Farm Innovators "All-Seasons" Heated Plastic Poultry Fountain - 3 Gal. Model HPF-100, 100-Watt

It prevents ice like it's supposed to. It's a little hard to fill. I've never used the plug at the bottom, I've just screwed off the base and filled it that way. Sometimes when I screw it back on and pick it up, the base falls off and water is everywhere. I only have 5 chickens so it holds enough water to last them a week. Overall I'm pretty happy with the product.

We bought this heated chicken waterer today because our chickens' water keeps freezing in the 28 degree, snowy weather and we wanted our chickens to have access to proper water, not frozen chunks.

We didn't even have the chance to see how well this piece of junk heated the water.

The first time after filling it, we were unable to even flip it bottom down. The bottom immediately fell off, dousing my mother's legs with water in this freezing weather. The bottom had flown off and water was everywhere-and remember, it's literally freezing outside. Our driveway is going to be coated with ice now, thanks a lot "Farm Innovators."
But you know, we decided maybe it's just a fluke, we'll try again!

Well, mom fills it again (mind you, it takes a while to fill it because this junky creation is a ridiculous size) and tries to give it another chance. She takes it outside, and manages to flip it over for a second time, and the bottom stays!- for a brief moment at best. As soon as she starts taking it down to the chickens, the bottom yet again becomes loose and falls off, again, dousing her already soaked legs and feet with water in this cold, winter weather.

Really, "Farm Innovators"- we appreciate the bath. REALLY. (Please note the sarcasm.)

So we say screw it. My mom sets it down and a family friend puts the bottom on, moves it just slightly, and the bottom falls off- without even the added extra weight of water- if that tells you how badly this is made. And the family friend is astonished by the fact the bottom only hooks on a half inch!

Poor design. This horrible item isn't worth TEN dollars, nevermind forty-five or however much it was listed as. Not worth it in the least. Skip this, find something better and proper, even if it's slightly more expensive. ANYTHING is better than this thing.

Today one hen got clobbered with the base and all the hens at my feet got soaked when the base fell off while I was carrying it into the run. The base does not lock tightly and will often come undone as you turn the waterer over - because you have to fill it upside down. It is not worth the frustration of getting soaked, or creating mud pits every time the thing comes apart.
Since I could not afford to buy another water heater, and I couldn`t find a way to attach any kind of latch to lock the base into place. So out comes the crazy glue ... I use crazy glue, like men use duct tape! I crazy glued a giant rubber band around the edge of the part that holds the water and it makes it snug enough to hold the base into place, but with a little bit of force you can still undo it and fill or clean it.

IT DOES WHAT IT IS INTENDED TO BUT I SPILL WATER EVERY TIME

Returned, what a piece of poo. We bought 3 and we returned all 3. If it locked and stoped soaking my feet i would have kept them

What a piece of garbage. The old base heater died so I picked up one of these to try out. I will be returning it.

The top doesn't stay on well, resulting in easy spillage of 3 gallons of water. You have to carry it holding the 2 pieces together sloshing water all over yourself. It's a flimsy piece of junk. Difficult to fill, when full and in place, water level is so high that it siphons itself dry unless it is ABSOLUTELY level. The cord is too short so the connection point is placed right at the level where the birds roost so they easily knock it off of level and cause it to drain.

Obviously whoever designed this has never owned a real flock of chickens. I suppose it would work if you just had a couple of pet birds on a concrete floor with a GFIC plug and a water spigot right there in the wall. A third grader could have designed better.

I make my husband deal with this contraption. I'll be that pregnant lady punting this thing across the yard. Wave if you see me.

I bought this for use in my covered run during winter. The design is difficult to use. I fill it at the tap, carry it upside down uphill through the snow to the coop with water sloshing everywhere. Then I attatch the base and hope I got it on there right so it does not pop off when I flip it over to set on a cinderblock. After a couple of months, the white part cracked. I now set a dog bowl on top of the heated base and that is sufficient to keep the ice away on most days. When temperatures are in the single digits, I will sometimes float a microwavable heat disc in the bowl, but most days I find this is not necessary.

I appreciate having this waterer. I did not find an alternative where I live. At first I had a very hard time filling. The small hole with a plug is so slow to fill and sometimes I didn't get it back in tight enough and lost the water. I started taking the whole base off and filling and so many time I lost all the water when I flipped it over. Now I just take my time and fill it with a garden hose. I am just glad to have water for the chickens, no matter how cold.

For summer I have a metal fount. For Christmas I asked for a heated base for my fount, and DH came home with this. I didn't complain, and we gave it a try. By mid-January we gave it up in favor of breaking ice every morning. It's hard to refill without getting soaked, and it's made of some pretty seriously cheap materials. I think I'll get a font base this winter.

