Show me your no waste feeders

[DobieLover]

How far in will/can a chicken stick it's head to get feed out? I do have another piece I can add... well, it is actually that female piece that the piece screws into to cap it off.

The 22.5 degree elbows are not that long.

If you get a street 22.5 elbow, you can just slip it in and turn it in whatever direction you want to experiment with it. I think Home Depot sells them.

It looks like this

 

[henless]

I use a tote like Ol Grey Mare. You can get covers for the elbows. I found that by sitting this tub where there is no block showing from underneath, I didn't have mice problems.

 

[wild chick]

@DobieLover - I'm thinking of making one of these and kinda sorry to hear that the OP is getting waste on the ground. So are you saying this elbow will make the chickens stick their heads in further so they can't rake the feed out? What about combs and wattles, do they rub raw ever? I have a rooster and only 2 hens that have a sizeable comb, the rest have pea combs and smaller wattles. My main reason is also so I can easily cap it at night instead of moving the big heavy one. (Oh, and I've had two Dobies in my life and they are simply the best, but that would be for another thread... )

 

[DobieLover]

@DobieLover - I'm thinking of making one of these and kinda sorry to hear that the OP is getting waste on the ground. So are you saying this elbow will make the chickens stick their heads in further so they can't rake the feed out? What about combs and wattles, do they rub raw ever? I have a rooster and only 2 hens that have a sizeable comb, the rest have pea combs and smaller wattles. My main reason is also so I can easily cap it at night instead of moving the big heavy one. (Oh, and I've had two Dobies in my life and they are simply the best, but that would be for another thread... )

I don't use a feeder like this as I ferment my feed.
However, to answer your questions, yes, this fitting will force the chickens to reach a little further in to get at the feed and make it harder for them to bill it out. With the diameter being 4" and PVC in general being very smooth it will not harm their combs and wattles.

Yes, getting into my past and present Dobies may require an entirely new forum!

 

[MotherOfChickens]

That depends on how far off the ground the top of that extension is for them. That, by the way, can easily be adjusted by simply either building up the bedding around it, adding a platform item for them to stand on if they need, or burying the bottom of the pipe down into the soil ....

Good idea!! Thank you!

 

[tigger19687]

@MotherOfChickens
Quick fix that works, and I did it to my PVC V feeders.
Get DUCT TAPE, put a piece over the bottom part, 3/4 to 1/2 over opening and then cut some so that it is not cutting in the neck of the bird. ** to stop the feed sticking to the other side of tape, but a piece sticky to sticky before you put it on the pipe.

RAISE up the pipe so they are not bending over to far get in there. works great.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

@MotherOfChickens
Quick fix that works, and I did it to my PVC V feeders.
Get DUCT TAPE, put a piece over the bottom part, 3/4 to 1/2 over opening and then cut some so that it is not cutting in the neck of the bird. ** to stop the feed sticking to the other side of tape, but a piece sticky to sticky before you put it on the pipe.

RAISE up the pipe so they are not bending over to far get in there. works great.

Could you show me a picture of yours?

 

[feathermaid]

Do you all think, if I leave the extensions on (circled in red), that they could still stick their heads in there far enough to reach the feed?
View attachment 1721716

Yes, they should reach fine.
My feeders are similar to yours, but I added an extra "coupling" to this one that makes for a deeper reach and much less spilling.

But since I used a plastic drinking cup for the bottom, it seemed to raise the opening pretty high and chickens had to arch their necks to reach inside, so I ended up cutting it back to the red arrow to make it lower. The orange arrow shows the level of the cup "stopper" inside so chickens don't really have too far to reach at all. This is my adjusted feeder:

I've seen other people use just a piece of the same pvc tubing as the feeder to make a 3-4" extension from the wye instead of the coupling part I have shown here.

I've also used the duct tape as a quick fix for my other feeder, but it doesn't seem to hold up for a long time. I'm out of town and don't have a pic of that setup right now.

 

[Alaskan]

View attachment 1721697 View attachment 1721698

Holds 50 pounds

Mine is like this.

I LOVE IT.

Zero waste and I used a trashcan so it holds maybe 125 # of feed.

 

[tigger19687]

I don't have a pic at the moment, but it would look just like this one. I just use duct tape