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Supremo Waterer

sphsea
By: sphsea
Posted 08/22/10 • Last updated 08/22/10 • 31455 views • 13 comments

http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/66007_img_0974.jpg

Supremo Waterer

 

Materials:

3 push in Farm Tek 360 poultry watering nipples

1 eight foot 3/4 inch schedule 40 pvc pipe (cut to seven inch, twenty four inch and twenty six inch lengths).

2  3/4 inch pvc elbow connectors.

1  3/4 pvc end cap.

1 five foot pole (2 feet buried, 3 feet above ground)

1 five gallon plastic bucket.


Tools

Drill.

1 inch bit.

11/16 inch bit.


I made a very simple watering system that makes the urban chicken farmer's life a lot simpler. You'll need three watering nipples from Farm Tek. http://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/prod1;ft1_poultry_equipment-ft1_poultry_watering_systems-ft1_hoses_nipples;pgwc1045.html (about $2.00 a piece). Get a five gallon bucket, 8 to 10 feet of 3/4 inch pvc pipe, two elbows,  a cap and a coupler, and away you go. Set a post outside the coop. I  used cedar pole salvaged from a downed tree, but any post will do. Cut three pieces of pipe as shown. Drill a 1 inch hole in the bucket. You'll need a watertight fitting to connect the pipe to the bucket. Anyone at a full service hardware store can hook you up with what you need for this. Drill 11/16 inch holes in the length of pipe that will extend into the coop and insert the nipples into the holes. Assemble the pieces and fill with water. Cost - maybe 10 to 15 bucks excluding shipping of the nipples. It works great. The chickens adjust to drinking from the nipples in less than a day. The water is always clean and lasts weeks.

Comments (13)

robisonfamily7 2/17/12 at 4:25pm
Very nice, the exact thing that I had imagined.
dmclalin 2/20/12 at 8:41am
Great pics, description and instructions. I should be able to make my own now!!
strutncrow 2/26/12 at 7:46pm
i did about the same thing.i bought two nipples from farmtek for $2.40 ea the screw in.i was thinkin maybe the rubber bushin would eventually dry rot. i also put a stop & waste valve on mine to drain in case its gonna freeze. one more thing i did was use cpvc cause rust and bacteria wont set up in the lines and make your birds sick.its same as pvc but for potable water and same price
FunkyFowl 2/28/12 at 6:36pm
id love to make something like this i just worry that the birds are to young to know how to get the water. i gonna try and make it anyway:)
Stephen518 3/4/12 at 11:13pm
I made mine very must the same way, added an incoming water supply with a camode tank float to regulate water flow. Works great, never have to touch it really. I check the water level when I collect the eggs and check the water quality once a week. I have gone months without having to actually do anything to the system. No dirt gets in so the water remains in great condition. I empty it every other month just because it seems like it should be time to do something to it. I probably do not need to do that though. The water is always in great condition.
marilena 3/18/12 at 5:09pm
HOW YOU CLEAN THE BUCKET?
Aysam 4/13/12 at 10:38am
Thank you! Does anyone have thoughts about when to transition chickens to drinking this way? Or just start them as chicks with the nipples?
marilena 4/13/12 at 12:12pm
if you empty the water the pipe dont get open?
snowk 5/30/12 at 12:16pm
A very tiny bit of regular bleach should keep your system clean and not hurt your chickens at all. I would not begin to know how much to use but on the order of a teaspoon or less for five gallons? I have bought the stuff to make my own automatic waterer, and I was looking around today to see if anyone knew a safe ratio to use to keep down algae and bacteria growth?
breakout 6/3/12 at 10:00am
I think you mean 11/32" for the hole size. Putting the nipples into a portable drill helps get the threads started biting. Search the blog for Appple cider vinegar (ACV) as a healthier way to keep the water clean
breakout 6/3/12 at 10:14am
To get the chickens to use them: take away their normal water long enough for them to be thirsty. Throw enough scratch or whatever to get them over by the nipples or call them if that will do it. Sit and tap the nipples so the water drips out. Usually they seem to be curious enough to investigate that sooner or later one will take a peck at it and then realize "OH MY GOD THERE'S WATER IN THAT THING!!!" Then the others see the first one drinking and it's the usual "'WHAT DID YOU FIND --I WANT IT!!!" At least that was my experience. I did see a couple people say they put a little peanut butter on the tip of the nipple to get them interested. Good luck!
msf 6/21/12 at 11:57am
I want to add my watering systyem to this section can someone tell me how? The instructions for this site are not at all clear as to how to go about it. Thanks
Michael
old tom 9/27/12 at 7:23pm
The 360 nipples from Farm Tek have a 1/8" NPT thread. A cheap tap and die set usually has a 1/8" pipe tap. I did machine work for a
long time, so the "R" tap drill and tap were in my old box. Also, a rubber O-ring provides a more dependable seal, as you are depending
on the thread to do the sealing. If you're using 2 liter soda bottles, there ain't much sealing surface. The girls took to the nipples right
away, and to really test them, my buddy's 2 1/2 year old birds figured it out in one morning. That's my two cents, anyway.
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