I actually went out today to do a video to post up. When I loaded it to the computer and started to watch, I realized I had held my iphone the wrong way and did a whole 8 minute coop and run tour video sideways.......
....
so I'll try to get one tomorrow if I can between church times, LOL
I was unable to get a pic of the whole system because the space it's in is a bit small and cramped. It's a shed that is climate controlled but has no ambient light. I added some florescent lights because the fodder wasn't greening well.
Some of the parts are new, some of them we had on hand and had to modify a little. We used 6 gutters, one for each day capped off at each end. Water is pumped out of a barrel with an old aquarium pump, pushed through a 6 port manifold used for a misting system, 1/4" drip tubing and throttled with a 2 gal/hour flow nozzle.
Instead of using a sprinkler controller we use 2 separate programmable timers. We use a mechanical timer for the lights and a digital timer for water control. The mechanical timer only works in 30 minute intervals.
The top gutters drain into the bottom gutters which drains into a bucket that is piped outside to fill a water barrel. We use that to water the garden.
In the morning, I harvest a gutter, clean it out, distribute soaked grains in the clean gutter, start the soak on tomorrow's grains and top off the water barrel with a garden hose. In the evening I top off the barrel. I spend less than 30 minutes a day total.
My grain bucket mix recipe:
12 cups wheat
12 cups barley
6 cups BOSS
4 cups Austrian winter pea
For my flock of 19 girls, each day I provide 3 cups of dry grains soaked in water for 24 hours and then sprouted in my automatically watered gutter system for 6 days.
In the morning, I harvest a gutter, clean it out, distributed the soaked grains, and start the soak on tomorrow's grains and top off the water barrel with a garden hose. In the evening I top off the barrel. I spend less than 30 minutes a day total.
My grain bucket mix recipe:
12 cups wheat
12 cups barley
3 cups BOSS
2 cups Austrian winter pea
For my flock of 19 girls, each day I provide 3 cups of dry grains soaked in water for 24 hours and then sprouted in my automatically watered gutter system for 6 days.
great setup and system! I love how that looks and the timers make everything so much easier.....BUT
for those who don't know though, you don't have to get all fancy with timers and such. You soak the seed at least 5 or 6 hours, but can soak over night, spread it out in whatever kind of pan/tray you decide to use and keep it moist but not soaked. Most people will do a tray a day, and on the 7th day, you take the first one to the chickens to feed with, and refill it to start all over again. Each day you'll have a pan ready to go.
My plans are to start the seeds soaking before bed at night, and take the fodder out first thing in the morning, and then I can start the seeds that were soaked overnight
I was unable to get a pic of the whole system because the space it's in is a bit small and cramped. It's a shed that is climate controlled but has no ambient light. I added some florescent lights because the fodder wasn't greening well.
Some of the parts are new, some of them we had on hand and had to modify a little. We used 6 gutters, one for each day capped off at each end. Water is pumped out of a barrel with an old aquarium pump, pushed through a 6 port manifold used for a misting system, 1/4" drip tubing and throttled with a 1 gal/min flow nozzle.
Instead of using a sprinkler controller we use 2 separate programmable timers. We use a mechanical timer for the lights and a digital timer for water control. The mechanical timer only works in 30 minute intervals.
The top gutters drain into the bottom gutters which drains into a bucket that is piped outside to fill a water barrel. We use that to water the garden.
In the morning, I harvest a gutter, clean it out, distribute soaked grains in the clean gutter, start the soak on tomorrow's grains and top off the water barrel with a garden hose. In the evening I top off the barrel. I spend less than 30 minutes a day total.
My grain bucket mix recipe:
12 cups wheat
12 cups barley
3 cups BOSS
2 cups Austrian winter pea
For my flock of 19 girls, each day I provide 3 cups of dry grains soaked in water for 24 hours and then sprouted in my automatically watered gutter system for 6 days.
how long are your gutter sections? and, how long does the fodder last in the chicken pen? do they gobble it up quickly, or does it last a few hours? the really cool thing from what I've read is they eat absolutely every bit of it
That is a sweet set up! I think to get things going, at this point, I'll try the simpler method. I really like this idea and know the birds will love it!
how long are your gutter sections? and, how long does the fodder last in the chicken pen? do they gobble it up quickly, or does it last a few hours? the really cool thing from what I've read is they eat absolutely every bit of it
The gutters are the standard 10' you get from Home Depot. With 3 cups of fodder, I could spread it out to just about 1 seed thick and still have room on either side which is why I needed to throttle the waterflow. I could go thicker but right now I don't need any more than that. They attack it pretty hard when I put it out but it lasts most of the day. In the evening I still see a few remnants but by the next day its all gone.
