Brooder water problem

[cloey011]

i change the water in the brooder at least 4 times a day, it's always full of pine shavings and....poop!
The water also gets warm due to the heat lamp, is this a breeding ground for germs and diseases, is there a better way to keep the water somewhat clean, I'm not around all day to keep changing the water every hour, I just want to keep my six chicks healthy!

 

[gregg3]

How old are they?

Your best bet to keep it clean is to place a small board or other material beneath the waterer to elevate it some to make it harder to kick shavings into, but you have to keep it low enough the chicks can still get to it (so for very young chicks under a week old I tend to just place it on the floor of the brooder). As for the temperature, try moving it out from under the heat lamp - the chicks should be encouraged to move around the brooder so I keep both their food and water on the opposite side from the heat.

 

[Pork Pie]

Another option is to use nipple feeders. I use them from day 1 and theres not an issue with water getting dirty. I simply use a plastic soda bottle and screw the nipple into the top, then suspend it. After a couple of taps at the nipple with your finger, the chicks will get the idea.

All the best
CT

 

[cloey011]

...

Another option is to use nipple feeders. I use them from day 1 and theres not an issue with water getting dirty. I simply use a plastic soda bottle and screw the nipple into the top, then suspend it. After a couple of taps at the nipple with your finger, the chicks will get the idea. 

All the best
CT
[/quote
That sounds like a good solution, but does some of the water drip on the bedding and soak it? I'm an over thinker

 

[cloey011]

How old are they?

Your best bet to keep it clean is to place a small board or other material beneath the waterer to elevate it some to make it harder to kick shavings into, but you have to keep it low enough the chicks can still get to it (so for very young chicks under a week old I tend to just place it on the floor of the brooder). As for the temperature, try moving it out from under the heat lamp - the chicks should be encouraged to move around the brooder so I keep both their food and water on the opposite side from the heat.

They're 2 weeks old.
Elevating it sounds good to. I'm probably going to move them in a bigger area so it'll solve the warm water problem. Very new at this

 

[Greg88]

Quote:
A few drips may occur but not usually enough to be an issue.
it is easy enough to clean out the couple inches of shavings surrounding the waterer on a daily basis if necessary.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Good advice. I don’t know what waterer you are using, knowing that may help with specific suggestions, but in general try elevating the waterer to the height of their backs. That will help keep it cleaner from them scratching stuff into it and help reduce them pooping in it. Elevating a piece of plastic or plywood to form a platform above the bedding helps too, but they will scratch bedding up there so you need to clean that off occasionally. Put your waterer in the middle of this platform. Putting something over the waterer to stop them from perching on the waterer can really help reduce them pooping in it.

Dirty water, especially if it has poop in it, is a breeding ground for problems. Clean water is one of the best things you can give them. There are other potential problems but the bug that causes Coccidiosis thrives in warm poopy water. That’s a big risk. If you dump that dirty water out once a day you interrupt the life cycle of that bug, so to me that is a minimum, once a day if they are pooping in it.

Another problem with not dumping the water is that it can become a breeding ground for mosquitoes. If you dump that every couple of days you get rid of the wigglers before they mature. Some people use nipples or some other watering system to eliminate the potential problems of poop or trash in the water but may not think of the mosquito problem in their water tank. (I see CT responded while I was typing)

A wet brooder is a dangerous brooder the same as dirty water is dangerous. You need to do what you can to keep your brooder dry.

Good luck! It’s a good question.

 

[cloey011]

Thank you, everyone is so helpful, so glad I joined on this site!

 

[azygous]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/957712/how-to-hang-a-chick-water-bottle

Just got through posting this advice on another thread just inches from yours.

 

[Pork Pie]

Good advice. I don’t know what waterer you are using, knowing that may help with specific suggestions, but in general try elevating the waterer to the height of their backs. That will help keep it cleaner from them scratching stuff into it and help reduce them pooping in it. Elevating a piece of plastic or plywood to form a platform above the bedding helps too, but they will scratch bedding up there so you need to clean that off occasionally. Put your waterer in the middle of this platform. Putting something over the waterer to stop them from perching on the waterer can really help reduce them pooping in it.

Dirty water, especially if it has poop in it, is a breeding ground for problems. Clean water is one of the best things you can give them. There are other potential problems but the bug that causes Coccidiosis thrives in warm poopy water. That’s a big risk. If you dump that dirty water out once a day you interrupt the life cycle of that bug, so to me that is a minimum, once a day if they are pooping in it.

Another problem with not dumping the water is that it can become a breeding ground for mosquitoes. If you dump that every couple of days you get rid of the wigglers before they mature. Some people use nipples or some other watering system to eliminate the potential problems of poop or trash in the water but may not think of the mosquito problem in their water tank. (I see CT responded while I was typing)

A wet brooder is a dangerous brooder the same as dirty water is dangerous. You need to do what you can to keep your brooder dry.

Good luck! It’s a good question.

A very helpful reply RR. There's no issue of mosquitoes in the water bottles that I use as its a soda bottle that i fill daily, directly from the mains tap (i.e. the water is not exposed to the elements / mosquitoes), but I appreciate that it could be an issue depending on where the water is drawn from and its useful that you have drawn attention to it.

CT