My water set-up

[xcalibor67]

Just wanted to show the water set up i liked best. I do have an outdoor water system as well, but in the coop i like my latest. 1st i tried several different makes of "Nipples" which all leaked, stopped up, or decided not to work properly for reasons unknown to man....I still used the toilet filler method, using the 4" thin wall drain pipe(Home depot), but as the actual part the chickens drink from i used a piece of 3" shc40 PVC with holes cut in the top. Since water seeks its own level, it took a couple of moves to get the pipe at the correct height(30 mins). I also put a ball cut-off at the end for easy cleaning of the main pvc. I found one of the long bristled tir cleaning brushes would slide right into one of the holes on top and made for an easy clean job, Use brush, open drain valve for 2 mins, done deal. The best part is....No dribbling nipples.. The lil wooden stepping stool was for when my birds were a bit short,lol. just food for thought.

 

[eggbert420]

 

[Chickenrunlady]

Just wanted to show the water set up i liked best. I do have an outdoor water system as well, but in the coop i like my latest. 1st i tried several different makes of "Nipples" which all leaked, stopped up, or decided not to work properly for reasons unknown to man....I still used the toilet filler method, using the 4" thin wall drain pipe(Home depot), but as the actual part the chickens drink from i used a piece of 3" shc40 PVC with holes cut in the top. Since water seeks its own level, it took a couple of moves to get the pipe at the correct height(30 mins). I also put a ball cut-off at the end for easy cleaning of the main pvc. I found one of the long bristled tir cleaning brushes would slide right into one of the holes on top and made for an easy clean job, Use brush, open drain valve for 2 mins, done deal. The best part is....No dribbling nipples.. The lil wooden stepping stool was for when my birds were a bit short,lol. just food for thought.

Hello!!! very cool. Do you fill it from the outside?
Thank you for sharing.

 

[xcalibor67]

Hi. No filling required. Totally automatic. I have a water line running from under the house into the coop, wheres its attached to the auto fill toilet valve. As the chickens drink from the 3" pvc, the water level drops and makes the fill valve open to keep it full. A simple weekly/bi- weekly cleaning and its a done deal. As i said, i used the toilet valve idea from another video, but i did come up with the idea of using the 3" pvc waterer, as all the nipples i tried dribbled or just didnt work very well.. I will say that the system can be modified to use a longer 3' water tube, depending on your flock size/needs.

 

[Chickenrunlady]

Thank you for the reply, any chance you have a link to that video? I'd like to do something like that. I'm still looking for a water "solution". I'm not keen on the nipples as they leak and I don;t think it's natural for the chickens to drink that way.

Hi. No filling required. Totally automatic. I have a water line running from under the house into the coop, wheres its attached to the auto fill toilet valve. As the chickens drink from the 3" pvc, the water level drops and makes the fill valve open to keep it full. A simple weekly/bi- weekly cleaning and its a done deal. As i said, i used the toilet valve idea from another video, but i did come up with the idea of using the 3" pvc waterer, as all the nipples i tried dribbled or just didnt work very well.. I will say that the system can be modified to use a longer 3' water tube, depending on your flock size/needs.

I'm looking for water system that will work for me and that I can do I'm not convinced about the nipples. Seems messy and not natural for chickens to drink this way. Thank you for sharing. Do you recall where you saw that video?

 

[xcalibor67]

Heres a link. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-pvc-true-auto-waterer.651102/
He uses the nipple style, but the main auto filler is set up the exact same way. Some people use a "Horizontal" style float valve, but i liked the toilet filler best. as they are designed for many operations, and can be had just about any store.

 

[Chickenrunlady]

Heres a link. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-pvc-true-auto-waterer.651102/
He uses the nipple style, but the main auto filler is set up the exact same way. Some people use a "Horizontal" style float valve, but i liked the toilet filler best. as they are designed for many operations, and can be had just about any store.

 

[Chickenrunlady]

Thank you so very much

 

[Chickenrunlady]

Thank you so very much, what a great idea.

 

[xcalibor67]

Im not sure if he specified the type PVC he used, but i would like to point out for anyone interested in building this set up, Make sure the 4" pipe is NOT schedule 40 (thick) wall. Use the "Drain Pipe" thin wall, as the filler valve will not fit into the sched.40 opening, and the caps for the sched.40 are not flat for easy drilling, attaching fittings, they are dome shaped. 6" pipe would be even better, as it gives a lil more working room installing the valve, but None of my local hardware stores carry the 6" in stock..