Recent content by adacombe

  1. adacombe

    Vertical (gravity) vs. horizontal (spring loaded) watering nipples

    I don't have any pictures at the moment but I just have a 45 gallon plastic drum full of water with a bird bath heater for the winter. I have a small submersible utility pump that runs on a timer just to circulate the water through my pipes a couple minutes every hour. It pumps the water...
  2. adacombe

    Vertical (gravity) vs. horizontal (spring loaded) watering nipples

    I have a 30 gallon heated stock tank gravity feeding my system and my horizontal nipples don't leak a drop. My old setup with the same tank and vertical nipples wasted lots of water due to leaking and seemed to allow the chickens to waste more. Horizontal nipples all the way!
  3. adacombe

    Manitoba Members

    I'm just North of Winnipeg close to Stony Mountain. I've got a dozen almost 1yr old Black Sex-Links, and managed to get a consistent 9-12 eggs a day all winter. I also am looking to try other breeds out, maybe some buff orpingtons next. How has everyone's chickens held up this cold long winter...
  4. adacombe

    DIY Chicken Door Opener. Ideas?

    An 11 pin relay isn't necessary, they are just a common relay. You'll notice I didn't use terminals 5,6 and 7. I only used 8 pins on my relays, so just match up the normally closed contacts and the normally open contacts and it will work. If you are unsure, take a picture of your relay diagram...
  5. adacombe

    New Coop Ideas For A Northern Climate

    Makes sense, I wouldn't want any bigger flock than my 12 in my size of coop.
  6. adacombe

    New Coop Ideas For A Northern Climate

    Ventilation is key, but with -40 for months on end, the air is so dry here it soaks up any moisture that birds give off. I can keep the coop buttoned up tight except for the small pop door, and never have a moisture problem in the winter.
  7. adacombe

    New Coop Ideas For A Northern Climate

    I hear ya, I built an insulated coop, and I'm glad I did, we've had a rough, cold winter here as I am a fellow Manitoban. My well insulated coop keeps the hens warm and the water stays unfrozen. I often work out of town for two weeks at a time, so with a large feeder, and watering system using...
  8. adacombe

    DIY Chicken Door Opener. Ideas?

    If you are using a drill motor you will need 2 normally closed limit switch placed in the circuit here: One switch will stop the door from opening too far and the other will stop the door from closing too far.
  9. adacombe

    DIY Chicken Door Opener. Ideas?

    Sorry it didn't load on the last post
  10. adacombe

    DIY Chicken Door Opener. Ideas?

    This is a standard relay pin out diagram. 2 and 10 is your coil. (when your coil becomes energized with its rated voltage the 3 switches change position) If your relay is 12v, run a constant 12v + to terminal 1 and the - to terminal 11. Run a timer contolled 12v + to terminal 2 and - to...
  11. adacombe

    Deep litter coop in the snow belt.

    Just an option or 2, are you set on a soil floor? If you built a wood floor up on concrete pads, you could insulate it and still use the deep litter method, just another option that might be more secure with shifting. My coop floor is wood, but my run is soil. When I attached the wire fencing...
  12. adacombe

    Vertical (gravity) vs. horizontal (spring loaded) watering nipples

    You could always wrap a heat tape around your pipe or around the base of your bucket, they use very little electricity and if your temps don't stay consistently below zero you'll be fine.
  13. adacombe

    Vertical (gravity) vs. horizontal (spring loaded) watering nipples

    The horizontal nipples are far superior for resistance to freezing, I switched from the gravity ones because they were freezing even with 2 heat tapes on my pvc pipe system. I haven't had an issue with the horizontal one's freezing at all with the use of a heat tape, and I am in Winnipeg...
  14. adacombe

    post your chicken coop pictures here!

    This design works well in hot summers and extremely cold winters.
  15. adacombe

    My automatic Chicken Door

    I finally got around to joining BYC, although I've been using its resources for almost a year! haha. This is my version of an automatic chicken door. Just thought I'd share. It works flawlessly, and its never locked a chicken out in the cold. As long as the light inside the coop stays on after...
See more
Back
Top Bottom