Methods for keeping water from freezing

[daxigait]

I am a local truck driver and put out feed and water by five A.M and I am usually home after 6 P.M. I have some 13 week old pullets wintering in my brooder tractor. I am using a cat pad heated for six minutes placed on a solid concrete block with a quart water on it to keep the water liquid. The other morning it was 12° plus the wind chill and the high was 26/28. The water even on that day was not frozen it only had a very thin (just touch with finger to break) layer of ice when I got home at 9 P.M. the water sits in the run under the raise coop of this tractor.

I will see how cold it works to as winter goes on, but for now it works and beats an extension cord and heated bowl.

 

[dthompson]

There are much safer ways to keep your water liquid during cold spells!!

Heat lamps are a documented cause of coop fires.

Heat lamp fire!
Another heat lamp fire!
Yet another issue, and fires!

I can attest to heat lamps and fires! I lost all my birds, my chicken house and shed due to faulty wiring on a NEW heat lamp last year. We had to start all over! I refuse to use ANY electricity out w/ my girls now. I am fortunate that I stay home and I can bring them water throughout the day. Watch out people for that electricity!

 

[n2omike]

I simply use a $15 submersible 50 Watt aquarium heater from Walmart. Works great.

 

[lazy gardener]

I simply use a $15 submersible 50 Watt aquarium heater from Walmart. Works great.

What are your winter temps???? What is your latitude, or your growing zone?

 

[n2omike]

What are your winter temps???? What is your latitude, or your growing zone?

Central WV. Sometimes gets to around 0F.
Depending upon the amount of water and temperature, a 50W heater works really well. In a 1 gallon ice cream bucket, they will keep the water fairly warm down to significantly cold temperatures. I've never had the water freeze.

If you are in an extremely cold climate, an insulated container/cooler could be used with the heater, and there's no way the water would freeze. Would probably stay around 70 degrees. lol

If you use a BIG non-insulated bucket/waterer, the temperature is too cold, and one heater isn't cutting it... you can always add a second one.

50 Watts submerged directly into the water is quite a bit of heat. It's a MUCH more efficient method of transferring 50W of heat to the water, than simply shining a light bulb on it... as not all the heat from the light bulb gets transferred to the water.

Good Luck!

 

[EagleEyes]

I can attest to heat lamps and fires! I lost all my birds, my chicken house and shed due to faulty wiring on a NEW heat lamp last year. We had to start all over! I refuse to use ANY electricity out w/ my girls now. I am fortunate that I stay home and I can bring them water throughout the day. Watch out people for that electricity!

Actually it's not the electricity that is the problem, it's how people use electricity.
IMHO

 

[heartfire9]

I simply use a $15 submersible 50 Watt aquarium heater from Walmart.  Works great.

I am glad to see someone else uses an aquarium heater. I put a small aquarium heater in a half full 5 gallon bucket. I only turn it on when the Temps drop low enough to freeze the water. The water in the bucket is a little warm, but the chickens don't seem to mind.

Had my first day of snow with my small flock of 10. Cracked the coop door open and their choice was to stay inside. 7 inches of snow on the ground didn't appeal to them much.

 

[daxigait]

Well to report, the heated pad worked even down to five degrees last winter. With a bigger waterer, I'd does well for at least eight hours. It was fine yesterday that started out at 5 with a wind chill of negative five and went up to 32. It was out for ten hours.

I also installed power to my coop and use horizontal nipples in a five gallon bucket with this $25 bucket heater from Amazon it is out 24/7 and has worked beautifully. Our coldest so far was in the single digit negatives with wind chill in the teens.
K&H ultimate 250 watt submersible pail heater by K&H manufacturing.

 

[markhoh3]

Anybody ever try this? Take a bucket with water nippers and put a styrofoam minnow bucket inside of it. Would last awhile. If ice would forms at the top, you still have the water underneath. Cut small holes in bottom of styrofoam minnow bucket around water nippers in bucket. I'm a newbie to this. Just got my first chicks 2 days ago. Been fun so far!! Have 17 mixed pullets.

 

[mizsteffieb]

I saw on Pinterest, of all places, the idea that you can put a bottle full of salt water IN your chicken waterer to keep the chicken water from freezing -- supposedly because salt water won't freeze (excepting arctic locations, I'm guessing). Thinking of trying this as the hanger on my heated waterer broke last spring and I'm not in a hurry to buy another crappy plastic thing that will break. Any thoughts? Sound plausible?