poll: which waterer is best

[Blooie]

How hard is it to get them used to a nipple system after using hanging waterers? I would have switched already but it actually looks like more hassle than just refilling a 5 gallon bucket with a hose...

I like the cleanliness of the nipples, but I have a hose in my hand most if the day anyway, shooting water to into their bucket us just a swish if my hand lol... Winter is a different story; I can't get anything without a heater to stay thawed longer than 4 hours....

@Blooie how do you keep your water thawed up there?

We have a stock tank heater in the bucket and it works very well to keep the water itself from freezing. When we get our super cold days - those days when it's -17 or colder - sometimes the little catch cups under the nipple mechanism will freeze in the overnight hours. When they do, it's something to see. The little bit of water left in that tiny red cup will freeze, and that ice sometimes forces the metal trigger open. When that happens we get the prettiest icicles from the nipples, down the bricks the waterer stands on, and onto the floor right in front of the waterer. So as long as I'm going out to the coop first thing in the morning anyway, we just grab the heat gun. Takes just a few seconds to thaw each nipple and we're back in business. In fact, that takes less time to thaw the icicles than it does to dump a frozen pan of water and refill it. The nipples don't freeze during the day when the waterer is being used regularly, just during the night when the chickens aren't drinking.

~
Thawing the nipples on the waterer. Just takes a few seconds for each nipple. We start with the cup area first, then hit the icicles.

~
Here the cup has been done, but you can see the icicle going down the brick.

Despite having to go out there and do this, I'd still rather use this system than anything else. The nipples don't freeze up on us except for a few days each winter when we get our sub-zero spells. We had a long discussion about this somewhere on the forum last year and this year the new bucket has the nipples up higher on the waterer. Don't know if that will eliminate the issue, but lots of folks in that other thread thought it might so we're trying it. If it works, great - if not, we're no worse off than we were before. Another thing we are doing differently this year is keeping the water bucket out in the run rather than in the coop. The run is covered with clear greenhouse plastic during the winter and is usually warmer than the coop because of it. So we'll see.

 

[elkinsacres]

I should have mentioned that I use a 5 gallon bucket with a 'Gamma' lid. You have to use a mallet to tap on the collar, then the lid unscrews. This makes it VERY easy to refill using whatever method you use to refill any other container.

As for 'training', I second what has been said here. The nipples themselves are red for a reason - the chickens are genetically compelled to investigate and peck at them! Just remove all other water sources, depress the little plunger on the nipple to extract a few drops and the chickens will figure it out. I keep a nipple waterer in with my chicks as well, but I wait until I have seen multiple chicks using it to confirm all of them are strong enough to peck the nipples sufficiently to draw water. They pretty much train themselves. Easy peasy.

 

[shortgrass]

We have a stock tank heater in the bucket and it works very well to keep the water itself from freezing. When we get our super cold days - those days when it's -17 or colder - sometimes the little catch cups under the nipple mechanism will freeze in the overnight hours. When they do, it's something to see. The little bit of water left in that tiny red cup will freeze, and that ice sometimes forces the metal trigger open. When that happens we get the prettiest icicles from the nipples, down the bricks the waterer stands on, and onto the floor right in front of the waterer. So as long as I'm going out to the coop first thing in the morning anyway, we just grab the heat gun. Takes just a few seconds to thaw each nipple and we're back in business. In fact, that takes less time to thaw the icicles than it does to dump a frozen pan of water and refill it. The nipples don't freeze during the day when the waterer is being used regularly, just during the night when the chickens aren't drinking. ~ Thawing the nipples on the waterer. Just takes a few seconds for each nipple. We start with the cup area first, then hit the icicles. ~ Here the cup has been done, but you can see the icicle going down the brick. Despite having to go out there and do this, I'd still rather use this system than anything else. The nipples don't freeze up on us except for a few days each winter when we get our sub-zero spells. We had a long discussion about this somewhere on the forum last year and this year the new bucket has the nipples up higher on the waterer. Don't know if that will eliminate the issue, but lots of folks in that other thread thought it might so we're trying it. If it works, great - if not, we're no worse off than we were before. Another thing we are doing differently this year is keeping the water bucket out in the run rather than in the coop. The run is covered with clear greenhouse plastic during the winter and is usually warmer than the coop because of it. So we'll see.

Well what would we do withoytvtank heaters? I guess I was not fully understanding that the water in the line for the nipples was coming from a bigger source...one that a tank heater would fit in obviously... I was overthinking it, as usual lol... It's worth a shot, anyway, no sense in not trying.... Seems that if I REALLY didn't want to put up with ice, I would move eh? Lol but the icicles!... That's pretty neat how the uce can open up the nozzle but I would think it would wear out the nipples faster... By what are they, like $.05? Cheap enough...

I should have mentioned that I use a 5 gallon bucket with a 'Gamma' lid. You have to use a mallet to tap on the collar, then the lid unscrews. This makes it VERY easy to refill using whatever method you use to refill any other container. As for 'training', I second what has been said here. The nipples themselves are red for a reason - the chickens are genetically compelled to investigate and peck at them! Just remove all other water sources, depress the little plunger on the nipple to extract a few drops and the chickens will figure it out. I keep a nipple waterer in with my chicks as well, but I wait until I have seen multiple chicks using it to confirm all of them are strong enough to peck the nipples sufficiently to draw water. They pretty much train themselves. Easy peasy.

