Feeders and waterers

[twochixchickens]

I used a cheap wheeled trashcan from Walmart and added six ports around the whole thing. I filled it up with 500 pounds of feed and they were good to go for 2 weeks or so (90 hens, 8 turkeys). When they are young and I'm just putting them outside, I used a plastic storage tote with the same ports. The only thing you'll need to watch is if they are still small enough to fit in the port, they get stuck

I made the same setup for my 25 roosters and it all worked perfectly.

I was also able to add a wi-fi solar powered camera inside the trashcan so I could check the feed level from my phone.

Added a picture

 

[saysfaa]

$90 for a feeder, $80 for a waterer

It doesn't have to be expensive or fancy.

Mine have never spilled the food from the dog bowl set in a plastic bucket (to raise to back level and leave room for a weight in the bottom). Or the water from the ice bucket or the crock that I used before I found the ice bucket at a resale shop.

Well, technically they spilled a little food down the crack between the dish and the white plastic bucket before I realized some dog dishes have a wider rim than others and will cover that crack. It stays clean there so I dumped it back in once in a while.

 

[arazla]

I used a cheap wheeled trashcan from Walmart and added six ports around the whole thing. I filled it up with 500 pounds of feed and they were good to go for 2 weeks or so (90 hens, 8 turkeys). When they are young and I'm just putting them outside, I used a plastic storage tote with the same ports. The only thing you'll need to watch is if they are still small enough to fit in the port, they get stuck

I made the same setup for my 25 roosters and it all worked perfectly.

I was also able to add a wi-fi solar powered camera inside the trashcan so I could check the feed level from my phone.

Added a picture

How many can feed at once and do they all seem to get equal access?

 

[arazla]

$90 for a feeder, $80 for a waterer

It doesn't have to be expensive or fancy.

Mine have never spilled the food from the dog bowl set in a plastic bucket (to raise to back level and leave room for a weight in the bottom). Or the water from the ice bucket or the crock that I used before I found the ice bucket at a resale shop.

Well, technically they spilled a little food down the crack between the dish and the white plastic bucket before I realized some dog dishes have a wider rim than others and will cover that crack. It stays clean there so I dumped it back in once in a while.

I think your chickens must be super behaved. Do they not perch on that and poop in it?

 

[Mr Spot]

They both look good but the price is mighty high. I use a feeder similar to the blue one with the feeding holes all around and hang it also. On the waterer I got a 5 gallon bucket type from Amazon that has 4 water cups and I like it better than what I have tried in the past and it's a lot cheaper too.

 

[Mr Spot]

My girls like this one. I do have it hanging, not sitting on its legs.


View attachment 3533243

I have a 7 pound one that is kinda like this and I have it hanging, I like it and it sure stops the waste.

 

[twochixchickens]

How many can feed at once and do they all seem to get equal access?

I think it has 6 to 8 ports. Everyone ate, 90 hens and 8 turkeys, never had an issue. Because it was always full an available, they all ate at diferent times through out the day. While some birds were napping, drinking, laying eggs, others would be eating.
I also used an automated deer feeder to disperse scratch and seeds a couple time through the day. All were happy.

 

[RojoMarz]

That one looks possibly doable. Is it very deep? They get their beaks to the bottom? I should have added that my chicks are 13 weeks old as of today so they've also gone through a growing curve. Do you have a link to this one?

My 8 week old chicks can't eat from it due to the hanging height, so I'm unsure if they can or can't use it successfully. My hens have no issue with it. I do top off the feed in it every couple days, so it doesn't get that low of feed.

I got the Hanging Feeder from Tractor Supply.

 

[saysfaa]

I think your chickens must be super behaved. Do they not perch on that and poop in it?

I don't know how typical they are. But nope, they don't perch on them or poop into them.

Before they used these - back when they used the tiny chick feeder, I thought they would. I intended to use gradually bigger bowls so they had something sized for them until they grew up. Then switch to a typical feeder of some sort. I ended up liking this too much to switch.

 

[BastyPutt]

Here's the deal and what I have learned after dealing with large flocks, small flocks, auto feeders - auto waters, nearly everything under the sun....

The best feeder is the one you make yourself. These are $23 from the zon. It comes with a hole saw, so all you need is a drill and a $5 bucket and about 5 mins of time. I wouldn't go any bigger than a 5 gallon bucket. Smaller actually if you had a smaller flock. Any bit of moisture gets in there and the whole container is ruined with mold.

YANZI No Waste Chicken Feeder with Rat Stopper Caps,6 Ports and Hole Saw,DIY Poultry Feeder Port Gravity Automatic Fed Kit for Buckets,Barrels,Bins,Troughs https://a.co/d/j9r2PUF

I have almost 80 chickens in here, of various sizes. I made this (pictured) to accommodate all the different sized chickens. There are 20 total ports, 4 chickens per, which is perfect. A bucket holds almost exactly 25lbs of food as well.

For the water, I just use two standard waters. One plastic (for ACV) and one galvanized. I ran a water hose to the coop and dump and fill every morning (5 minutes). I have tried nipples waters and auto cups, but live in a climate where it freezes at night 6mo out or the year, so those always froze and failed. Filling water everyday keeps it fresh and prevents algae from growing in the warmer months. I built up a little gravel platform which keeps the standing water down on the ground from filling spills and the water clean as a whistle. (You can see it in the back of the picture)

Spending $$ isn't the reason for the DIY, but because every flock and set up is different. This goes the same for building. When you make something, anticipate adding more chickens eventually and therefore being able to add onto your creation.

Anyway - long winded but hopefully useful.