Official BYC Poll: Which type of waterers do you like best and why?

[RebeccaRN]

I use the over ez chicken waterer with self filling cups. They also make a heater that can go in it to keep the water from freezing. It holds 12 gal of water. I also have 3 gravity waterers around the yard for when they are out free ranging

 

[RebeccaRN]

OverEZ Chicken Waterer, this is what I use presently I never have dirt problems but in the winter I am going to use a premier 1 poultry waterer.

Over ez has a heater for their waterer, which is the one I have so I will be getting the heater if it gets too cold here in Oklahoma

 

[vantain]

Honestly I'm still looking for the perfect waterer, one that wouldn't need filling every day and whose content would not freeze in our very cold and humid Quebecan winters. Seriously thinking about trying one of the two heated horizontal nipple waterers below sometimes in the future, though I'm not sure which one to pick.

Farm Innovators Heated Poultry Waterer
Premier 1 Heated Poultry Waterer

In the meantime I've tried out vertical nipples in the summer months and found out they dripped alot. I use those only for chicks in a brooder now, when a wire mesh floor prevents them from sleeping on wet bedding.

Nipple cups failed right out of the box for me. The cups needed alot of stimulation to refill, and the water level took so much time to rise up that my chickens only tried them three times before returning to the water bowl.

Horizontal nipples are next on my list of things to try out. I'm crossing my fingers that they will not freeze under the winter temperatures of Quebec.

Heated dog bowls got discarded because my hens have a tendency to topple bowls if they're down to half-full, not to mention they are messy drinkers. I'm paranoid enough about the heated element meeting water and rip that I prefer not to play with that potential fire hazard. (It's warmer inside the coop than outside in the run, so the water stays inside the coop.)

For now I'm stuck with the good old non-heated water bowl that my chickens take immense pleasure of soiling every day, year round. I don't have anything to heat the water, so when the winter weather threatens to get nasty I give my hens a second bowl, packed with snow. The snow doesn't freeze or make a mess, the hens love nibbling on it and they still get water out of it, even if it takes a bit more time to drink that way. The snow bowl gives me time to shovel open the path to their coop without running myself aground, so it's a win-win all around.

I'm in Minnesota, and have used the Farm Innovators one you linked for two winters. I can attest to the fact that it kept water fluid down to -34F. There was ice in the bucket, but mainly just the top 1/4" of water was iced over. The nipples were still flowing water easily when pecked. The first winter it did great, but last winter I ran into an issue with it failing. As the hens peck on the nipples, some of the water drips down the side of the pail and somehow manages to weep into the heated base. When enough water ends up in there, it shorts out the heating element. I found the waterer frozen on two occasions. To fix it, I removed the base, cleaned out the water and dried it, then removed and cleaned the element contacts. Once I did that, it was good to go again. This happened twice on me. But other than that, it performed beyond expectations. I can't use it this year, as I have a blind hen who cannot use a nipple waterer, so I am going to use the Little Giant galvanized fount waterer on a heated base. I'd much prefer the nipple waterer.

A few other things I like about the Farm Innovators one:
1) It is opaque. That makes it really easy to see the water level and know when it needs to be filled.
2) The lid can be removed without having to remove it from the hanger. This makes it really easy to just take a pitcher of water out and fill it in place.
3) It only draws 65 watts.

For my issue with water getting into the base, I think I can resolve it by simply using some silicone to seal the base and prevent water from weeping into it.

I was looking at the Premier one for this year, before I knew I had a blind chicken. I liked the removable cord feature, but didn't like the fact that you have to remove the waterer from the hanger to remove the lid. That alone makes the Farm Innovator one way better. I guess it would be fine if you didn't hang it. You also can't see the water level without feeling how full it is or looking.

All that said, If not for my blind chicken, I'd be using mine for a third winter, since it has proven itself to me at temperature I thought it would never handle.

 

[FloorCandy]

I use horizontal nipples attached to a really large old Snyder’s pretzel container. I teach the chicks to use the horizontal nipples at about 3 weeks (I raise quail and find they have trouble consistently pressing the nipple when they’re younger). The horizontal nipples in the brooder are amazing, they keep the smell down and the bedding dry, and in the pen there’s no issue of dirt and bedding getting into the water, and I can go away for a weekend no problem and the water is there for them.

 

[Eelantha]

The water de-icer element I got for our Kio tank is visually similar to the unit used in the 1st link FWIW... I can update more on that later. Good night.

The de-icer shown in the first article is called Farm Innovators Model C-250 "Around The Farm" Submergible Cast Aluminum Utility De-Icer, 250-Watt . Many backyarders speak well of it. Is that what you have?

@aart - Thank you! I'll definitely look up the Aqueon brand and see if it sells in my area!

@vantain : -34°F/-36°C is a very relieving number for me to read, as my country can drop all the way down to -40°F/-40°C during the coldest nights of winter. Having a heated waterer that can still distribute water to my chickens in such low temps is gold to me, so thank you immensely for adding your input into this thread!

Does your Farm Innovator Waterer have some kind of vacuum hole in it? I've come across that feature several times in DIY waterer articles and threads, and as far as I know the Premier 1 Poultry Waterer does not have one.

Clarification-wise, was your heated waterer kept warm only by the element base, or did you have FI's 250W stock tank de-icer to help keep the water unfrozen?

And when you speak of silicone to seal up the base element, do you mean Flextra?

