Vacation waterer

[Florida_girl]

I am starting to brainstorm ideas for what to do when we go on vacation. Is it possible to make a waterer out of a 5 gallon bucket? any ideas?

 

[gritsar]

It's possible to buy 5 gallon waterers. I'm using a 3 gallon one now and plan to switch to the 5 gallon ones once they are in their coop. How are you planning to convert the bucket? Put a lid on it and make an opening in the lower part of the side? You definitely need to cover the open top.

 

[panner123]

You can use a timer, like on a sprinkler system. Run a hose from the house to your waterers. Depending on the temperture, mine go off three times per day. I have mine timed so they overfill. I also have rain bird sprinklers around the chicken yards, this helps keep them cool. Sounds like a lot, but compaired to some other things I have done, this is nothing.

 

[lovemychicks9]

Yes it is definately posible as I have one. You can buy a 5 gallon top that has a small spout on one side and you fill the bucket up snap on this lid/trough and invert the bucket. It looks just like the base on the plastic feeders and works just the same but fits any 5 gallon bucket. A lot of the mail order places sell them such as Randall Burkey supply co. in Texas or Fleming Outdoors maybe. I got mine at my feed store for 14.00 but I did see it on line at a couple places for 11.00 or 12.00. They work great and they are red in color just like the waterers that you buy.

 

[ChickenCop]

Depending on how many birds your watering 5 gallons wont get too far....I go through about 10 gallons of water a day right now with 40 chickens. Just want you to have enough to hold them off.
Great idea about the timer on the hose...I saw in a catalog on a watering trough for 25 bucks that hooks straight to your hose and auto fills when it goes down.

 

[dada_jeep]

i hooked up an automatic dog bowl to my automatic sprinklers, 6 times a week it gets refilled, in fact i just went out and dumped it and cleaned it so that at 5am my girls will have completely fresh water.

 

[Davaroo]

You may want to look into a bell waterer. It has a valve that allows water to refill it when the birds drink down whats in the trough. It is attached to a pressure restrictor on your normal water hose, or from an overhead water tank..

There is also an auto-waterer design here on BYC that uses a five gallon bucket, a standard toilet float valve and a simple pressure hook up. Like the bell waterer, and all auto watering units, it too is self filling as the birds drink. Heres the link:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=4655-Auto_Waterer

 

[Eggseronious]

Quote:
Don't U have anyone that could care for the flock while on vacation?

 

[blurose]

I use a big water barrel fitted with a dog-water nozzel. I'll try to post a pic. My chickens didn't take very long at all to figure out how to nudge the nozzel and get the water out. Chickens are pretty smart. This means the water is always fresh and clean. It also keeps them amused.

 

[chickenman44]

what about this one? i don't have one but i know two people with them and they love em.

http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/product/poultry_cup_waterer.html