Waterers and what works best in the winter

[AnnPann]

I’m so envious of all of the electricity! I was excited to buy a heated water base this year. But I have discovered that the outlet I have access to fails when temp goes below 25. So pretty much useless.

I am back to using my Omlet brand waterers. The plastic is shockingly durable (withstanding much boot stomping to break the ice out last year) and they can be hung on the side of the run. My flock is very messy and water needs to be elevated otherwise it’s completely full of debris in just a few hours.

Not looking forward to witnessing how fast water freezes this week when the daytime high is 3.

 

[ycrad]

I’ve been using a nipple waterer for years. I bought the nipples on Amazon and a 3.5 gal bucket at Menards. I also made a water heater from a disk shaped cookie tin, socket, incandescent bulb, and cord for less than $5. It’s worked for years. I plug it into a timer and set the bucket on it. When it gets really cold, I do have to check the nipples to ensure they’re not frozen.

 

[Krugerrand]

I’ve been using a nipple waterer for years. I bought the nipples on Amazon and a 3.5 gal bucket at Menards. I also made a water heater from a disk shaped cookie tin, socket, incandescent bulb, and cord for less than $5. It’s worked for years. I plug it into a timer and set the bucket on it. When it gets really cold, I do have to check the nipples to ensure they’re not frozen.

Welcome! and thanks for sharing. Feel free to post a photo!

 

[slowloris]

I’m so envious of all of the electricity! I was excited to buy a heated water base this year. But I have discovered that the outlet I have access to fails when temp goes below 25. So pretty much useless.

I am back to using my Omlet brand waterers. The plastic is shockingly durable (withstanding much boot stomping to break the ice out last year) and they can be hung on the side of the run. My flock is very messy and water needs to be elevated otherwise it’s completely full of debris in just a few hours.

Not looking forward to witnessing how fast water freezes this week when the daytime high is 3.

We just ran an extension cord inside pvc pipe to get electricity. We buried it.

 

[AnnPann]

We just ran an extension cord inside pvc pipe to get electricity. We buried it.

I’m already running a 200ft ext cord, just to get to the nearest outlet. I’m going to see if replacing the outlet fixes the issue (when it warms up again) as this didn’t happen last winter.

 

[Finnie]

I’m already running a 200ft ext cord, just to get to the nearest outlet. I’m going to see if replacing the outlet fixes the issue (when it warms up again) as this didn’t happen last winter.

I was going to ask about that, because having it fail due to cold temperatures seems unusual. We had to replace the actual GFCI breaker that goes to our outdoor outlets. For years, it would trip at the slightest provocation. That breaker served not only every exterior outlet, but also several of our garage outlets and ALL THREE of our bathroom outlets. Two people could not blow dry their hair at the same time.

So in the winter when it was time to plug in the heated waterers, I had to be constantly vigilant that the breaker didn’t trip. Last year we replaced the breaker, and that problem seems to be solved now. It’s not that we were drawing more power than we should have been, it’s that the breaker itself was weak. So if replacing your outlet doesn’t solve the problem, you might see about replacing the breaker.

 

[Finnie]

As far as those black rubber water dishes go, I think it’s funny when people say “simply” knock the ice out of them and refill them. Then they add “several times a day”. There goes your simplicity!

(Obviously if you have no electricity to work with, nothing is going to be simple, and those rubber bowls do have their functions.)

 

[wamtazlady]

It got down to -35 F last night at my house. (That is real temperature, not wind chill factor) My 20 gallon tote with horizontal nipples and a stock tank deicer that is rated for use in plastic had thawed water this morning. Two out of the 3 nipples did ice up. A little jiggling got the nipples back to working condition. That is way colder than it's ever been since I moved here. Even I am impressed that the water stayed thawed at that temperature.

 

[Toothpick]

Well that 50w aquarium heater was no match for below freezing temps. That bucket was dang near frozen solid. So looks like I’ll be swapping out water dishes every few hours for the whole weekend until temps get above freezing.

 

[Krugerrand]

Well that 50w aquarium heater was no match for below freezing temps. That bucket was dang near frozen solid. So looks like I’ll be swapping out water dishes every few hours for the whole weekend until temps get above freezing.

My heated 2-gallon bucket had 1 nipple frozen and another functioning. The wind is plowing through the run more than I expected, so I closed my girls in the coop and am doing the swap out ever few hours, too.