Our Chicken McMansion

[aart]

Nice!

 

[write2caroline]

Lucky clucks!!!! Nice Digs for your Chickens!!!!!

Caroline

 

[JaneJohnReed]

Here is our current waterer. It's just a standard, heated unit that we bought a little over a year ago and didn't like it. The capacity wasn't enough and we didn't like how it filled.


Here's what we had in the chicken tractor that we haven't moved to the new set up yet.

This is a standard five-gallon bucket, which we drilled holes in the bottom for 4 chicken nipples, screwed in using silicone tape to seal them. Then we installed a simple float type toilet fill valve, also through the bottom, which is connected to a hose so to fill all we need to do is to fill it is to turn on the hose. The float valve shuts off when the bucket is full so there's no mess in the run. We put a small hole, high up on the side, above the water line, with a screen glued over it with caulking to make sure it vents. And then we pounded on the lid. Works like a charm but we blew up two hoses to figure out that hoses won't hold up to continuous water pressure. We put a cattle tank water heater in the bucket last winter and never had a bit of trouble with freezing.

We haven't installed the bucket waterer in the new set up yet because we're kind of arguing about whether to put it inside the coop or keep it outside. It was outside in the chicken tractor because it had to be. Now we have a choice and can't make up our mind. Any suggestions, one way or the other?


Here's the way the nesting box looks from the outside - both open and closed.

 

[JaneJohnReed]

This is all still new and we're tuning things, but it looks like with our five hens the feed will last a full week without any concern. That's not going to allow any of the feed to have any issues. So far, the only problem we're having is the hens wasting the feed. They flip it with their beaks and it's all over the floor! We're scratching our heads on this but we think that perhaps we've got too much feed in the tray and need to lower the PVC pipe some to slow the flow of the feed into the tray. Any ideas from more experienced people would be appreciated on this one.

Our set up allows for a second feeder, just like the first one, can be put in to double our capacity when we enlarge our flock.

 

[aart]

Nice!

 

[Bullitt]

That is a very nice coop and run. I see you have the chairs set up to watch the chickens.

I think the 5-gallon waterer can go where you currently have the waterer in the run. Although, the water would stay a little warmer inside the coop in the winter. But that does not seem to be a concern.

Your hens look like production reds or Red Sex Links. What are your hens?

 

[paintwife]

Looks great!

 

[JaneJohnReed]

Gold Stars. They are great layers!

 

[432bullet]

Hi folks, your set up is a lot like ours. We are using a standard PVC Y fitting on a 4 inch PVC pipe and having very little waste, Feeding Layer pellets. We have the same type water bucket that you do and we have one in the coop and one in the run. They have worked out great so far, We have shut off valves so the one out side can be left empty in the cold weather. Just what works for us

 

[patvetzal]

I made a feeder that would take a whole bag of pellets, then had the same problem with the birds flipping it out sideways.(feed area is 12" wide) Had to put some dividers in so they had to reach straight in to get the food. If they flipped it sideways it just hit the dividers and fell back into the trough.
Trying to get up the nerve to cut holes in my exterior wall for outside nesting boxes, but my wall is made from 4" of metal covered styrofoam from a walk in freezer......