 and a Brower brooder for $250, and put $80 into replacing both turner and timer motors to ensure reliable operation. This is a three rack, auto turning, proportional controller model that has not varied half a degree since I fired it up a month ago.
