Thinking about what a brooder is and how to make such a device at home? This question is most often asked by novice breeders, as most professional poultry farmers have such equipment at their disposal. If you just recently started to be interested in agriculture, then the information from our article will be very relevant for you.
Description of the device and its main functions
So what is a brooder? As a rule, this device is a large box or a special box in which are recently hatched chicks. The name of the design comes from the English word brood - "carry". It follows the logical conclusion that the brooder replaces the mother with chickens. For this, it has everything necessary for normal life:
- a drinker with water (sometimes antibiotics are added to it);
- infrared lamp to maintain temperature;
- a feeding bowl into which the feed is poured.
Also in the brooder there is a special ventilation system that allows you to achieve optimal air humidity, as well as a litter designed for comfortable movement of chickens inside the structure. Some modern brooders are equipped with special sensors or even programs to maintain an optimal microclimate, however, in a normal household, such a device is considered a real luxury.
What should be a quality brooder?
Have you decided to make a broiler for chickens? Photos from this section will help you realize your plan. However, a simple picture will not be enough to make a quality product. For this purpose, it is recommended to familiarize yourself with the basic design features of the device, which include the following elements:
- sex - should be as dry and warm as possible so that the chickens do not get sick;
- waste pan - allows you to clean the brooder much faster;
- ventilation system - must not let cold drafts in;
- heating element - usually this role is played by an infrared lamp.
As for the dimensions of the DIY broiler for the chicken, each farmer chooses these indicators himself, based on individual preferences. The average size of the device is usually 1.5 to 1.5 meters, however, for an industrial scale, you can make a large design. The most important thing is that it functions properly.
How to choose a good brooder in the store?
Now you know what a brooder is. However, to acquire a quality product, knowledge of one term will not be enough. To do this, you will have to pay attention to some nuances that have a huge impact on the characteristics of the brooder. For example, you need to choose a design with a quality floor. To do this, do not hesitate to touch it with your hands. If the coating is made of slippery material (varnished plywood sheet), then it is best to refuse to purchase such equipment.
Also, it is mandatory to check the operability of the heating and electronic systems. Ask the seller to turn on the infrared lamp and raise a palm to it. If you feel how the air inside is rapidly heating up, then you will not have to doubt the serviceability of the lamp. As for ventilation, it can only be inspected visually. The highlight is that the hole should not be too large. Otherwise, cold drafts can not be avoided.
Is it difficult to make a brooder with your own hands?
Many beginning farmers are interested in a similar question, since no one wants to give 6-10 thousand rubles for a device whose cost price is about 3 times less than this price. However, one cannot fail to note the fact that some modern designs are equipped with complex systems that even a professional inventor is unlikely to realize at home. Although such a brooder is useful only for large farms.
Making a construction with your own hands will not be very difficult even for someone who knows nothing about breeding birds. All necessary materials are publicly available, and the most expensive device in the equipment is an infrared lamp, which can be purchased at any agricultural store. In addition, making a brooder yourself, you will not only save a pretty good amount of money, but also enjoy the creative process.
Necessary materials for construction
Have you decided to make a chicken brooder with your own hands? Photos from the following sections will help you build a high-quality design, and step-by-step instructions will not allow you to make even the slightest mistake. However, first of all, it is necessary to acquire all the necessary materials for construction, a list of which should look like this:
- metal grid;
- wooden plank;
- door canopies;
- plywood sheet.
It is best to purchase everything you need at a construction base, especially if you decide to make several brooders at once. Prices there are much lower than in ordinary construction stores, and a wide range will allow you to find exactly what you need. In addition, when buying a large number of materials, customers receive a substantial discount.
List of required tools
Of course, in order to build a good do-it-yourself brooder (the dimensions were mentioned in the previous sections), you need to use high-quality tools. Here is just a small list of what may come in handy for processing material:
- electric or manual jigsaw - a tool for processing wood;
- a screwdriver and self-tapping screws - ideal for fastening parts;
- sandpaper - suitable for processing plywood sheets.
This list of tools can be significantly expanded depending on the materials that you decide to use in the manufacturing process. It is strongly not recommended to use alternative options for lack of tools (instead of a screwdriver - a hammer), otherwise the quality of the brooder will suffer.
We make drawings for work
In order for a wooden product to turn out to be of the highest quality, it must be made according to pre-drawn drawings. Many beginning inventors neglect this part of the work, as a result of which they later regret very much when the details simply do not fit together. Therefore, go to the creation of drawings with great responsibility, because even a small mistake can lead to the fact that you have to redo all the work from scratch.
A competent drawing should take into account the dimensions of the future design, as well as methods of fastening parts. If you plan to make a wooden brooder, then it is best to use screws to connect, since nails do not give sufficient structural strength. In addition, the drawings must take into account special fasteners that will allow you to lift the device cover up, as well as the ventilation system.
We make a frame
The manufacturing process begins with the assembly of the frame. For this, it is necessary, first of all, to prepare the parts according to pre-drawn drawings. The tree is sawn into the necessary parts using an electric jigsaw or a circular saw. You can also use a conventional hacksaw, but this trick will not work with the preparation of plywood sheets - keep this in mind. As soon as the wooden parts are cut off, be sure to process them with sandpaper to get rid of the burr.
Even an inexperienced inventor can assemble a brooder frame. It is best to use a screwdriver or drill with a special nozzle for self-tapping screws for this purpose. As for the dimensions of the screws themselves, it is worth giving preference to fasteners, the length of which is 50 millimeters. It is recommended that four self-tapping screws be allocated to each corner, since on two parts the design will be kept very uncertainly.
Plywood mount
Once the frame is ready, you can start cutting the plywood sheet with a jigsaw. If you want the cut to be as even as possible, ask the household for help or fasten the sheet so that it does not fidget during operation. We process the edges of the resulting parts with sandpaper and nail the plywood with small cloves to the finished frame. All that remains is to make a cover for the brooder and fix the net to the floor.
We hope you now better understand what a brooder is. Each novice breeder should have a similar device in his household. The design of the brooder does not differ in something complicated, so the equipment can be easily manufactured at home. Most importantly, do not save money on an infrared lamp, since an insufficiently powerful unit will not be able to heat a large area.