critique, my thoughts on brooding

[Mike Everett]

For a number of years I have been hen raising my fowl, this year I am going to try to get off some earlier, because of the climate swing here in Texas.
This is what I have come up with...tell me what you think,
I have a room in my barn 10x15x8, I'm having sprayed insulation foam. My ideal is to control the temperature in the room, not having a heat source on the brooders. The brooders I made are half plastic barrels cut longways, with a hardware wire bottom on a frame. The barrels will be on a rack, with a drop pan under them. I figure the body heat and maintaining a controlled temp in the room and can cycle lights on and off like nature and reduce them from starting peck so much, beside not overcrowding them. I have a 30x30 pen in the barn with outside access. I thought once they were feathered I would move the barrel brooders into it...

[POOKELA]

dude i like it,it seems like it was well planned...very interesting concept...good luck let me know how it works..ALOHA!!!

[OR GALLO]

How early are you talking about? Also if it's a cold winter are you keeping them in the barn? Up here it would work only if I could keep them inside cause we get a lot of rain and it gets cold. But your brooder system sounds great.

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by OR GALLO

How early are you talking about? Also if it's a cold winter are you keeping them in the barn? Up here it would work only if I could keep them inside cause we get a lot of rain and it gets cold. But your brooder system sounds great.

I'm in Texas..lol, it gets cold but not for very long, we have what we call Northerners last at most 3-4 days could be in the 80"s the next day.....I'm talking Feb...April, then stoppiing. They will be dry in the barn, I can limit their access to the outside..they will go back into the barrel brooders at night.

[buzzbait]

i know guys that do thier barrel brooders like that and then put them out in thier yard and leave door open on it and they are accustomed to goin in it at dark . safe from owls anyway. not same as what your doing but similar in a way i guess. I like the idea !

[jamiepaul]

its a good idea mike sort of the same concept we have with race horse breeding.put em under the lights so they can be bred early

[OR GALLO]

That should work great then. My friend uses barrels laying on the ground with wire door so the chicks go in and out as they please, but he puts the hen in there with them. The only problem with his systèis he looses chicks to hens that will kill them if they are not hers, also he has to clean the litter often cause he uses the whole barrel. I think cutting it in half like you are planning shoul make it easier to clean.

[blades61]

most years i hatch a lot in january i have a smaller place like 12x12 well insulated building i like to get em off early jan feb and march.i dont raise many so its a little easier for me compared to you guys that raise a lot

[rockislandred]

Raised a lot of early chicks in the barn under lights and did just fine, but one time the power went off during the night for several hours and we lost the chicks. They got cold and crowded together and smothered. Might want a back up plan if you lose power. If they get chilled they'll pile up on top of each other.

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by rockislandred

Raised a lot of early chicks in the barn under lights and did just fine, but one time the power went off during the night for several hours and we lost the chicks. They got cold and crowded together and smothered. Might want a back up plan if you lose power. If they get chilled they'll pile up on top of each other.

That's the point of not using lights as heat source...I'm thinking a gas heater in the room.

[rockislandred]

Originally Posted by Mike Everett

That's the point of not using lights as heat source...I'm thinking a gas heater in the room.

Should work fine like that.

[GaMeCoCk24]

Hey mike where u at exactly in Texas?

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by GaMeCoCk24

Hey mike where u at exactly in Texas?

Near Waco.........................

[GaMeCoCk24]

O cool not to far from me Im just south of Dallas

[fowler]

Think about this mike I sell gas products for a heat source and if you seal it off with insulation make sure it is vented .alot of folks don't realize how much carbon,sulfur dioxide that gas puts off when it is burnt. And that can not be good for those baby chicks lungs so they may not develope right

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by fowler

Think about this mike I sell gas products for a heat source and if you seal it off with insulation make sure it is vented .alot of folks don't realize how much carbon,sulfur dioxide that gas puts off when it is burnt. And that can not be good for those baby chicks lungs so they may not develope right

Yeah , I had thought of that,...thanks for your input. Is it possible to get portable gas cylinders larger than the grill type, but not as big home tank?

