For people who suffer from frozen waterers...

[mliga]

Hi,

I use an aquarium air pump. It works to about 20 degrees and then I switch to a bird bath heater...I have not had any problems and it got to around 10 degrees so far this year.

Michelle in WV

 

[DawnSuiter]

I have been bringing mine in... 2.5 gallon waterers in the sun all day seem to be fine but not at night... I just flip them over outside & set them inside the front door... all of mine are hanging or on a pedestal of some sort so they aren't dirty. Sure, I have to get up early on frigid days to take them back out, but that's all..
if it stays around 20 or so.. mid day I take out a kettle of hot water... and pour a little in the 'well'. so far so good..

I have a lamp on the hen house waterer... still it doesn't keep it from freezing completely though... I may have to try a higher wattage bulb, currently using a 85 watt floodlight wich has a red colored gel on it.

 

[laughing husky]

I live in Alaska and right now it is single digets....and has been for awhile. I have an infra red heat lamp that is set to turn on if the temp goes below 40 degrees. That keeps the water unfrozen and those 8 chickens go through 3 gallons of water about in 3 days....but I am also getting 6-8 eggs/day which more than makes up for the electricity bill. In another 21 days, we will start to increase the light...and that also will help. The chickens go out in the snow to forage, and then back in their coop and the boxes. They love it, but they were very unsure of the snow the first time. They looked like dressage horses prancing around the hen yard.

 

[Barn Maid Ann]

I sure am glad I have electricity in the barn, and now, the chicken coop. I use electric heated buckets. They are around 2 gal sizes and are about a foot high. They cost about $20 each. The chickens have to kind of stand tippy toed, but they drink with no problem if I keep them filled to the brim. I keep a lot of little non-electric water buckets around and change the frozen ones often, as well. We also have hot water in the barn, so it is easy to melt the frozen buckets.
Before that I used to haul hot water to my horses. So I can relate to the problem. I used clean plastic gas cans to prevent spillage.

 

[mothergoose1963]

Someone on here suggested using new gas containers filled with water. They have a spout and a handle. I am only about 5'2 and hauling five gallon buckets of sloshing water through the snow sucked. I bought the gas cans and have been filling them in the house with warm water, sliding them into the back end of the Gator and driving down to the barn with them. They work slick!!! Easy for me to handle, easy to pour into the heated dishes and pails. I love it. When I am done I just throw them in the back of the Gator, drop them off in the house's front porch--they are clean and no mess!

I looked back on the thread for the person who suggested this and cant find it again--but THANK YOU!!!!

It sure beats dragging a 75' hose around and then dragging it up a big hill and then looping the hose up over a tree branch to keep it from freezing!

My chores are so much simpler now!!!

 

[kycowgirlchick]

This is along the same lines I have been researching in the last couple of days. I have only had to deal with a couple of days of frozen water just yet but I know the worst is to come.
I do not have electric in my barn. I run about 150feet of electric cord to the barn. I usually only run 2 heaters in my water trough for horses. But now I am in need of keeping multiple sources thawed. I have 27 chickens, 2 turkeys, 8 goats to think of along with the horses. That means I need means to keep 5 seperate bowls thawed. Last night I plugged in my long extension cord that has 2 big heaters, and 1 heated bucket, and unplugged it this morning. But my chickens may or may not have had frozen water. I need to add 2 more heaters onto this extension cord. Talking about an extension cord with a load.
Occassionally with the 2 heaters last year it would throw the gfci plug breaker. So I guess another extension cord but would still be on the same outside plug.
I have been looking into some kind of solar source. Each of the big heater pull 1500 watts. The bird bath heaters I was going to use for the chickens pull 200 watts and I am not sure about the bucket. Tractor supply carries some solar stuff. I am still trying to figure out the cost and how many watts it would carry.
Does anyone have any ideas or thoughts on this?

 

[kycowgirlchick]

I did find out that using black bowl or buckets hold better heat to keep water thawed.

 

[freemotion]

I have great success in MA with the black rubber pan, filled with very warm water, and simply set inside an empty larger pan. That is enough for a lot of weather. I had to experiment with where I put it outside, just a few feet can make all the difference.

As it gets colder, I use a two gallon bucket and just partly bury it in the deep litter to insulate it. It only freezes in the most extreme weather. I haul the water in the new gas can that I clearly marked "water only!!!" twice a day.

If it will be dipping into the zero range overnight and I don't want to get up as early as my chickens do, I toss an apple or two (reduced for quick sale section of the grocery store!) or a pumpkin or squash, whatever I have. They will pick at that and get enough moisture to leave each other alone until I wander in with fresh water. They can go a few minutes

without open water.

And there is no way I want to ever deal with frozen typical chicken-type waterers. It is so easy to tap the ice out of a bucket. Especially the rubber ones, but even the plastic ones will release the ice with a few light taps with a heavy stick or a bit of 1x2 board.

 

[cqranch]

I use rubber black tubs for water. Very easy to just flip out the frozen water and add fresh. Mine typically only freezes overnight. All my birds are free ranging right now, so if the tubs do freeze during the day they have access to the dogs heated water bucket.

 

[mo]

I only have 3 birds, but this is my setup.

I got a small electric pet dish- it has a 25 watt heater which is thermostatically controlled, holds a quart. I wanted more capacity, so I used a 1 gallon jug, wrapped it with a 9 ft long 18 watt pipe heat tape which I already had(cost about $10, as I recall) this is also thermostatically controlled. I made a harness for the jug so it hangs in the pet dish and becomes a vacuum waterer.

it holds a lil over a gallon, and lasts me almost a week. I have not gotten a power bill so far, but dont expect much- 25w+18w=43 watt, only on when needed.
if they both ran 24x7 it would be 1032 w/day, and cost about $.12/a day for me.

Croney00-
that is a long run for that many watts. one thing you could try is to make a cord from 12-2 romex(the kind of wire that is inside your walls), using the outdoor stuff(grey) as AC current travels better in solid wire. or else you need to run 2 cords on 2 circuits, not the same plugin. and the biggest wire gauge cords you can afford.(smallest number)
solar is not gonna cut it, unless you invest thousands. even then, you are at the mercy of the sun.

another thought is to find lower wattage heaters. this will save you money, too, as long as they are enough to keep water thawed.