Hanging feeders?

[docdubz]

So I was having a pain getting my chickens to accept food from a metal hanging feeder. Theyve finally stopped being afraid of it but now I'm having a different problem entirely. As they eat their feed they consume what is in the little trough around the feeder but then no more falls into place for them and I have to physically go in and push it from the top. Im feeding crumbles and it's just sitting in a 10lb pile in the middle of the feeder. I've tried hanging it so that one side is lower than the other, I've tried piling the feed so that it's piled up against the walls rather than toward the center. I don't see any obvious deformities on the feeder that would stop it from letting feed out.

Is this a common problem with this type of feeder? It's one of the 15lb open top hanging feeders.

 

[MadamPoofyBrow]

I had this problem with my metal one, but I have a plastic one now and it works fine. This may be a common thing with metal.

 

[docdubz]

That sounds like it makes sense. I could see the metal causing static and making the feed stick together.

 

[K0k0shka]

I had the same problem with the metal feeder. What was a bigger problem though (and the final nail in that feeder's coffin) was that the chickens started raking the food out with their beaks and onto the floor, wasting an enormous amount of feed. So I gave up on this type of feeder altogether (plastic might help with dispensing, but they can still rake it out and waste the feed). I tried the PVC elbow feeder next, but that didn't help - they raked food out of it, too. What ultimately worked, and what I still have and am very happy with, is aart's no-waste funnel feeder.

 

[Sally PB]

I just checked out that link to the no-waste funnel feeder. What a clever design. I might make one of those next spring. Right now one of those heavy duty rubber feed bowls is working well for me. The hanging feeders were very disappointing.

What helps with the bowl is that I have it sitting in a large food container (Rubbermaid? Tupperware?) with some fist sized rocks. The container helps keep dirt/shavings from getting scratched into the bowl, and the two rocks give the whole thing some stability so they can't tip it over.

 

[SnootyHen]

I have the same problem with mine and I don't even hang it. I have it sitting on a few bricks just on the ground and I was thinking maybe it happened because it's not hanging. I guess it's not worth it for me to hang it just to see if that helps.

 

[docdubz]

I have the same problem with mine and I don't even hang it. I have it sitting on a few bricks just on the ground and I was thinking maybe it happened because it's not hanging. I guess it's not worth it for me to hang it just to see if that helps.

At first I was not hanging mine. It seems to work slightly better when it is hanging but not enough to make it worth hanging it.

 

[SnootyHen]

At first I was not hanging mine. It seems to work slightly better when it is hanging but not enough to make it worth hanging it.

Good to know! This was about to be my next project but I'll bump it down the list a few rungs. Does hanging at least keep mice/voles out of it or do those little jerks jump up for it?

 

[Punkybrewster]

If you look on the side of the metal feeder near where the feed comes out into the tray, you will see adjusters to allow the feed to come down.

Is this the issue you are having?

 

[SnootyHen]

If you look on the side of the metal feeder near where the feed comes out into the tray, you will see adjusters to allow the feed to come down.

Is this the issue you are having?

View attachment 2351831

It doesn't seem to fall down naturally even with it set at the lowest hole. Originally I put mine at the higher one thinking it would help control the spillage but hardly anything fell through so I used the lowest. It's not terrible, but I do have to give it a good shake every couple of days to make sure it's coming into the tray.