Tell me, what is your favorite thing about your brooder?

[LaynaDon95]

So... I'm inheriting an old baby play pen that I think I'm going to turn into a brooder. It already has lots of good qualities about it. It has a floor, so snakes and things won't be as likely to get into it, it will be easy to put a lid onto it, it's big, it already has a wall that chicks can't get out of, though I'm going to wrap it it either hardware cloth or chicken wire as well. I brood my chicks outside in a spare room in the coop, so I like the extra security. It has a wipeable, removable floor! (ding ding ding! We have a winner!)

What do you absolutely love about your brooder? What do you wish you had in your brooder? I have chicks due August 21st, so I'm going to make this my project, to get it ready before they hatch. If you can post pics of your brooders, and/or share your favorite parts about them to give me ideas, it would much appreciated! Thanks!

 

[OreoPlymothRock]

What i liked most about my brooder is that it was so portable because it was in one of those rectangular bins that are lightweight and easy to clean. We put pine shavings on the floor of the brooder. It took a lot of work to keep it clean though. Because it housed 2 magpie ducks and one white leghorn, they are outside now and having a great time. Hope this helps! There was actually supposed to be 4 magpie ducks but 2 died of infectious something. (Yeah, it had an extremely long name)

 

[FarmGirl01]

I use a 50 gallon breeder fish tank. Its so easy to clean and maintain. I hang the heat lamp over it on chains so the temp is easy to regulate. Its glass, so its like watching chicken TV.

I wish I had an air conditioner in the brooder house.

 

[EyeHeartBantams]

Mine was disposable. XD I have a friend that works at Walmart and she got me a big watermelon box; it was plenty big enough for all my babies, and likely still would be if I hadn't decided to move them into a tractor at about 5 weeks of age. I brooded mine outside under our tractor shelter (a overhang attached to the back of our garage with two open sides), hung the lamp from the rafters and covered the box with 1in square wire tied to the box with good old baler twine; it effectively kept the cat and dogs out of the box and allowed for easy access for me when I needed it.

Despite the summer heat getting up to 35C sometimes, the chicks kept comfy (since they were shaded all day) and warm at night. On particularly cold nights, I just tossed and old blanket over the top of the box, leaving a space for the lamp and some airflow. Worked well, would definitely do it again. However, would only use for brooding bantams; standard size chicks would outgrow it quickly as my mum discovered with her Cornish Giants.

But cheap and easy; love it.

 

[RonC]

Built mine out of some old 2x4 fencing I've had in my shed for years and stuff I had laying around. So it was basically free!

 

[FarmGirl01]

Built mine out of some old 2x4 fencing I've had in my shed for years and stuff I had laying around. So it was basically free!

Its always fun to do projects out of things just laying around.

 

[Happy Chooks]

My Brinsea Eco Glow. It's so worth the money to not worry about heat lamps causing fires. (and the chicks are happier too)

 

[LaynaDon95]

Thank for all the response. I started working on it today and it's basically finished. I'm loving it. I won't have to worry about a heat lamp for a while, because it's already plenty hot around here, though I've been eyeing the Eco Glow. I just wish it weren't so expensive.

OPR, mine won't be very portable (boo), but it will be very easily cleaned! It has a removable plastic pad in the bottom that I can just take out, wipe off, and put back in. I think I'm gonna love it!

Farm Girl, That sounds amazing. The problem is, I frequently have too many chicks at once to put in something so "small". The play pen is relatively see-through though, so it'll be close to the same.

EHB, I have used cardboard boxes in the past and LOVED them! When I was finished with them I just toss them in the burn pile. I have fairly constant flow of chicks though, so I need something more permanent. Your set up sounds like it was great!

RonC, my mom has had this play pen for years and years. Maybe 11 or 12 years ago? It's not suitable to have a baby in anymore, so she gave it to me. It's basically paid for itself by now. The wood I'm using, and the fencing I'm using for the lid were left here by the houses previous owner, so it's either considered free or it cost as much as a house, depending on how you look at it. I'm all about the free/cheap stuff!

 

[RonC]

I looked for an old playpen by the curb on trash day for a couple of weeks but nothing showed up. See them all the time when I'm not looking. I'll grab the first one I see and store it in the shed for the next go 'round.

 

[MySuburbanLife]

I brooded my chicks in a pack n play for 5 weeks. A baby gate works perfectly as a lid-- adjust the width of the gate to fit tight between the top posts of the play pen. I wrapped the removable 'mattress' of the play pen in a waterproof tablecloth and used pine shavings as bedding.

I liked that it was free (leftover from my days of having bitty babies), reusable and easy to store (currently folded up in my garage for if/when we decide to start some meaties), had lots of ventilation (since the walls are mesh and the lid was a wire gate).