Dumb Question about water and feed locations

[Alarry31]

ok so i plan on upgrading my coops water and feed system and i was wondering if it was a issue with there only be feed and water sources in the coop itself. Yes on warmer days i would put additional water in the run. But im trying to keep water in the coop itself isolated for the winter months to reduce freezing.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Just know water in the coop means humidity which can mean frostbite

 

[Bonkerelli]

There is nothing wrong with having water and feed solely in the coop during winter. Especially if the chickens are not even outside. Just want to make sure that the water doesn't spill in the coop. There is a few things that you can do to help reduce the freezing of the water. Of course, this depends on the water system you have for the chickens. You can have a heated waterer, bring in the water at night, and/or fill the waterer up with lukewarm water.

 

[K0k0shka]

You can keep the water inside the coop if you want, but is that actually going to prevent it from freezing? Where do you live? How cold do your winters get? Ventilation is extremely important in winter (in all weather really). A properly ventilated coop will not be noticeably warmer than the ambient temperature outside. So keeping the water inside makes no difference in terms of freezing. Heating the coop is very dangerous (lots of fires happen every year) and not recommended. Chickens need to be shielded from wind and moisture in the winter, they don't need warmth. They can provide their own warmth, with their insulating down feathers. If your coop is staying so warm that water won't freeze when outside temperatures are freezing, you've got a problem - it's either too stuffy inside because there isn't enough ventilation, or you are heating the coop, both of which can lead to serious problems.

If freezing water is your problem, look into getting a heated waterer of some kind (I use a heated dog bowl with great success, and it stays outside). If you want to keep water inside because the chickens won't go out, then consider getting a heated nipple waterer. It will reduce spilling so your bedding doesn't get wet (and so evaporated moisture doesn't cause frostbite).

 

[K0k0shka]

P.S. As for the feed, I only keep the feed inside the coop. That's because when it's closed up at night, the coop is truly critter-proof (even small critters like mice) so I won't have to worry about the feed attracting animals at night. My run is secure from most predators, but it's impossible for me to make it mice-proof, so I don't want to leave food there. I also don't want to be lugging the feeder back and forth every day (I know some people take the feeders into their house or a shed at night, but that's more work than I'm willing to put in). So the feeder stays inside the coop year round, and the chickens go in to eat whenever they want to. So far I have only had one instance of a non-chicken animal figuring out that they can go inside the coop during the day to steal food. Two squirrels. They met their untimely end for that transgression, and I haven't seen any others do it after that.

Keeping the feeder inside the coop also gives me peace of mind that it won't get wet. I have covered areas in my run that stay relatively dry, but it's not 100% and I don't want to have to deal with wet/moldy feed.

 

[Alarry31]

There is nothing wrong with having water and feed solely in the coop during winter. Especially if the chickens are not even outside. Just want to make sure that the water doesn't spill in the coop. There is a few things that you can do to help reduce the freezing of the water. Of course, this depends on the water system you have for the chickens. You can have a heated waterer, bring in the water at night, and/or fill the waterer up with lukewarm water.

i plan to use a solar panel with a 12v battery for charging then using a RV adhesive grey water tank heater on a 55 gallon drum or maybe smaller which will have a small stretch of pvc pipe run along the wall with auto filling nipples. i plan to run the pipe wrapped on the inside of the wall of the chicken coop which i made of pallets and have the nipples comming out between the gaps in the pallet wood. the Rv adhesive runs on 12 watt battery and has a built in thermostat to control temperature. i live in va and my current system is five gallon buckets with the auto water cups. I just want to simplify the process and get it equipped for the winter months. Not that they are long here but it gives me time to work on other Homestead projects.

 

[Alarry31]

P.S. As for the feed, I only keep the feed inside the coop. That's because when it's closed up at night, the coop is truly critter-proof (even small critters like mice) so I won't have to worry about the feed attracting animals at night. My run is secure from most predators, but it's impossible for me to make it mice-proof, so I don't want to leave food there. I also don't want to be lugging the feeder back and forth every day (I know some people take the feeders into their house or a shed at night, but that's more work than I'm willing to put in). So the feeder stays inside the coop year round, and the chickens go in to eat whenever they want to. So far I have only had one instance of a non-chicken animal figuring out that they can go inside the coop during the day to steal food. Two squirrels. They met their untimely end for that transgression, and I haven't seen any others do it after that.

Keeping the feeder inside the coop also gives me peace of mind that it won't get wet. I have covered areas in my run that stay relatively dry, but it's not 100% and I don't want to have to deal with wet/moldy feed.

i plan to use a solar panel with a 12v battery for charging then using a RV adhesive grey water tank heater on a 55 gallon drum or maybe smaller which will have a small stretch of pvc pipe run along the wall with auto filling nipples. i plan to run the pipe wrapped on the inside of the wall of the chicken coop which i made of pallets and have the nipples comming out between the gaps in the pallet wood. the Rv adhesive runs on 12 watt battery and has a built in thermostat to control temperature. i live in va and my current system is five gallon buckets with the auto water cups. I just want to simplify the process and get it equipped for the winter months. Not that they are long here but it gives me time to work on other Homestead projects.

 

[mowin]

I keep my water and food in the coop yr round. Waterers are the old fashion metal ones. I use headed bases during the winter. Supposed to get below zero the next couple of nights with the wind chill -20 or lower. Usually they won't come out of the coop on days that are that cold.

 

[Bonkerelli]

i plan to use a solar panel with a 12v battery for charging then using a RV adhesive grey water tank heater on a 55 gallon drum or maybe smaller which will have a small stretch of pvc pipe run along the wall with auto filling nipples. i plan to run the pipe wrapped on the inside of the wall of the chicken coop which i made of pallets and have the nipples comming out between the gaps in the pallet wood. the Rv adhesive runs on 12 watt battery and has a built in thermostat to control temperature. i live in va and my current system is five gallon buckets with the auto water cups. I just want to simplify the process and get it equipped for the winter months. Not that they are long here but it gives me time to work on other Homestead projects.

Having an automated watering system is not a bad idea. Couple down sides of those nipples though, is that some chickens don't take to them. Also, it can cause frostbite. My mom has a nipple water set up and the roosters are more vulnerable. The water runs down the waddles and if its freezing outside or the coop is near or below freezing.. that can be an issue. Hens with big waddles are vulnerable too. Just something to keep in mind. Sounds like the chickens are getting indoor plumbing, lol.

 

[Alarry31]

Having an automated watering system is not a bad idea. Couple down sides of those nipples though, is that some chickens don't take to them. Also, it can cause frostbite. My mom has a nipple water set up and the roosters are more vulnerable. The water runs down the waddles and if its freezing outside or the coop is near or below freezing.. that can be an issue. Hens with big waddles are vulnerable too. Just something to keep in mind. Sounds like the chickens are getting indoor plumbing, lol.

They are actually small red cups instead of nipples sorry I misspoke