The week before we were expecting it to be 15 to 20 below zero, I decided to purchase this from Agway. I was having to go out several times a day in 15-32 (above 0) degree weather to chop ice so the chickens could get some water, and I felt they weren't drinking enough. My suspicions were confirmed when the coldest day of the year (20 below zero), I got 9 eggs, and I only have 9 hens. By that time I had the waterer a couple days and I was having to refill it every other day so I knew they were drinking a lot more, and in addition laying more eggs! I am SO GLAD I purchased this!!

I have the water-er set up inside of my coop for winter use. It has keept water in the liquid state all winter even when the outside temp was 15 below zero Ferinheight, there was just a little ice on the edge.

I fill it half full and it lasts my 4 chickens a week or more, At that point it needs to be cleaned anyway. I have it setting on a concrete block so it is elevated above the wood shavings getting scratched around.

I have had no issues with spilling or seperations like some folks. I carry it red side up and it is not hanging by the loop.

I have 3 of these. They are all placed on cinder blocks against a wall. Have never had any trouble with any of them leaking or with chickens dirtying them. I remove the entire bottom to fill then attach the bottom and flip it. I even have one in a covered outdoor run with just a bale of straw to block the west wind and it stayed thawed at near 0*F. Barring any electrical malfunction I anticipate these lasting a good long time.

i bought this in a pinch (unexpected weather) and before reading any reviews... i didn't see too many alternatives. i haven't had any luck with hanging feeders or waterers, in general they seem to be messy for me, so i cannot complain about that... but, when it arrived i was baffled by it's design.
however it did not take long to get used to filling it (even if my hose is not frozen, i use a jug to fill it) and flipping it (you have to be mindful of where you place it when filling, otherwise you immediately end up with dirt or snow in the dish!), while i wouldn't fill it in the coop and it is rather heavy when full, it is fine for the price and most importantly it is effective!

me & the girls give it a 3star experience

There is nothing to keep the base attached to the top. After filling with water, you have to hold the two pieces together as you flip it. Since the top is a bit flimsy it will sometimes come apart while flipping - even when completely focused on the task. Ahhhhhhhggg - not again - 3 gallons of water on the previously dry coop floor in sub-zero temperatures.

The handle on top is a flimsy plastic - certainly not meant to hold 3 gallons of water.

I could see some of the design deficiencies when I bought it but it was the only heated water option available locally at the time. Still - I did not expect it to fall apart so easily.

Complete lack of creativity in a poorly designed product from Farm Innovators.

We bought this at a local farm store mostly because it was the cheapest option. We had gone through a lot of normal waters because the ice would crack them and were sick of it. Our other option was to buy a galvanized one and a heating plate, but that would have been over $100, too much IMO. So we played about $30 for this one. I love that the bottom part is flexible, so if the power goes out or it is not plugged in, ice won't break it as easily as others. The top however is very thin and somewhat flimsy. Filling it is awkward too. There is a plug on the base, so you can fill it, then turn the top slightly so the hole is covered, plug it up, tip it over and carry it in. Well, the first few times I did it this way the base just fell off. So it's really easier to carry it upside down. My other problem is that the cord is strong, but a little too short. We had to use an extension cord to connect it to the outlet four feet away. It also seemed to leak a bit, because there was always a puddle of water around it. I do like that it can regulate the temp of the water so my chickens still get a drink that is not too hot and not too cold. And that it was fairly inexpensive compared to others of the same quality. I wouldn't use it in summer at risk of damaging the cord, so I have it in a plastic tub in the barn now, and will get it out this winter. It is a nice thing to have, and did hold up well, despite my initial thoughts. And it is very much worth it instead of breaking ice by hand every few hours, and running the risk that your chickens are dehydrated.

I would recommend it to most people, unless they were:

• Unable to carry it
• Far from electricity
• Or in EXTREMELY cold areas, since only the base heats and the top might crack

Bought this new. Filled it up in the house. Carried it from the base upside down. the tank detached and broke on the second use. The base is great and solid, the top tank is cheep plastic and does not stay attached well to the base. This product is a great concept with cut corners in the design and tank quality. The product never made it to winter.

I purchased this because MPC said it was very good from all the ones they tried. Well, I don't know if it will heat water as stated because it's summer. But I can tell you that you have to carry it upside down until you get to the coop, then quickly flip it over outside the coop, then very carefully, very slowly place it in the coop. The problem is the tray fills completely to the top and spills over with any tiny movement. I hate it. When winter comes I'm buying a galvanized water-er and putting a heating cookie tin under it. I found DIY instructions on "The ChickenChick" blog I read.

I just purchased this at our local feed store. I picked this waterer because of the heat source to keep the water from freezing. I find is very poor design having to flip it over to fill it and then to turn it over again. When you turn it right side up water is running out of it and then somettimes the top comes apart from the bottom flooding the pen.... Disgusted going to town to find a better waterer. SIGH!!!

We purchased this last fall to use in our smaller coop. It worked well for us. I found it a little cumbersome to handle when full (3 gallons is about 24lbs. - I think.) and it is hard to balance on it's top to fill from the bottom. As long as it holds up to wear and tear, I am happy with this product.