Wheelie-bin no-waste feeder questions

[Goddess Sekhmet]

Hi all,

So I'm in the middle of my ultimate chicken-run build, and I've settled on making a chicken feeder out of a 120L wheelie bin using the PVC plumbing elbows down the bottom for feed access, similar to the following:
https://blog.mypetchicken.com/2015/10/05/diy-no-waste-feeder/

I do have a few questions though, as my target bird is Australorp who are on the large side:
-For 90° PVC elbows, would 90mm do the job or am I better off getting 100mm?
-Gap: is there a set 'gap' that needs to be between the bottom of elbow and bottom of feedbin? The guide uses 1 inch, however as australorps are tall (and to make access harder for rats/mice) I was hoping to set the hole for the elbow a bit further up from the bottom, and wasn't sure if this would impact performance at all, ie feed flow
-Height:In the case of Australorps, what height would you recommend the hole be at?
-Angle: would a 45° PVC elbow work and/or be easier on the chickens?

I was thinking if there was a 'set' distance the bottom of elbow needed to be from the bottom of feed bin, yet I wanted to raise elbow height - I could possibly pour concrete into bottom of bin to effectively raise the level a bit....

 

[cavemanrich]

Good to hear from you after 6 years of only reading
Some questions,,,, Do you need such a large quantity feeder?? for how many chickens?
My reason for asking,,,, is,, if that will be set in your run,,, assuming outdoors, can moisture get into your feed and create spoiled feed due to possible mold??? A small bucket feeder will handle quite a few chickens, and if things get moist,,, you don't loose much. Also easy to move around and carry out of fowl weather. Place inside coop for those bad weather days as well.
Mice and rats will be able to get into this style of feeder thru the elbow openings. You may be able to fashion some plugs to install during vulnerable hours.
If you have rodent issues,,, I would suggest plugs for sure.
One inch,,, or 3 cm from bottom is a good clearance for feed dispensing. If you are concerned with the height of openings in regards to chickens,,, consider mounting feeder on some bricks or blocks,,,, until you are satisfied with height level. I also suggest using 90* elbows instead of 45*. The 90's will make scattering feed more difficult.
Ask anything else you are not sure about
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Goddess Sekhmet]

Thanks for the response I had chickens 6 years ago, joined, life got busy... now I'm getting back into them, but with better equipment and a better run (2/3rds built as of today)

Part of the upgrade is pure laziness - my partner and I are busy, and sometimes go through phrases where we think the other has checked/topped up the feed in the trestle feeder - this leads to a lot of near-misses where the girls almost go without food for a day. This will be set in their new shed which is almost 4m x 4m - so plenty of room, and can't get wet or attract other birds.

At this stage it would be serving the 14 ex-battery hens I currently have, to be eventually replaced by the Australorps I'm hatching out.