heated waterer base is safe, right?

[delfargo]

this will be my 1st winter w/ chickens. i have been useing plastic waterers, but i guess i'll be switching to the metal waterer & heated metal base soon, as things get very cold in a hurry around these parts. i'm concerned about the heated base and the woodshavings on the floor. will the base get hot enough to start a fire? i would assume they are made in such a way as to NOT be a fire hazard, but i am a little worried. can someone set my mind at ease?
also...does anyone know if they make a hanging waterer that is heated? it seems that something like that would be safer, but i have never seen one.

 

[SAM1646]

I thought the same thing??? I am not going to take the chance so Im going to put in on a cinder block that I found. That should do the trick. At least it is off the ground right??

 

[woodmort]

The instructions on the last one I bought said to place it on bricks or cement blocks--probably a good idea anyway since it will raise everything high enough to keep the girls from kicking shavings in the waterer. One thing--make sure you use enough bricks or blocks to completely cover the bottom of the water. I didn't and mice got in under it, built a nest next to the heating element and chewed the wiring making it worthless.

 

[swimmer]

Cement block is the way to go. Or, try a heated dog bowl. You can get them on Amazon or Wal Mart.com. Might get messy, but could also set that up on a block. Not sure where I saw that picture, but I did see where someone had put their plastic waterer right inside of the heated dog dish. I'm pretty sure it was on byc, so you might want to search around for that too.

 

[Louise's Country Closet]

I bought the heated base, just one so far, but put it up and haven't bothered to read it yet lol. I'm glad I caught this thread before I actually had to use it.. I love the idea about the cement blocks, I'm gonna get some this weekend and get it ready!

 

[curliet]

Last year I bought one of those big plastic waterers because it was so much easier for me to fill and clean. When winter came I realised that I wasn't sure if the heater thing would melt the plastic. I had some thin round patio stones that I had gotten at Big Lots as yard decor, real cheap. Maybe $6. Anyway, they aren't as thick as regular patio stones. I set that right on the heater, and set the waterer on top of that. It fit perfectly, and the stone warmed up and then the bottom of the waterer warmed up. Problem solved.

 

[Tdub4chiks]

I also have a new heated water base. My concern is the the water base is larger in diameter than the water dish by a couple of inches. Is this going to be a problem? Will the girls get burned if they step up onto the base or when they lean over it to get a drink?

 

[woodmort]

Quote:
No, it doesn't get that hot. Mine always like to stand on it when I remove the waterer to fill it to get their feet warm.

 

[nuchickontheblock]

We have just purchased a metal water heater and waterer also. This is our first winter with chickens. We were going to plug it in with our light, but the light is on a timer so it would be off for about 10 hours during the night. I assume the water would freeze here in Maine overnight depending on the temp. do you think the water heater would melt the water enough during the hours it would be on? or, Should we plug it in differently, so it is not on the timer?

 

[woodmort]

I'd plug it into something else. A frozen double-walled waterer is a pain.