nipple waterers-nipples placed directly in bucket bottom?

[hippiechick53]

I have a question about making a waterer out of a 5 gallon bucket with nipples on the bottom. If you put the lid on will the nipples still work? You know, pressure and all.

 

[raizin]

No the nipples don't leak. The handle on the bucket will deform and pull out due to weight. Just cut a 2x2 piece of wood to fit just inside the bucket at the top lip, then drill a small hole in each side of the bucket into each end of the wood, use a large metal washer then insert a large eye bolt in each end. This way the bucket top will not deform and the lid will fit. Hook whatever you want to the eye bolts. You can even use a second 2x2 a foot above the bucket to keep your support spread out to make it easy to get the lid on and off. Very cheap and easy fix. Five gallons of water is a lot of water. It takes a lot of chickens to go through that much water in a couple of days.

 

[Redrocky]

I have four nipples in the bottom of a 5 gal. bucket. I hang it from the rafters on a chain. I drop a gallon block of ice in it each morning. Come winter, I probably put a gallon of hot tap water in. It seems to work pretty well.

Like the others have said, the handle on a bucket probably can't hold 5 gals of water for long. Honestly with 2 1/2 - 3 gal. it's getting a little dicey. With about a gallon, it deforms the bucket enough that it's hard to get the lid on and off. I'm not sure how just yet, but I'm going to work something up to support it better. It's good quick fix though.

P.S... I was thinking about replacing the handle as well. I was thinking about bending some rebar to making a really oversized handle and using a piece of angle iron as a brace to keep the bucket from deforming.

I use 2 chains spread wider than my bucket that way it doesn't deform the bucket and lid screws on. I remove lid ad fill with another bucket.