Feed & Water placement - What do you do, and why?

[Jon James]

I'm trying to decide where to keep my feeder and water in a coop with attached run set up.
Its about 85cm by 270cm and designed for 4 birds. As seen here but with an extended run http://www.feelgooduk.net/10-egg-ark-4-all-in-one-chicken-coop-run-set.html

I was planning on keeping the feeder (3kg plastic hanging type) in the coop but it takes up about a quarter of the space in there. In fact I think its a bit big for my set up of four birds but it was a gift. Would it be ok in the run if hanging up in a covered area? Should I change it for a smaller one?

Also I will keep the water in the run hanging up, but is it ok for the birds to be without it at night?

Any comments/suggestions would be great.

 

[jaloola]

Hi Jon. Chickens stay put at night. They see very poorly in low light so will not move around once they go to bed.
You might want to consider a smaller feeder...it looks like it could go under the coop. Is the floor of the coop screen or solid?

 

[Jon James]

Quote:
Hi
Its solid, a pull out tray.
Any idea what size feeder I need for four birds?
Jon

 

[AinaWGSD]

Agreed, chickens stay put at night and neither eat or drink. As long as you aren't in the habit of sleeping late (9-10am) you should be ok with the food and water in the run. I do have food and water hanging in the run in the summer, but with winter here I have taken out the plastic waterer and switched to a rubber bowl that I fill with warm water each morning and top off with warm water once or twice during the day if the temps are below freezing. If the run is secure (heavy wire on the sides and top, you can put a wire skirt around the bottom) then you could also leave the coop open overnight, eliminating the worry of them going too long without food and water if you do sleep in.

 

[jaloola]

Quote:
Hi
Its solid, a pull out tray.
Any idea what size feeder I need for four birds?

I have four hens that free range most days which cuts down on the amount of pellets they consume. I use a pretty small feeder but am willing to fill it every other day if needed. The size of your feeder will dictate how often you are filling it. I enjoy the daily routine of doing my chicken chores and checking in on them every day. Check out some of the custom feeders on this site... The treadle and PVC ones are interesting.

 

[Olive Hill]

I just answered this on another thread and am being lazy tonight so I'll just say that this thread may be of interest to you.

 

[palochknldy]

We also have 4 chickens. We have a small coop with an attached pen. To save room in the coop, we screwed a mineral feeder to the wall, and have a small waterer in there up on a block of wood. In the outdoor pen, they have a hanging waterer and a hanging feeding tray. The barely use the water in the coop, but at least it's there incase we don't get to them right away. Ther mineral feeder holds enough food for the day, and they seem to eat more of the food that's outside.

 

[Iheartchicks<3:)]

A large galvenized tube feeder in the coop. Another feeder (not tube) that is kind of like a mailbox slot? its hard to describe but it dispenses food too. We also have a large waterer and a small one on the out side. In the inside we have one small waterer for emergency's and the food too. They eat mostly outside, because its cleaner and takes up less space.

 

[Judy]

The trouble with a feeder outside in a small coop is, sooner or later it usually gets wet from rain blowing, and wet feed molds fast and then can be quite harmful. I never put feed outside; I don't want to have to worry about its condition.

 

[catdaddy66]

A great way to have feed and water in the coop but not have it take up needed floor space is to have PVC feeders and tube-n-nipple waterers. Do a search for these and see the setups. The food is poured in from the outside of the coop and the inside of the coop is the mouth of the feeder or an extended tube with holes. Water is similar and runs from a bucket/barrel thru small diameter PVC with nipples attached for drinking. I want this for my coop so bad! Very cool looking and easy to maintain. Check it out.