I bought The EcoGlow chick brooder from Brinsea. It is designed to accommodate fifty chicks. The EcoGlow is used in place of a heat lamp and utilizes radiant heat to keep the chicks warm. The underside of the unit gets warm and the chicks huddle under it. I live in fear of traditional heat lamps for providing heat for animals. I have heard horror stories of fires caused by heat lamps. Because this unit uses only 60 watts of power it is much more economical than a heat lamp making it even more attractive. Today was my first opportunity to use the EcoGlow but not for fifty chicks, just two little twelve day old cochin crosses. I moved them from the small brooder in my office to the large brooder in the garage and decided to give the EcoGlow a try. I let it warm up before moving them and then put them under it. I have one end near the floor of the brooder and the other full height. They will move toward or away from the heat as they feel the need. I noticed they weren’t venturing out from under it to eat and drink so I moved the waterer and feeder closer to the edge of the EcoGlow. The readily ate and drank after that. This is a big brooder for two tiny chicks so I imagine they are quite confused about what is going on. In a couple of days they should be running all over the place. Here is my big brooder with the EcoGlow and two tiny chicks. My brooder was a great Craigslist find. It is a reptile cage already wired for fluorescent light and a heat lamp. I added vent holes and covered them with wire and a short roost and I was good to go. The brooder has sliding glass doors and I made a wire door that I swap out for one of the glass doors in hot weather.
The EcoGlow has four legs that can be raised or lowered as needed.
My little cross bred cochins, one a frizzle look quite at home as the first occupants of the EcoGlow. If you brood chicks this might be a good purchase for you. They are on sale at www.brinsea.com right now. By the way, I am not a paid spokesperson for Brinsea, in fact I am quite mad at them regarding an incubator I purchased. But I still believe this brooder will save lives and money so I have one and plan to buy another soon.