I was looking at the Premier one for this year, before I knew I had a blind chicken. I liked the removable cord feature, but didn't like the fact that you have to remove the waterer from the hanger to remove the lid. That alone makes the Farm Innovator one way better. I guess it would be fine if you didn't hang it. You also can't see the water level without feeling how full it is or looking.

Removable cord feature: yes for me, though that becomes no for P1 if I can't tape the plug opening shut during the warm months to keep dust at bay. FI's removable element accomplishes a similar goal, so they're tied here.

Lid features: the steep angle of the Premier 1's cone lid appeals to me, as my chickens have less chances of successfully perching on it than the FI's flatter cone lid. P1's interlocking lid also helps me considerably decrease spilling messes inside the coop, as my hens like toppling their water bowls. In that aspect, FI's non-interlocked lid is a disastrous flood waiting to happen.

Water level gauge: My future heated waterer would sit on a cement block, as I don't trust the 30 years old plywood ceiling of the coop to support 2-3 gallons of water. Weighting the waterer would not be a problem, but I agree with you that seeing the water level would be nicer. Less energy spent that way, and also less chances to miss a refill if I can see how much water is left. FI's waterer wins that one.

Element heater: P1's element is within the bucket. FI' element sits outside. The first can't be removed, the second can. Depending on the backyarder's needs, both features have their appeals and flaws. I was swaying towards FI's heated waterer until I read your comment about the dripped water on the element base, making it short-circuit. Although a problem easily fixed, now I'm wondering: how safe is that element base while exposed to dust? Can you clean it of accumulated dust without burning yourself, every once in a while?

Temperature-wise: -34°F for a 2 gallon bucket with a 65W base element heater versus -12°F for a DIY 2 gallon kitty litter jug with a 50W aquarium heater. The element base heater definitely has the present lead here, but that can change if other backyarders add their input into this thread. Also the P1's heating performances don't yet have any recorded temps, so it's a mystery over how well it fares in cold climates.

Thank you again for commenting here, it will help alot of backyarders like myself find (or build) the perfect waterer for their coops!

 

[vantain]

-34°F/-36°C is a very relieving number for me to read, as my country can drop all the way down to -40°F/-40°C during the coldest nights of winter. Having a heated waterer that can still distribute water to my chickens in such low temps is gold to me, so thank you immensely for adding your input into this thread!

Does your Farm Innovator Waterer have some kind of vacuum hole in it? I've come across that feature several times in DIY waterer articles and threads, and as far as I know the Premier 1 Poultry Waterer does not have one.

Bear in mind, that mine was inside a run that was closed in with polycarbonate panels to help keep wind and snow off the chickens. The -34F is what was seen on my thermometer that was in the run itself, just a foot away from the hanging waterer. As I said, I never expected it to do as well as it did in temperatures like that overnight. And again, there was ice in it, but not enough to stop the flow of water to the nipples themselves. As far as a vacuum hole..the lid fits loose enough to not create a vacuum. It has never been an issue. I basically tested the nipples every morning to make sure they were clear and still usable. My chickens never tried to perch on it, but that's probably because it was hanging, which makes that a bit difficult.

I only had four chickens the last two winters. This year, I have 10, and a significantly larger run, so everything has changed.

Attached is one picture where it was -30F in the run, and another showing how I had it hanging.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Removable cord feature: yes for me, though that becomes no for P1 if I can't tape the plug opening shut during the warm months to keep dust at bay. FI's removable element accomplishes a similar goal, so they're tied here.

Lid features: the steep angle of the Premier 1's cone lid appeals to me, as my chickens have less chances of successfully perching on it than the FI's flatter cone lid. P1's interlocking lid also helps me considerably decrease spilling messes inside the coop, as my hens like toppling their water bowls. In that aspect, FI's non-interlocked lid is a disastrous flood waiting to happen.

Water level gauge: My future heated waterer would sit on a cement block, as I don't trust the 30 years old plywood ceiling of the coop to support 2-3 gallons of water. Weighting the waterer would not be a problem, but I agree with you that seeing the water level would be nicer. Less energy spent that way, and also less chances to miss a refill if I can see how much water is left. FI's waterer wins that one.

Just a couple of notes on the P1 waterer:

- The removable cord feature includes a cover that slides onto the electrical inlet, so it's safe to use this waterer year round out in the elements.

- The cone top of the P1 waterer isn't completely steep enough to 100% stop chickens from getting on it, though I've only ever seen one bird actually get up there and stay, so overall it does the job, even if not perfectly.

- I deliberately chose the P1 waterer for the fact that the body of the bucket is completely opaque. A see-through bucket is invitation for algae growth - with an opaque bucket kept in the shade, I have no algae problem to deal with.

 

[electrycmonk]

The de-icer shown in the first article is called Farm Innovators Model C-250 "Around The Farm" Submergible Cast Aluminum Utility De-Icer, 250-Watt . Many backyarders speak well of it. Is that what you have?

I can't seem to find the original box... I'll see what I can figure out - forensically speaking....

 

[Ladies-Eight]

I use PVC pipes, and drilled holes in the bottom and put poultry nipples in the bottom and the girls seem to enjoy!

Where do you live in Northern Florida?

 

[Ladies-Eight]

A couple hours inland.

I don't know if our town water was especially acid or not, but central NC's blistering summers seem to do a job on all sorts of materials.

The same happens in Florida. I only live an hour from the coast. We have very high temperatures and humidity.

I have two galvanized waterers that have rusted out in three years.

Right now I'm using an old white metal pan (like the white ones you use to see in the physicians office way back).