How do you water your chickens in the winter?!

[cheeptrick]

I just bought one of those plastic chicken fonts that you PLUG in and it keeps the water from freezing. WELL....I've used it twice and twice the darn thing has BROKEN OPEN as I'm turning it over and setting it up in the coop. Some serious 4 letter words were coming OUT OF MY chicken coop that day....and I thought....OK I'll give it another go since its starting to get cold. I filled it up....carried it out upside down as usual and turned it over and the DARNED thing came part again flooding my newly cleaned coop AGAIN!

DO NOT BUY them....they are NOT a good product and will last maybe 1 season tops.

 

[Sissy]

I have a 5 gal. plastic dog water with a hanging 125 watt white
heat lamp over it and its working fine. also getting a thermocube
From the hardware store to shut the heat lamp of at a certain temp. its a saver and only cost about 12-15.00

 

[Reinbeau]

I just plugged in one of those heated fonts. We ran the extension cord a couple of days ago. It's supposed to be nasty all weekend, hopefully this will keep them in water instead of ice!

 

[BeccaOH]

Quote:
I have the same issue. They are a bear to fill (fill outside and flip it over before going back into the coop), and I only do it every couple of days, which works okay for 8 chickens. I have it hanging and still the chickens kick litter into it.

I'll be switching to a large heated dog bowl up on some type of platform next year -- if not sooner.

 

[Reinbeau]

I did make sure the waterer was securely set in the base before I turned it over, but I can definitely see this is going to be a huge problem. My water is way up by the house, though, so any spillage will happen up there, by the faucet, not inside of the coop. I found it was best to quickly turn it over and then look at it to make sure it was snug. Definitely don't carry it to the coop upside down and then check it inside - as some of you have unfortunately found out!

 

[jeannieo]

I am a new chicken mama and am just figuring out some of the ways in which to keep my babies fed and watered. I thought the galvanized water fount with the galvanized heater under it would be the ticket but when I go to flip the waterer over I lose about half the water. I only have a two gallon one, how do people flip over ones that hold more??? Unless I'm doing it wrong and everyone is laughing hysterically at me!

And they kick the shavings in the water within 60 seconds of putting in clean water. I have it elevated but can't have it up too high because I have 3 silkies and 2 cochins along with my bigger girls. any words of wisdom out there?

And I LOVE BYC!!

 

[Reinbeau]

Quote:
You have a galvanized water fount that isn't double-walled? Mine has the part that you fill with the rimmed lip where they drink out of and the part that you slide down over it that creates the vacuum to hold the water (so it doesn't all leak out). I never turn mine over at all. Now this new heated plastic one yes, you do have to fill it and then flip it.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Some of the smaller plastic fonts do flip out water when you turn them over, and I just put a finger over the hole. But the 3 gallon galvanized waterers usually don't need flipping... I'd like to see a picture of that, please...

 

[redhen]

i send my husband outside to do it...

..

 

[Balfour Girl]

My new pet chickens are still in the neighbour's coop because we haven't built ours yet... and it's not insulated and has no electricity, so my hubby and I stapled plastic all around the inside to keep the bitter winter wind out, and I pack an ice cream pail with warm water down there two or three times a day. Next year we'll have our own coop, with insulated walls, no gaping holes, and electricity for heat lamps and water containers.