Brooder

We started with chicks in Feb '13. Our first 5 chicks were kept in a big cardboard box half under a card table in DD's room. We had more cardboard woven on top to cover all but where the lamp hung over it. Unfortunately DD forgot to shut her door one time and our top proved to be not as cat proof as we thought it was. Rocky "played" with 2 chicks until they stopped squeaking. :( We replaced those 2 with 2 of the same type from the same place. We fortified that brooder by placing an old guinea pig cage inside the cardboard box and this worked well. We even put a piece of wood as a perch in there. It kept the cat from getting to them and protected them from drafts. Our next set of chicks we kept in a small cardboard box until the older ones went outside, then they took over the larger box. This worked well for them too. A few months later we got 18 polish chicks from a hatchery through the mail. We would need a much bigger brooder for that many chicks. So we took a large wire dog crate, put a piece of plastic on the bottom, and wrapped the outside in cardboard. The chicks were small enough to fit through the slots we left around the door to open which left us scrambling to cover those holes up. It was hard to get the chicks out because they could run to the far corners and you had to climb in there to get them. It was also really difficult to clean. The shavings got stuck between the wires and the cardboard and like getting the chicks it required climbing inside the crate to get to the corners.
So this time I wanted to try a different brooder. Since we will be setting around 30 eggs in our incubator, it needs to be big enough to hold that many chicks. I spent a lot of time on backyardchickens.com and pinterest looking at homemade brooders. As with everything else I wanted something frugal. I liked some of the brooders I saw made out of cabinets like this one...

but I couldn't find anything for less than $20 on craigslist and the one I saw that I really liked the person never got back to me (typical craigslist).
So, I went with the storage tub brooder. Walmart had 50 gallon tubs for less than $18. I already had some scrap chicken wire at home so I was set.

I cut the lid out using my handy jig saw.

Attached the chicken wire using bolts, nuts, and washers.

Completed. :)

I used some christmas money from my parents and treated myself to an EcoGlow brooder.

From what I have heard these are the best thing ever. I'll let you know how it goes.