How do you leave water for your chickens?

A horizontal nipple waterer can be made for under $10 with these nipples and any random plastic container you have available.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NBZH4XV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1
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I'm a grocery store deli clerk and get plastic buckets in various sizes at work both from my department and from the bakery. The frosting buckets from the bakery are best. But you can use an ice cream bucket, a plastic canister, a pitcher, or even a storage bin.

Two things -- tighten the nipples by hand rather than with the drill attachment to avoid possibly cracking a thin-walled container and be sure to drill a small vent hole just under the rim so as not to create a vacuum. That's not clear in the instructions that come with the nipples and it took me a few days to figure out when I made my first one (in part because I didn't realize that the lid sealed so tightly).

It takes a little training for chickens to learn to use the nipples, but once one flock member has gotten the idea the others will learn by imitation.
 
For about $20, you could build a horizontal nipple waterer. They are very simple to make and your water doesn't get dirty. If you have a drill or know someone with a drill. A bucket with a lid from a deli should only be a couple dollars. I added a link for the drill bit($4.98) needed and good nipples($9.49) from Amazon. I attached my article, how to build a heated waterer using horizontal nipples, so you know how to make it, heated or not, if you decide to make one now or in the future. If you lived close to me I'd make it for you, but you don't have a general location in your profile.

https://www.amazon.com/RentACoop-Pack-Make-Your-Waterer/dp/B07DVSL74D/ref=sr_1_5?crid=3V6PQNITC7FV3&dchild=1&keywords=horizontal+water+nipples&qid=1627091745&sprefix=horizontal+water+,aps,208&sr=8-5&th=1

https://www.lowes.com/pd/DEWALT-11-...AcPctoLnyNT59EBqcgYaAnsJEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...ock-tank-deicer-and-horizontal-nipples.74609/
Thanks. I'll see if we can swing it. I'm in southeast Kansas. I can make stuff; we just don't have any extra money right now. We've spent so much this summer on garden and chicken set-up, we're just on empty. And it's been so hot, almost none of our garden has produced anything. We've had one split tomato so far. None of the greens or tubers produced at all. The strawberries gave us at least 10 pounds last year and a bowlful this year. Bad year. So we're having to spend more for food than we'd like. At least we're eating nice eggs!! :)
 
I have one like yours. This one seems to need assistance a bit more than the last one I had (different brand). I need to check if it’s level bc I think it is not level.

So, the cheapest thing for you to do is to check if it is sitting level. Fix it if it isn’t level.

we also use the plastic bell shaped waterers. They work if not level, and are inexpensive at the feed store.
Thank you. No, it's never level. It's sitting on some bricks to keep it off the ground and I didn't think that mattered. I will fix that today.
 
I bought a five gallon double wall galvanized waterer like the pic below but I'm constantly having to "burp" it or it doesn't keep the reservoir full. The reservior also gets really dirty even though it's about a foot off the ground.

I tried a bucket that I just kept full, but with so many mosquitos as it is, I opted out of that method pretty quickly.

What do you all use that actually works and doesn't invite mosquitos? Does anyone have a simple idea that works?

I also can't afford a new system and can't build a DIY one with parts and glue and all by myself right now so if you recommend one with the water nipples, that's good to know but I can't do it right now.

What did people do before there were fancy waterers?

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I have a bird bath bowl I just set on the ground and a couple of the large size Rubbermaid containers I use for their water. I put fresh water in a couple times a day cause once the water is out of shade it gets hot so quickly. So I move them into shade and refill with fresh clean water.
 
I have a bird bath bowl I just set on the ground and a couple of the large size Rubbermaid containers I use for their water. I put fresh water in a couple times a day cause once the water is out of shade it gets hot so quickly. So I move them into shade and refill with fresh clean water.
Thanks. I finally put out a plastic planter about the size of a small pail and filled it with ice water yesterday because it was so hot. They seemed to like that. I'll just have to keep an eye on it because we have so many mosquitos right now. I was just trying to not have to go out several times a day because of the chiggers and mosquitos but I may have to anyway because they need the ice right now.
 
Among others, I have the 5-gallon bucket version of that- a 5 gallon bucket with a lid (not necessary, but it makes life easier) with 5 small holes drilled around the rim, one ~1/4" lower than the others, inverted in a wide pan. It originally only had the 4 holes on the same level and I had the same issue you do. Is there a way to drill a small hole near the bottom (in the part that is covered by water when you burp it but not before you burp it)?

ETA- it looks like yours has the same idea built in, you may just need to find the vent and raise that side of the waterer slightly.
 

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Among others, I have the 5-gallon bucket version of that- a 5 gallon bucket with a lid (not necessary, but it makes life easier) with 5 small holes drilled around the rim, one ~1/4" lower than the others, inverted in a wide pan. It originally only had the 4 holes on the same level and I had the same issue you do. Is there a way to drill a small hole near the bottom (in the part that is covered by water when you burp it but not before you burp it)?

ETA- it looks like yours has the same idea built in, you may just need to find the vent and raise that side of the waterer slightly.
I'm not even sure I've ever seen actual holes. It's just the double wall thing and there's a little metal pice that "hooks" the outer cover to the inner bucket/pan piece. There's also some kind of vertical metal band inside that seems to keep some miniscule space between the walls. I think the idea that it needs to be level might be the problem. It's never level so I'm going to fix that. In the meantime I found this amazing history of waterers and will probably devise my own without having to spend any money that I don't have.

waterer history
 

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