Heated water dish (or other methods) reviews wanted!

[Crooked Chicken]

Yes. I do, and they work wonderfully well even during awful cold snaps. (I get mostly rain in Oregon where I live, but each winter we usually get 2 or 3 weeks of horrible cold, below freezing, sub freezing weather).

I bought 2 cheaply off of Amazon (one for the first winter, then bought another the second winter because I liked the first so much. They have lasted years.)

I got these.
https://www.amazon.com/Farm-Innovat...id=1505772245&sr=8-1&keywords=heated+dog+bowl

I picked up 2 of these bowls about a month ago. I currently use large water bowls, so no learning curve will be required hahaha. The heated dog bowls flare out a bit at the bottom and will be more tip resistant than the bowls I normally use, but even those haven't been a problem. I will put one inside the coop on the feedbox where their current bowl is -- I put it here so the chickens don't have to drink muddy duck water. The other will go outside in the run for the ducks.

In addition to an increased risk of tipping over and getting filled with bedding material, it's more likely the wattles will get wet when the chickens drink and then freeze during really cold temperatures.

This is my first year with chickens, so not looking forward to any frostbitten combs or wattles. I plan to coat their combs and wattles with bag balm or vaseline to help prevent frostbite.

I do that too unless it's too far in the negatives. I have ducks so they'll make a huge mess if it's in the coop.

I do too -- 2 Pekins and 10 chickens. The ducks really make a huge mess in the coop if allowed water in there, so have the chickens water up where they can't get to it and the duck water is in the run.

 

[lawson1986]

Self control? What's that?

You'll love them... they have fantastic personalities and are just fun to watch. They get such joy from simple things like clean water and you can't help but pick up some of that joy.

I agree that this concept of self control is not something I possess. 3 years ago I started by hatching some quail, many people here on BYC warned me it would be a spiral effect...but I thought that was non-sense. Chicken math is real people!!! Then 2 years ago I convinced my husband (well not really, he said no I got them anyways...) that I just had to have 2 ducks and that would be All... here I am... a year later with 5 remaining quail, 4 ducks, 15 chickens, and more fertile eggs on the way...yeah. I know not of this "self control" which PirateGirl speaks of.

I will also agree that my ducks are a pleasure....my drake on the other hand, is a serial rapist and I contemplate him being dinner almost daily because he wont leave my duck girls alone! Its aweful to watch his rough treatment of my khaki girls which are so much smaller than his Giant Pekin Self. Just stick with girl ducks... I promise, you are better off that way!

 

[BantyChooks]

I agree that this concept of self control is not something I possess. 3 years ago I started by hatching some quail, many people here on BYC warned me it would be a spiral effect...but I thought that was non-sense. Chicken math is real people!!! Then 2 years ago I convinced my husband (well not really, he said no I got them anyways...) that I just had to have 2 ducks and that would be All... here I am... a year later with 5 remaining quail, 4 ducks, 15 chickens, and more fertile eggs on the way...yeah. I know not of this "self control" which PirateGirl speaks of.

I will also agree that my ducks are a pleasure....my drake on the other hand, is a serial rapist and I contemplate him being dinner almost daily because he wont leave my duck girls alone! Its aweful to watch his rough treatment of my khaki girls which are so much smaller than his Giant Pekin Self. Just stick with girl ducks... I promise, you are better off that way!

Good drakes are a dream... the bad ones (like him) do lend themselves wonderfully to stew.

 

[Katherine Robertson]

Are there any battery powered heaters or solar?

 

[aart]

Are there any battery powered heaters or solar?

Would take many batteries, don't think there's anything battery operated available.
Same goes with solar, you'd need a big collector panel and big batteries.

 

[PirateGirl]

@Katherine Robertson I feel like I've read some good threads on solar for the coop in the past, maybe try a search of old discussions.

 

[Nyla]

**None of the pictures nor video is mine. I'm using them as picture examples!**
I use this method.
All I used was:
1.) Half cinder block.

2.) 2 solid block slabs

3.) Outside extension cord

4.) Light Bulb plug in socket

5.) Normal 60w bulb

6.) 3.5 galllon waterer


I got the idea from this video:

These are pictures off the web of the same setup I use. I've used this method for about 5 years now and never had a problem with water freezing. And I've had ducks and chickens use this method and never had frost bite.

 

[PirateGirl]

**None of the pictures nor video is mine. I'm using them as picture examples!**
I use this method.
All I used was:
1.) Half cinder block.
View attachment 1157599
2.) 2 solid block slabs
View attachment 1157602
3.) Outside extension cord
View attachment 1157600
4.) Light Bulb plug in socket
View attachment 1157604
5.) Normal 60w bulb
View attachment 1157601
6.) 3.5 galllon waterer
View attachment 1157612

I got the idea from this video:

These are pictures off the web of the same setup I use. I've used this method for about 5 years now and never had a problem with water freezing. And I've had ducks and chickens use this method and never had frost bite.
View attachment 1157603 View attachment 1157605 View attachment 1157606

Thank you for finding pics/videos for us! One of my friends has explained this to me as a safe way to heat the coop in winter, but I have not yet actually seen her setup.

 

[Nyla]

Your welcome. I actually use it outside in my Aviary's. I don't use it in my coops. During winter I lay out hay when snow falls so my ducks don't get frost bite on their feet. I've never had the hay or anything else catch fire from using this method. My waterers never get melted by the bulb either. And our winters get to -32 F sometimes through out the winter. Our average temperature is around -11 F.

Thank you for finding pics/videos for us! One of my friends has explained this to me as a safe way to heat the coop in winter, but I have not yet actually seen her setup.

 

[Flashpoint]

I use a 16 gallon heated tub with a round black feeder tub as a cover. It sets on a wooden platform and the heating unit only comes on when the temp goes below 40 degrees. The cover fits tightly enough that even if a bird jumps on it, it just stays put. I fill and clean weekly as weather allows. If I need to refill it and water lines are frozen, I keep clean gallon jugs or 5 gal buckets of water in the shed. Even if the water level gets low, I can put in enough frozen jugs or a 5 gal bucket to refill the tub and it's all melted by morning.

Last year it kept me supplied with enough water for several days for 20 birds. Saves me from having to truck water to the shed by hand every day. I use hanging waterers and just switch them out daily, giving me the option of taking the waterers inside for cleaning. Easier to carry an empty waterer than carrying the water itself.

This has worked well for me over the past four winters.

Of course, if my son and nephew EVER get my power back on in the shed, I would be tempted to use a couple of the heated waterers. The blue tub would still give me a sufficient amount of clean water to refill heated waterers several times each week throughout the winter.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/allied-precision-heated-bucket-16-gal?cm_vc=-10005

And a cover that looks like this one - not sure where mine came from now.