Installing automatic waterer? Little Giant

[GoodEgg]

Hi all,

I'm going to have to be away from my animals for the day from time to time, and I'm losing my "chicken-sitter." The ducks and grown chickens have a trough, so they are fine with water. But the baby gooses go through a LOT and I don't want them to be without, especially as the weather gets hotter.

I finally broke down and invested (via income tax refund, LOL) in a Little Giant 2500 bowl. When I opened it up, I found out it's not just a matter of attaching it to the water hose.

(Which I was worried anyway about what if they knock it over and it just runs water all day ... )

First, I think I need some kind of adapter to attach it to the hose. I can probably figure that out. But it also says it has to be suspended 2-3 inches from the ground in order to work. I can't understand why this should be, but maybe that will solve the problem of possible tipping.

I can't figure out how to securely mount it though, and to what? Has anyone done this and can tell me how they did it, or have a picture? I need to get it in place pretty quickly if I can.

(And I know it's possible to supply it with a drum, but I don't have one, nor a place to put it raised up high, so I'd rather use the hose if possible, even at risk of bursting hose ... I don't think I have a choice right now.)

I feel like such a ditz having to ask questions like this. Should I admit that I also had to use a kind air supply hose I wasn't familiar with last week an almost let all the air out of the tire on my car I was trying to put more air INTO before I figured it out?

At least I managed to build a chicken coop on my own, LOL

Thanks!

trish

 

[Yogiman]

Hi Trish,
I use this waterer exclusively. They are a blessing to have. But they do have to be hung in order to work. They work off of gravitational pull down on the weight of the bow. They cannot work under any other circumstances.
It can be connected to a garden hose but you will need a pipe to hose adaptor commonly referred to as a 'hose bib".
They are normally available in the garden section of most stores. You will need a 1/2 inch pipe to hose adaptor because the female end of the waterer is 1/2 inch pipe threads. I have often hooked one up this way and hang it over the fence inside the pen. They work great. You will want to read the instructions inside the cover for adjustment instructions.

 

[GoodEgg]

Thanks Yogiman,

I'll have to see what I can do with this. So you just hang it then, without a fixed hard mounting of the bowl? That makes sense.

I guess I can always mount the hose to something just above the bowl, if I need it to be fixed a little better. That may be ... if the way the chickens swing their feeder sometimes is any indication. The baby gooses may play football with the waterer or something, LOL.

Thanks again,
trish

 

[alalele]

I have been looking at this type automatic watering system too, so was glad to find this info!

Yogiman...
Does this look like the part (pipe to hose adapter) needed for the Little Giant 2500? I guess it would work with the 2525 as well? Was thinking with only 4 chickens that maybe the 2525 would be sufficient, but not sure??

Also, does the hose have to be high quality? I thought by the way the part looked is you have to cut off the end of the hose pipe to fit this adapter, and hoped I could use one of the cheap ones I've already got. They just tend to kink more easily, so wasn't sure. With water pressure, wasn't sure if that would be an issue. Thanks!

 

[Yogiman]

I want to clarify myself. You can use the garden hose connection if that's all available to you. I have used it on a temporary basis until I hard pipe it with PVC pipe. I always install a valve immediately ahead of each waterer for the obvious reason.
The adapter fitting shown here can and will work. However, I was referring to a hose bib that actually screws to the garden hose male end just like another hose. It prevents you from having to cut the hose which you would have to do to use that adapter.
The adapters are sometimes stocked in the home centers where the irrigation supplies are stocked.

 

[alalele]

Yogiman,

It sure looks like the Little Giant system is low maintainence and be easy to keep clean? How often a week do you have to clean the bowls?

I'm looking at a temporary measure for now, so what I understand you saying that the regular hose pipe (cut end) attached to the adaptor (pictured above) WILL work , and there are no other parts needed? I wanted to be sure there wasn't anything else I needed at the time of order. www.cutlersupply.com has other parts that don't look easy to find locally, so wanted to make sure to save on shipping costs.

Thanks for the additional info on a hard install... for later reference... When I looked up "hose bib" it looks like a regular outdoor faucet. Is that right? Thanks again!

 

[Yogiman]

I think the correct term is "hose bib adapter". If you can, I would suggest to order some extra valves for it. On the literature it tells you not to use an air valve core. I did and they don't last very long. Your water quality determines how long the valve will last. If you can't find it PM me and I will help you find it. I need to order some more myself.
I will also look for the correct item for the hose bib adapter and get that info to you.