Why do they like red?!?! Its helpful, either way, guess they csn see it more clearly...I also suppose they had to learn to eat and drink from the bottom feeders too, they're not entirely spoiled that they can't learn something new lol...finger tapping/training, here I come

 

[elkinsacres]

I saw a documentary on hummingbirds that explained why many flowers are red - birds can see that color while insects cannot. While that doesn't directly apply here, since the chickens are not competing with insects for water, the principle does. The manufacturers just make them red (and the cup waterers are usually orange...) because it is a genetic trigger for the birds.

Side Note: If any of your chicks ever get 'pasty butt', the preferred remedy is to use warm water rather than just pick it off. Why? You could potentially irritate the area, reddening it. This could trigger other birds to peck at them, specifically at the reddened spot.

 

[shortgrass]

I saw a documentary on hummingbirds that explained why many flowers are red - birds can see that color while insects cannot. While that doesn't directly apply here, since the chickens are not competing with insects for water, the principle does. The manufacturers just make them red (and the cup waterers are usually orange...) because it is a genetic trigger for the birds.

Side Note: If any of your chicks ever get 'pasty butt', the preferred remedy is to use warm water rather than just pick it off. Why? You could potentially irritate the area, reddening it. This could trigger other birds to peck at them, specifically at the reddened spot.

Ahhhhh I love this place lol... Hummingbirds, now I feel stupid ha-ha

I HAVE hummingbird feeders, and I knew that

I won't sidetrack with the red flag vs bull story then

Thank you!

 

[copper2]

Um how do you post a poll? Just wondering...

 

[wingedshade]

Does anyone here have experience with using the nipple waterers in drawn out periods of cold? This winter was mild but we have had -40f that lasted a week or more. I think Mom used to have two metal waterers and bring one in to thaw and swap them out at food times. I might do that, but I also kinda want something that is heated. Last time I took care of chickens I had a heated dog bowl. It wasn't too great because the chickens perched on it and the ducks tried to bathe in it. The heat also seemed to evaporate the water more quickly.

 

[MeepBeep]

Does anyone here have experience with using the nipple waterers in drawn out periods of cold? This winter was mild but we have had -40f that lasted a week or more. I think Mom used to have two metal waterers and bring one in to thaw and swap them out at food times. I might do that, but I also kinda want something that is heated. Last time I took care of chickens I had a heated dog bowl. It wasn't too great because the chickens perched on it and the ducks tried to bathe in it. The heat also seemed to evaporate the water more quickly.

I did some test this winter, using the 4ish gallon jug (pictured bellow), 3 horizontal nipples, a 50w aquarium heater (pictured bellow) the heater for my test was being controlled by an external thermostat so I could go lower then the fixed 78° temp setting and see the effects of different temps... The nipples were set about 2" above the bottom of the jug with the heater suction cupped to the bottom, this way it would never run 'dry' and risk damage to the jug or the heater... I use these waterers in my broody and breeding pens configured the same way, less the heater...

I found that setting the thermostat at 70° did well to about -10°, so you could probably skip the external thermostat and just run it at the factory set 78° and be good to a little more extreme cold it would just use a little more electricity... My test did not include any additional insulation around the jug, it was just place out of the wind, it was a proof of concept only... When the sun came out the small amount of ice on the nipple generally melted away or was easy enough to flick away with my finges simulating a chicken pecking... All in all it performed quite well...

As I said this was only a proof of concept, my coop is heated to 35° so I don't have to really worry about frozen water in there, but this winter I did put a heater in that 55 gallon drum as well and held the water at about 45° just to be sure, the chickens seemed to enjoy the warmer water...

 

[Blooie]

I use one all winter here in northern Wyoming. First year was sometimes a pain - the water in the bucket never froze but water left sitting in the little cups on the horizontal nipples did..and formed some pretty impressive icicles all the way to the floor. We used to get dressed, start the coffee, bundle up, and take a heat gun out there first thing in the morning. No big deal because we were going out for morning chores anyway and it only took a couple of minutes to thaw them. The only time it happened was when temps were down close to -20 degrees. The rest of the time it was fine. The nipples were pretty low on the water bucket and someone on another thread used one of those point and shoot thermometers and found that the water was warmer the higher up he aimed it. We also had the water bucket sitting up on open ended bricks and it was in the coop. As the water dabs left in the cups froze, it would expand and then push against the trigger mechanism, releasing more water in a small but steady stream. I'd 10 times rather do this, though, than haul out heavy water buckets twice a day and slosh that all over my clothes on the way out there!

This winter we located the nipples up higher on the bucket and didn't have a single issue. We cover the run with plastic for the girls, so we kept the water out there where it got some sun. We also set it up on solid bricks. I'll never give up my nipple waterer....it may be a pain in the patoot on those occasions when the nipples freeze, but I'd still rather do that than lug heavy water containers back and forth twice a day.

Edited to delete photos because they are already posted in this thread. See above.

 

[wingedshade]

Wonderful, I do have a aquarium heater on hand. Thank you both for the info.