Bleach in chicken water

[coffeenutdesign]

Quote:
That's interesting..and good to know.

 

[Shelz]

How much APV do you all use in the drinking water?

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

I have never used bleach or soap on any waterer, if it gets a little slimy I grab a handful of grass and scrub it out, then rinse it. I use rain water. I ferment feed with acv and use metal water cans so can't put acv in there. My chickens love to scratch and eat bugs in manure and drink out of mud puddles so I don't think a little dirt and algae will hurt them any. If i put chemicals in their water, they prob wouldn't drink it.

 

[KristinLLB]

How can you tell that it has inoculated the regular ACV?

 

[mickey328]

I plan on using about a teaspoon each morning when we clean the dish and give them fresh water. The dish probably holds about half a gallon.

As for the inoculation, I'm not sure I haven't yet tried it) I shouldn't think it would take long, though...a day or two at room temp should do the trick. What I plan to do is...as I use the "good" stuff, I'll top off the bottle with the less expensive stuff. I'll pour maybe half a cup into another bottle to use on a daily basis and then top off the original bottle. By the time the half cup is gone, I'll repeat the procedure. That should give it a good week to "soak"

I'm hoping it works as well as making yogurt does...I made a quart yesterday and I left it to incubate for about 7 hours and it was great! Now that I've got that started I won't be buying yogurt for either us or the girls again.

 

[donrae]

When I tried to keep the waterer clean they scorned it and drank from the ducks' pool, the puddles, the horse trough, etc. I no longer worry about it and figure they like the algae. I hose the mud out of the bottom every week or so when I refill (darn ducks) and let the water overflow to make puddles and a little creek through the run. All the birds flock to that, none gather to drink the nice crystal water I just filled. Go figure.

 

[Cindy in PA]

That's why I don't live in a city. I know why it is done, but yuck on the bleach for the chickens.

 

[Rebel Soldier]

I have been using the bleach method on my Game Cocks for 40 years with no problems. I, too, were told this trick by a old timer. The vinegar method I am going to have to try. Believe it or not, I guess a old dog can learn new tricks!

 

[NYREDS]

For many years we had a flock of Tunis Sheep. When it rained heavily a stream of dark brown "water" ran through the sheep'e barnyard. Any chickens that were running loose at the time seemed to prefer that brown "water" to what I provided for them. Thet remained perfectly healthy: no bleach, no vinegar. I don't see how a tablespoon of vinegar could hurt anything but I also have trouble seeing how it could be of much benefit. If you do the math I think you'll find that a tablespoon of vinegar in a gallon of water doesn't change the ph much.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

I have only one of those plastic water things, mostly for the chicks, it says it holds a gallon, well you know the kind that you have to flip over and dump it all on the ground because they don't twist so easily. So now it's just metal five gallons so just water,no additives, no complaints.