A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[duluthralphie]

I am thinking the composting would end around mid December here....

 

[R2elk]

I am thinking the composting would end around mid December here....

Because the manure is in the ground it doesn't freeze as long as it continues to compost and release heat. I have used this method out in the open during -30°F temperatures. At that time I had fresh horse droppings to use and never got more than 1/2" of ice on the top of the bucket. Removing the ice in the morning would keep the water open for the rest of the day. The water in the bucket that was below the ground level never froze.

For people that live in the warmer zones such as @memphis , she might even be able to get by with just putting the bucket in a hole without any manure and having the ground insulate it. I often don't get around to replacing the manure until mid winter and have found the ground insulation value to prevent freezing down to 0°F. Once it gets below that I have to replace the manure since the ground insulation effect isn't enough by itself once the composting effect is over.

If you have a manure pile like we had when I was growing up, you could go out on your coldest day and dig into the manure pile and find plenty of heat in there even if the outside of the pile is frozen.

 

[holm25]

No matter what I do it seems like my birds hate it. They just go out and eat snow even if they have water in the coop... They're brats...

 

[R2elk]

No matter what I do it seems like my birds hate it. They just go out and eat snow even if they have water in the coop... They're brats...

When I track snow into the coop the hens are instantly going after the snow.

 

[holm25]

When I track snow into the coop the hens are instantly going after the snow.

Yep mine do too. If I put a tub of snow in the coop and a tub of water the snow will be gone while the water won't be touched. Although I did notice that geese don't eat snow... Not sure why...

 

[rjohns39]

Because the manure is in the ground it doesn't freeze as long as it continues to compost and release heat. I have used this method out in the open during -30°F temperatures. At that time I had fresh horse droppings to use and never got more than 1/2" of ice on the top of the bucket. Removing the ice in the morning would keep the water open for the rest of the day. The water in the bucket that was below the ground level never froze.

For people that live in the warmer zones such as @memphis , she might even be able to get by with just putting the bucket in a hole without any manure and having the ground insulate it. I often don't get around to replacing the manure until mid winter and have found the ground insulation value to prevent freezing down to 0°F. Once it gets below that I have to replace the manure since the ground insulation effect isn't enough by itself once the composting effect is over.

If you have a manure pile like we had when I was growing up, you could go out on your coldest day and dig into the manure pile and find plenty of heat in there even if the outside of the pile is frozen.

I over winter in a greenhouse. I've only had a thin layer of ice... but I think I'll try this this year.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

I may try that method for the turkeys this year. Their heated bowl stopped working around the end of last winter. Will it work just outside or should it be under a roof?

 

[R2elk]

I may try that method for the turkeys this year. Their heated bowl stopped working around the end of last winter. Will it work just outside or should it be under a roof?

Doesn't matter. I have done it in the open and I currently do one in my main coop and another in the guinea coop. The main thing is to start with a big hole and just keep filling it with fresh manure with the bucket in the middle of it..

 

[Molpet]

soooooo how do you keep it from filling with bedding/litter? the bowls get full from their scratching.

 

[R2elk]

soooooo how do you keep it from filling with bedding/litter? the bowls get full from their scratching.

That is why the top of the bucket is set as much as 4" above the ground level. Of course I don't have the bedding problem since the floor is sand and I do not add any additional bedding. If a person was to build a custom lid that only allowed access to an area the width of the open area of a normal waterer, it would serve three purposes.

1 - Help prevent smaller poultry from falling in.
2 - Help keep bedding, scratchings, etc. from falling in.
3 - Help retain heat loss thus doing a better job preventing freezing.

I do remove the bucket from the hole from time to time and rinse it out before refilling with fresh water. Of course I installed a frost free hydrant in the coop before I built the coop so I have ready access to water.