Help! 11 degrees ºF outside and need some water!

[nhwahine]

It gets cold here in New Hampshire (it's been in the single digits at night lately and it's only November)! I use heavy rubber bowls in all my coops year round. They're easy to clean, they are sturdy enough for a hen to stand on the rim and not tip it over, and best of all in the winter when they freeze up I can clear them with a hammer without destroying them.

I have a big rubber bowl in the main coop that I fill with warm water each morning. It holds enough water for 20 or so chickens. In the deepest of winter the top will freeze over, but this NEVER slows the hens down. They will peck through the ice to get to the water underneath. I don't usually water them in the evening to avoid wet faces and frostbite. Then in the morning I knock out the ice and start over.

My chickens have open access to outside during the winter, but not a one will go voluntarily. The other animals I have (sheep and goats) will eat snow, but I never rely on this as a main water source.

Some of my old girls are now 7 or 8 years old so experience tells me there's no harm in providing enough water once a day in the winter (summer heat is a different story).

 

[Vicker]

My winter coop is located within reach of an extension cord. I use a heated pail to keep water from freezing.

 

[Mobleymoon]

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?

I'm in a similar boat. 6 Babies hatched in mid-sept. The 1st. idea I had (worked last year) was a metal water fountain, wrapped in electric, water pipe anti-freeze tape. Lower Michigan, 16* last night, 19* now. The can itself had developed a small pinhole. So that was junked. I read a good idea somewhere and its working for me. Using the smaller chick waterer (jar and base) together and filled set INSIDE a heated dog water dish. Fill the dish with water covering the base and about 2-3" of the chick waterer and plug it in. The dog dish keeps the bowl water warm and wet. The chick waterer displaces the water in the bowl and will stay liq. too. It is large enough for everybody to drink and small enough to keep them from sitting on the edge, keeping it cleaner. If somebody wants to play King of the Water and post on top of the chick water jar, just put a funnel upside down on it like Tin Man's hat from Wizard of Oz. Last thought: I add herbs to their H2o,
and I was concerned about the reaction to the "Metal." So I am glad events happened the way they did, and I found out about the "dish in a heated dish" deal. This is just November, April is so far away

 

[sharrielee]

I think one of the large heated dog bowls would work for you. It should hold.enough water for 20 chickens. I have 13 and they don't drink a whole bowl. It's a very sturdy bowl. You can use an extension cord with them, I do. Feed stores should carry or go online. I think it would be your solution.

 

[rlhagan56]

The easiest way we have found was to use food grade buckets (5 and 2 gallon with lids), punch in some horizontal nipples and put them on cookie tin warmers. Since nipples are 2 inches from the bottom they stay thawed in subzero conditions. Water stays clean and doesn't need constant refills, we usually keep them outside of the coop in winter too with insulation taped around the buckets. Cheap, easy, clean, and effortless.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

If anyone has roosters, they are better off with horizontal nipples and some sort of heated water reservoir.
With heated dog bowls or any other open container, the roosters will dip their wattles into the water in order to drink. Then the wet wattle freezes, get frostbitten and
eventually fall off.

It may not affect all breeds of roosters but it certainly does those with huge combs and wattles.

 

[aart]

I was watching a free-range group very closely. They appeared to get most of moisture intake through eating snow.

I have hardly had to top of the waterer the last few days...they would much rather eat snow....not the first time I've noticed this.

I have heard of these too. The instructions say to use an old fashioned incandescent bulb (40 watt or 60 watt) which I like because they are easy to replace when they burn out

You can still buy incandescent bulbs? Lucky you!

If anyone has roosters, they are better off with horizontal nipples and some sort of heated water reservoir.

HN's are better no mater what birds you have, easiest to heat with no evaporation or wattle dippage...tho the snow eating mentioned above will cause wattle frostbite, it's usually minor.

 

[gtaus]

You can still buy incandescent bulbs? Lucky you!

You can still get incandescent bulbs at places like Menards, but they cost a lot more now than they used to back in the day. I used to buy a 4 pack of 60 watt incandescent bulbs for 88 cents at Walmart not that many years ago. Now, if/when you can find incandescent bulbs at places like Menards, they cost about $1 per bulb. Fortunately for me, I stock piled a number of packs of incandescent bulbs a few years back.

I should also mention that many of us in northern states that have outside well pump houses use those incandescent bulbs to keep the pump house from freezing and to keep the water flowing. I no longer have an outside pump house, but many people still do.

But yeah, you really have to look for those incandescent bulbs these days.

 

[gtaus]

If anyone has roosters, they are better off with horizontal nipples and some sort of heated water reservoir. With heated dog bowls or any other open container, the roosters will dip their wattles into the water in order to drink. Then the wet wattle freezes, get frostbitten and eventually fall off. It may not affect all breeds of roosters but it certainly does those with huge combs and wattles.

I don't have any roosters, yet, but I found this post interesting. I understand the situation with open bowls or containers and the rooster would dip its wattle in the water which could lead to frostbite, but would the old fashioned metal founts with a much smaller area for water pose a problem for the roosters?

 

[aart]

but would the old fashioned metal founts with a much smaller area for water pose a problem for the roosters?

Yes, because they may have to turn their head side ways to drink because of large comb thus wattle dippage can happen...same would go for any bird with a larger comb, regardless of gender.