Help! 11 degrees ºF outside and need some water!

[Quail_Kid]

My water heaters are working fine but the water cups are frozen. So I am manually giving them water in bowls but I have to go out there every 30 minutes and get out the ice and refill. Can I use Snow for them to drink?

 

[GRB73]

Fresh water is vital, especially in extreme cold. Offering snow would not be an adequate substitute.
Do you have access to a heated dog water bowl you could use instead? Or a deeper container that wouldn't freeze solid as quickly? I've heard the thick, black rubber containers work well. This way you only need to break the top ice up every few hours or so. I have the same problem with sub freezing temps. For me it means many extra trips to the run to break the ice in their bowl.

 

[chickens really]

Warm water twice a day will work too.

 

[imnukensc]

My water heaters are working fine but the water cups are frozen.

And that's the problem with cups!

 

[Quail_Kid]

Ok thanks for all the feedback. I'm going to break the ice every hour or so.

 

[Relleoms]

Are you able to swap out the cups for horizontal nipples in your heated waterer?

 

[Quail_Kid]

Are you able to swap out the cups for horizontal nipples in your heated waterer?

Sadly, No.

 

[centrarchid]

My water heaters are working fine but the water cups are frozen. So I am manually giving them water in bowls but I have to go out there every 30 minutes and get out the ice and refill. Can I use Snow for them to drink?

Are the birds mature?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I agree with all the other comments, especially on bringing water to them 2 or 3 times a day. Primarily get them hydrated in the morning and again before dusk.
You need to use chicken water founts for now. Bowls spill and then there is no water and a mess.
As much as I love the drinker cups, they are worthless below 32F.
There is no circulation so no matter what the temperature of the water in the reservoir is, the lines and cups will freeze solid unless chickens are drinking out of them every couple minutes around the clock - which they won't be doing.

 

[Folly's place]

That's why I use the old style metal waterers, with heater metal bases. They have worked fine here in -15F weather. I have two set up in the coop, so if one fails, there's another.
Heated dog dishes work fine too, as long as you don't have little chicks, or roosters with large wattles.
Mary