[nonny]

Mike I've always been a firm believer in hen hatched and raised ....... but I seen a friend who has a glass house in which he keeps orchids , we get some bitterly cold weather here in winter with large frost etc . His glass house is not heated by any other means other than he places a number of black plastic drums full of water under glass each day and transfers to the glass house each evening , the residual heat of the water maintains a constant 10 degree Celsius through out the night and prevents freezing etc . This may work for you with your barn being insulated .....

[Outlaw greys]

If you can get ur hens to lay id start hatching them in november and december i know a guy here that does and he has some sharp birds 90% 5 lbs to 5:14 i dont have the proper set up or i would hatch all of mine in november and december

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by nonny

Mike I've always been a firm believer in hen hatched and raised ....... but I seen a friend who has a glass house in which he keeps orchids , we get some bitterly cold weather here in winter with large frost etc . His glass house is not heated by any other means other than he places a number of black plastic drums full of water under glass each day and transfers to the glass house each evening , the residual heat of the water maintains a constant 10 degree Celsius through out the night and prevents freezing etc . This may work for you with your barn being insulated .....

Ummm I've got about 30 3x7 frosted tempered glass sheets about 3/8 thick...and a southern exposure.

[nonny]

can only suggest you trial it ......my friend is well known for being 'inventive' in ways to save spending $'s that work.

[TopHat]

Mike I think you are friends with Slipspur, if you are ever up this way come by i'll show you how I do it. It will be easier to show you, I use brooder boxes and put them strait out on the yard with good success. I am north of you, I have also used the half barrels with good success on the yard. How many are you planning on putting in the half barrels?

[blades61]

Originally Posted by Mike Everett

Yeah , I had thought of that,...thanks for your input. Is it possible to get portable gas cylinders larger than the grill type, but not as big home tank?

mike they make a tank between those two i will ask my buddy where he gets his at tomorrow

[Mike Everett]

Originally Posted by TopHat

Mike I think you are friends with Slipspur, if you are ever up this way come by i'll show you how I do it. It will be easier to show you, I use brooder boxes and put them strait out on the yard with good success. I am north of you, I have also used the half barrels with good success on the yard. How many are you planning on putting in the half barrels?

You know I have used them on the yard with a hen on a cord....always feed outside the cords first...LOL I don't know # I'm looking for advice...

[viperblacks]

[QUOTE=Mike Everett;4201907]For a number of years I have been hen raising my fowl, this year I am going to try to get off some earlier, because of the climate swing here in Texas.
This is what I have come up with...tell me what you think,
I have a room in my barn 10x15x8, I'm having sprayed insulation foam. My ideal is to control the temperature in the room, not having a heat source on the brooders. The brooders I made are half plastic barrels cut longways, with a hardware wire bottom on a frame. The barrels will be on a rack, with a drop pan under them. I figure the body heat and maintaining a controlled temp in the room and can cycle lights on and off like nature and reduce them from starting peck so much, beside not overcrowding them. I have a 30x30 pen in the barn with outside access. I thought once they were feathered I would move the barrel brooders into it...[/QUOTE



i always hen hatch everything in my farm but with this weather it didn't go that good this year. let us know if it works i was planing on building something like that.

[Bad Apple]

Mike. I use a heated dog mat under the barrell. Some have thermostats and only come on if the body heat from the brood does not maintain the temp...good luck

[MONGOOSE]

Mike, I have a friend who's been breeding for 50 years. He breeds year round. He has inside pens with lights. His early hatches appear very healthy and solid (Nov.Dec.Jan), but I still think his Feb and March birds are better for some reason. They aren't as leady and muscular. I think it has to do with the fact that they don't run around the yard that early in the season. I don't think that breeding early affects his brood fowl so much, but it does seem to be a difference in his crosses. Just my observation. Good luck

[vic5.0]

Sounds like a good set up , I would like to see it when its done