Inexpensive Brooder You Can Make

[PrettyBird]

Yes. They are normally in the baby section where the diapers and wipes are. When my kids were babies I never used the wipe warmer. I find it strange that walmart doesnt have it. Maybe it was just THAT store. Which is suprising sinc its a huge supercenter I tried kijiji, and some people who had them were way in the North end of the city, which is too far a drive for paying 10-20 bucks imo.

Doesnt matter anymore now since I got the reptile rock. im going to use it for my Parrotlet baby when I move him out of the nest. Not sure if the gouldians will toss babies when they hatch...Im glad I have something on hand though. Im going to plug it in today and test out the temp

[Chrismurdoch3]

That is a great idea for a brooder i will definately have to try that out i have two cut throats that will be hatching in about a week and i want to have a back up plan in case the foster parents don't raise them.

[MartinKC]

I purchased the Lionheart model and it would only go up to 98F with the lids tightly shut. (I checked with 2 thermometers).

I picked up the Munchkin model and it would only get up to 87F.

Did I just get two "bad ones?"

I was hoping to get at least 99F with the vent top open so I could use to incubate as well. Any ideas?

[Sally]

Both of my models (Lionheart and Munchkin) easily go over 100 degrees, so I have to get the temperature down with lining and propping the top open. It would be an incredible coincidence that you got two bad models. One thing I found when I took birds to my nephew's--he keeps his house quite cold, and so I had to adjust on the warmers to maintain them at 92 and 85 degrees, which is what I needed for the birds in them at the time.

I am finding that both of these warmers are difficult to maintain an exact temperature, seems like I am constantly adjusting. I did get the lamp dimmer that Gary uses, and it took a lot of adjusting till I got the temperature I wanted, and then it maintained it within 2 degrees, which is perfectly acceptable to me.

If you want to try to incubate, I would suggest using the Lionheart model, as the heat comes from the bottom, so you would get more heat right where you need it for the eggs, and it seems to get hotter than the Munchkin model.

[ac12]

I was checking it out today, and my Munchkin w/o the dimmer got up to over 101F. I forgot how difficult it was to set the temp just right. You barely move the dimmer and the temp changes a lot. I have an idea how to fix it. But that would require building a new dimmer from parts. Something to do when I'm bored.

In playing with the Munchkin which has the heater in the cover, I think you are right. When I open it up, the warm air leaves the unit and when I close it, it has to heat up the air inside the warmer, slowly getting back up to temp. So you have to work fast in a room w/o a breeze so you do not loose so much of that warm air in the warmer.

With the heater below, you get direct heat onto the chick or egg, like in a frying pan. So even if you open the warmer, when you close it you are still getting the direct heat onto the chick/egg, you don't have to wait to warm up the air inside the warmer. I had thought that warming the air was more even heat (and thus better) than direct heat from below. I guess each has pros and cons.

[ac12]

OK more testing and I found that I CANNOT tightly control the temperature on the Munchkin. It swings in a 6 degree range (+2 / -4). My suspicion is the AC voltage to the house is fluctuating, but w/o a meter on the line I can't tell. This is the problem with an open loop system, I set the dimmer but there is no feedback to the dimmer based on the temp inside the warmer. I see where a thermostat inside the warmer would be much better to control the heat.

Alternatively the aquarium method is still a good idea, as long as you don't have to take it anywhere. The mass of the water will help to stabilize the temp from temp swings.

[Rispa]

Using an aquarium temperature controller might me useful. They are a bit expensive, but are pretty durable. They would at least keep the babies from being cooked.

[wearjo]

Using an aquarium temperature controller might me useful. They are a bit expensive, but are pretty durable. They would at least keep the babies from being cooked.

or also one of those watt controllers... not sure what they're called...

[Sally]

After reading several posts about problems with temperature control on the baby wipes warmers, I think these work best as a temporary brooder, or for when babies have to be taken along to work, etc., as the wipes warmers are so portable.

When at home, I think I will go back to using the nested terrariums, with water heated by an aquarium heater in the bottom terrarium. These are much more reliable for temperature control, which is fairly critical when brooding babies. Too hot, and they dehydrate very quickly. Too cold, and they have trouble processing the food in their crops (plus they get chilled when they have no feathers to keep themselves warm).

[Tiffany]

Hi, I just read this thread and was wondering do you use the replacement pillows in the Prince Lionheart baby wipe warmer?

[finchmix22]

Tiffany,
What do you mean by the replacement pillows? I don't have any with my wipe warmer. I use folded baby washcloths on the bottom and put a small nest in the center for the hatchlings.
Sally,
Can you show a pic of the home terrarium brooder and explain how to set up one at home? I'm not sure how to do that style brooder, but I agree the baby wipe warmers are great for travel to work or elsewhere, but not for everyday, as the temperature is very difficult to control.

[Tiffany]

Prince Lionheart Ever Fresh Replacement Pillows are to keep wipes moist and keep them from turning brown from getting hot. I was just curious if you guys used them in your warmers or the warmer done fine without them. I don't know if the warmers come with them or if your suppose to buy them separately. I'm trying to stock up on somethings for next breeding season and want to do my research before buying a bunch of stuff. Thanks.

[Sally]

Tiffany My warmer just came with the baby wipes inside. You do have to line the warmer, I use either a small dishtowel with paper towels on top, or just layers of paper towels.

@finchmix22 Here is a link to the brooder I purchased. I'm thinking you could buy the separate pieces locally, it is just two medium critter carriers, an aquarium heater, and a thermometer. It works very well, but it is not nearly as portable as the baby wipes warmer.

https://www.birdsupplynh.com/catalog/pr ... 5fc0a4f89b

[Tiffany]

Thanks.

[Mae]

Wow.. I wish I read this before I put together the one I have now