How to keep water from freezing...

[SubArcticFowl]

I've got a heated plastic bowl that formerly belonged to my dog. It worked well for him.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Livestock tank deicers range from 150w to 1250w and far more than you need to keep a large chicken bowl thawed. Linked below is the 80w deicer I use.

I've tried heated water dispensers and heated dog bowls. Nothing lasts more than a season. You plug it in second season and it doesn't work. The black livestock bowls work great but you do need to be home to refill them before the birds coop when day temps are 15F. Solar gain keeps water thawed well in those and they are indestructible. Turn over and stomp out the ice. For the real cold parts of winter a 80w deicer in two gallon livestock bowl works perfect.

https://www.amazon.com/Pet-Products...1a5ed&pd_rd_wg=961UI&pd_rd_i=B01HT9DAHY&psc=1

 

[RoyalChick]

I used to keep a bucket in the house and one in the coop and swap them around twice a day.
Then I got the coop connected to electricity and have a heated waterer that I bring out when it is going to be well below freezing for days on end.
Much less work than swapping buckets all the time.

 

[jreardon1918]

Here is what we do. This is part of a quick article we did about preparing for the winter.
Preparing the girls for winter

The water is kept under the raised coop. We have an outlet installed by an electrician in the run. We have a 250 watt stock tank de-icer in the bucket. I do check that the water is still flowing on the really cold days. We generally plug this in starting in November. Although it is temperature controlled and only goes on when needed.

 

[mrtoren]

I don't have the time to refresh their water multiple times per day so I go with a heated base. It's a one time investment with tremendous pay back in terms of convenience, it should last years, and there is minimal fire risk if your electrical source is wired properly.

 

[aart]

Took a couple tries but I came up with this.
Has worked well for 5 years and down to -12°F.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-heated-waterer-with-horizontal-nipples.67256/

 

[Kyatesw]

As we get closer to winter, I'm sure many newbies, such as myself, will want to know the answer to 'How do you keep your waterers from freezing?' I saw a video and I am going to try the rock salt in a water bottle trick and see if they guy was telling the truth or just blowing smoke... What are your thoughts?

I use a winter extension cord and this: https://www.chewy.com/farm-innovato...k5ZwJ3ke-IDHC8f24ZbSliwL2mi-vIzRoCwdoQAvD_BwE

 

[lathorne65]

I remember reading that someone tried the salt water bottle last year. It failed to keep the water thawed.

If you don't have the ability to run electricity out to the coop, the only way I have read that really might work is manure. Dig a hole. Fill it with fresh manure. Put your water bowl on top. The composting of the manure will make heat and keep the water from freezing.

If you do have electricity the proven way of keeping your water thawed is a container with horizontal nipples. The container could be a tote, a plastic barrel, a bucket, or a large jug. Then you need a source of heat to keep the water thawed. I use a 250 watt stock tank deicer that is rated for use in plastic. It has a thermostat so turned on at 35 degrees and off at 40. Some use an aquarium heater. My 14 gallon tote with lid, horizontal (not vertical) nipples, and stock tank deicer has kept my chicken's water thawed down into the -20s F. I live in NW Montana where winters tend to be long and cold.

Do you have a link that might have directions on how to make the waterer?

 

[wamtazlady]

Do you have a link that might have directions on how to make the waterer?

It's easy. First you need a plastic container. It could be a bucket, a keg, a large jug...basically anything that can hold water preferably with a lid of some sort. I use a 14 gallon tote and lid I bought at Walmart. Then you need to get horizontal nipples. Vertical nipples will freeze when it gets cold so don't use them. Drill the proper sized holes on the side of the container a couple inches above the bottom. You will also need to add a hole near the top of the container for the electrical cord to pass through. This last hole also prevents having a vacuum form inside the tote. Lastly you will need a stock tank deicer. Mine is a submersible 250 watt deicer that is safe to use in plastic containers. Here is the one I use. The first one I had lasted through 4 winters before it needed replaced. The deicer is the expensive part of this at a cost of about $45. I will try to remember to take a picture of waterer tomorrow. All you will really see is a rectangular tote with horizontal nipples on the outside. Last you need to get the container off the ground. The nipples should be as high or a bit higher than the chicken's beaks. A neighbor gave me a wooden box to put the waterer on this past winter. My waterer needs filled every 2 weeks.

 

[CoconutCoffee]

It normally doesn't get cold enough here during the day for it to freeze except for cold snaps/fronts moving in but those don't last long. Overnight it will so I just take the waterers inside before bed and refill in the morning then throughout the day.