Fermenting Feed for Large Flock

[TheBeardedNerd]

Any ideas or setups suggested for fermenting feed for a flock of 100+ birds?

Right now my flock is at around 20 and I'm using a 5 gallon bucket, I'm noticing that that will not be enough as I expand.

Would you be able to do it in say a trash can and then put it on tap so that it would fall into a trough?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Hi,
I guess i just don't get it, sigh. Why feed birds partially spoiled feed when one could feed them freshly sprouted oats instead? Both take the same amount of work. They only need 1 cubic inch of sprouts per adult bird per day.
Best,
Karen

Sprouts are good, if you don't have green forage.

Sprouts are in addition to a complete feed. Fermented feed is replacing one complete feed with another complete feed.

Fermented feed isn't spoiled, it is preserved, to put it simply.

Proteins become more bioavailable and the wetting eliminates waste of nutrients added in powder form.
Fermenting is also an easy way for me to add things like kelp to the feed because I can blend it in.

I ferment, sprout and feed dry.
I prefer barley for sprounting. but have done wheat, oats, buckwheat and sunflower seed.

 

[lazy gardener]

I got a good price on wheat this year. Just opened the bag last night, and the grains are beautiful. so... wheat it is! Looking forward to getting a nice deep compost going in the sunroom. Planning stage for finishing the compost bin area, and putting a green house tarp over it. When it heats up acceptably, I can simply do my sprouting in the compost for the girls. Win/win situation.

Thank you so much, Edible Acres. I've had sprouts in the compost before, but never to the deliberate extent that he is doing.

 

[MamaRudey]

That sounds like a stellar plan.

 

[fanniefarmer]

Are you saying on tap or on top? Your idea sounds very interesting! Do you have a picture or diagram of what you mean? Thank you.

 

[EnnisLakeFarm]

Following...
Now with all sorts of ideas churning in my head.

 

[TheBeardedNerd]

Are you saying on tap or on top? Your idea sounds very interesting! Do you have a picture or diagram of what you mean? Thank you.

Yes, I mean to have it on tap, as if to turn a knob and the feed would fall into a trough positioned under it.

I'm not able to ferment outside where I'm at, it gets too cold. So I can just ferment inside and use a bucket to get the feed from tap to trough.

But as for fermenting the feed I'm definitely going to take a big trashcan and attach a large tap to the bottom of it. If you mix the feed and distribute the water the feed should flow right out of the tap.

I'll update with pictures as I go about it! Just have to wait for payday now, haha.

 

[The Kibble Goddess]

I ferment my feed in a 5 gallon bucket. I give it a vigorous stir every day, but it still gets rather compacted towards the bottom of the bucket. I would think that with anything larger, the bottom would get quite packed together and not 'flow' out a tap.

 

[TheBeardedNerd]

The tap could be placed slightly lower than the middle, it wouldn't need to be all the way at the bottom because the container will always be full as I take feed and replenish feed daily.

That way with a good stir before you open the tap, it shoul flow fine. I also haven't been to Home Depot yet to check out how big the taps/valves could even be. It could be a non-issue for all I know.

The only way to find out is through some tride and true experimentation!

 

[mwash]

The Bearded Nerd,
How far do you think a five gallon bucket would take you? I'm facing the same challenge, as I also have over 100 birds but want fermented feed. I can't judge how much I need to do each day and that vexes me.
Thanks!