Waterer broke just in time for massive winter storm. YAY

[JennsPeeps]

ARG! The handle on our galvanized waterer broke off at the solder points and all the water had drained out. Poor girls. I check their water every couple of days. Thank goodness for rain, right?

We are going to take it back tomorrow to where we bought it last summer. What an irritation!

 

[sunbury chick]

Jenspeeps,
My 5 gal waterer did the same thing. My husband screwed on a new handle.It just pours water out of the side.Won't stay filled up.How bout yours? They are expensive to be such pieces of junk....

 

[BeckyLa]

You can take a 5 gal bucket (or any size really) and put a couple of holes close to the top then fill it up with water, put a pan, like a kitty litter pan on top and turn it over. The water will leak out the holes into the pan and stop when it reaches the top of the holes. This worked great for me when I had to leave for a week with noone to care for my birds.

 

[SterlingAcres]

Can't be as bad as the water pipe freezing and snapping right off when you went to turn it. I have to come inside to get the chickens water now. FUN. At least they get hot water in the morning and it lasts for a few hours.

 

[Balfour Girl]

I carry an ice cream pail of water down to my coop twice a day (when it's freezing like this). We have a pond heater that keeps the water from freezing over, but I haven't figured out how to incorporate that yet.

 

[zachslc]

When I saw this I thought it said "water broke" and I was wondering why the poster was posting on a board about chickens intead of going to the hospital.

 

[TurtleChick]

eta:

hi jenn! i use the 3gallon plastic "little giant" (i think...) waterer in their run, and a 3qt. black rubber bowl inside their house (i have no idea if they ever drink from it or just use it as a shavings depository, but it makes me feel better to know it's in there in case for some reason i couldn't get out to let them outta jail).

 

[ILoveJoe]

I have 2 of those waterers, in summer they are both in use. Now that it is cold I keep one in the coop and one in the house and if the one in the coop freezes I take it in the house to thaw and refill the other.

I tried a red light over the waterer but it froze anyway, so I turned the lamp toward the girls.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

Do you mean that you've both been carrying it by the outside handle, instead of the inside handle? I was always taught that you should carry it by the sturdy inside handle and put the outer covering on after you put it down.

 

[1acrefarm]

I tried those junk waterers once. I paid 30 bucks for it and it did not last a year. I now use a five gallon plastic bucket. My chickens seem perfectly happy with the cheap bucket.