Freezing Chicken Water

[LisabethBrooke]

With Fall bringing colder temperatures and our first frost happening last night, I've started getting my preparations for winter going. One of the problems I had last year was keeping the chicken water from freezing. The only solution I could find for it was to get a heated dog dish and plug it into the coop.

Last year I lost about half of my chickens over the winter. Some because of freezing conditions and others because of predators. The most due to predators - that was a sad day.

We can experience below freezing temperatures for the better part of the winter. Are there any ways to keep the water from freezing - and not having to keep it inside the coop? Or is the only way the heated water dish?

 

[misslady]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000...ter+heater&dpPl=1&dpID=51uYNsUV07L&ref=plSrch

This is what we use in the winter time. You have to use a metal waterer with it. But it works great.

 

[RonP]

You may follow the links in my signature for suggestions.
There are quite a few successful ways to conquer the cold.

 

[barneveldrerman]

Your best bet if you have electricity is to use a heated water dish. However, you could keep the water from freezing other ways. If you get to the point were you are not under freezing point, you could try to use an old tire and insulate it with something like packing peanuts or other insulation. Then use a bucket in the center of the tire. In the bucket put a ping pong ball.

If you have any more questions don't hesitate to ask.

 

[azygous]

I'm curious as to hearing more details on how the freezing weather killed your chickens. Do you know that it was the sub-freezing temps that killed the ones not killed by predators? What were the signs that led you to the conclusion it was the cold that killed them?

 

[lazy gardener]

Ditto.

I wonder how long a tire would keep water from freezing in my bird's winter sunroom. Often, the day time temp will get up to 20* in the sun room, even if just for a few hours. I think it might act as a bit of a heat sink, especially if filled with sand or rocks, or other dense material. Down side is that it would need to be elevated to keep them from filling the water with kicked up debris from their constant composting efforts in the sun room. Perhaps 2 tires stacked. Hmmm......

 

[LisabethBrooke]

@misslady - the chickens don't burn themselves on it? I was afraid of that happening. Or tipping it over into the betting and then woosh up in flames would go my coop and then the creek...

@RonP - I love the 5 gallon waterer. Super easy! If put on a base to keep it from freezing does that also keep the jug of water from freezing too? This idea would even be great for my geese. Because even if its just a bucket they somehow manage to get into it and splash it all out or poop in it.

@barneveldrerman - I tried that last year. I seen it on Pinterest and thought what a great idea, we have tons of old tires in the yard and them black rubber dishes. Stuffed the tire full of shredded paper and cardboard and straw, wedged the dish inside and placed it close to the heating lamp. And then had to wait until spring to get the frozen dish out of the tire.

@azygous - We had a cold snap of -20 with frigid winds for over a week. Short of bringing 30 chickens inside and cuddling them in my bed, there wasn't much I could do. I shut the coop up and made sure they had two heat lamps of the 250 brooder bulbs. And some of the chickens ended up with frozen toes or legs, that was sad. And when the super cold followed by a blizzard had finally passed - the chickens were not happy with me. I wasn't the only one who had suffered a loss of livestock. The consensus was that they had froze to death.

 

[LisabethBrooke]

@lazy gardener - I've been thinking about building my chickens a different - bigger - chicken yard. I've been toying with the idea of a car port, just a cheap one, so it has a good roof on it. And then covering the sides with fencing so it's predictor proof year round and putting plastic around it for the winter. I've just about got myself convinced it will work.

 

[lazy gardener]

It will not work, if you get snow. The tarp like top of it will act like a hammock, and the whole thing will collapse. Hubby and I ended up having to rebuild the sun room roof in my winter run by putting up a truss system. This provided multiple areas where the hammock effect was eliminated. I still have to go out several times/storm and knock the snow off it, yes... even in the middle of the night, I'm out there knocking snow off the sun room. The things we do for the love of animals!

 

[LisabethBrooke]

aw poop. I was hoping they would have a sturdier roof than that - since they're supposed to keep your car safe from storms. Would it work if I put some fencing under the tarp as well?