High Disappointing! Do Not Buy!
So this ended up being a huge letdown. I've been raising chicks each year for a few years now and decided it was time to try a more "professional" brooder setup. Right out of the box, I should have returned it. Following the assembly video on YouTube, I broke three separate pieces, minor corner cracks, but I should have taken this as a warning. I test the light/ heater seems to work fine. Get my chicks in and put them into this brooder. The first issue, the manure load, was so quick to build upon the mats I was washing them three times a day, with the morning being a disaster.
Each morning the chicks would be wet due to the amount of manure build-up. I ended up losing six chicks in less than a week after having only lost two in the last three years prior. Then I couldn't help but notice the chicks were always huddling together as if they were cold. That's because, at chick level, the temp was under 86 despite the heater being turned up to its max setting. I tried adding a heat lamp near the one door, and they all were cramming the door for heat. Clearly, the heating unit does not work. After finding three dead chicks in a day, I scrambled and set them up in a tub with heat lambs and wood shavings. We haven't lost any since, and they all seem happy and healthy. When checking the return policy, No returns of used products. I am just stuck with a costly, flawed product that I am not happy with the least. I Highly don't recommend it.