I made a feeder out of a 6 gallon trash can from Home Depot!

[daisydo]

Love Love Love it!!! About 14 bucks and it will hold about 40 pounds of feed... Yahooooo!

 

[RonC]

Glad you made something that works.I experimented trying to make one out of plastic buckets. They either couldn't get the feed out or I had it all over the ground.Finally broke down and just bought a 7 pound plastic feeder. Holds enough to feed 3 for a week. Also found they don't waste pellets like they did crumbles. I guess they can see the pellets on the ground, they wouldn't eat the crumbles after they hit the ground.

 

[daisydo]

Yeah, I'm pretty happy about it! I really wanted a metal one, but refused to spend the money the feed and seed stores sell them for. This seems to work well so far.. I have 7 chicks, so this will feed them for a while. I love the lid, makes it so easy!! I have a friend that has 50 chickens, he wants me to make 3 of them for him.. lol

 

[jbeck013]

Love it. What did you use for the bottom of it? How is it all secured? Details... I'll take 2 to go please!

 

[ChickenLegs13]

Love it. What did you use for the bottom of it? How is it all secured? Details... I'll take 2 to go please! 

X2. What size holes & how many? The devil is in the details.

 

[daisydo]

Well for the bottom, I found a beat up trash can lid when I bought the trash can at Home Depot, they just gave it to me..But I just made 3 of them for a friend that has about 50 chickens, I used the draining saucers that you use under a planter.. I cut the bottom of the trash can out, but left about 1 1/2" lip. I drilled 3 holes through the drain pan and the bottom lip of the bucket at the same time so they would be lined up. I used 4" long 5/16" carriage bolts, 6 3/16 washers, and then 3 nuts to secure. I ran the bolts through the bottom of the drain pan, up through the can. You can use pvc pipe cut into 3 3" pieces for spacers.Run bolt through the pvc piece, this will keep the space between the pan and the can. Works like a charm!!! Will hold about 35 pounds of grain. I love mine, and he loves the ones I made for him...

 

[daisydo]

I used a 3/8 drill bit to drill holes for the bolts..

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

These are very nice!

 

[daisydo]

Thanks!!! It was a cheap alternative to buying a metal one..I love the locking lid, and that it has the handle to hang..

 

[ChickenLegs13]

Thanks for the details!
Every time I built a bucket feeder I bored holes in the side around the bottom but it never worked satisfactorily. Now I see dispensing from the bottom is the key to it.
1 more ??? Do the 3" spacers allow the proper amount of feed to dispense, it doesn't overflow and the birds bill it out all over the place?