Winter is coming

[wendigo]

And I have no idea what to do with the water over night. The chickens are pretty easy to deal with as they wake up around 6:30-7 and it's not hard to wake up and put some warm water in there but I also have geese and this is the bigger problem. They constantly drink. How do you guys prevent the water from freezing over the night? I can't figure this out. The coop doesn't have access to electricity.

The night temperatures will be as low as -10C (~14F). As a side question, will the chickens and geese handle this temperature? The rooms in which they sleep are made out of brick and are pretty small so I figure they can make their own heat.

 

[Hokum Coco]

Watering
For along time I used heater tape around a bucket with chicken watering nipples. It worked excellent. However me being me I neglected to change the water as often as I should.

Chickens and Geese feed and drink only in the daylight hours supplying water while they are dormant is not necessary.

Last year I switched to white rubber contains the wife found somewhere . They freeze solid every night but the ice just pops out of them in the morning and I replenish them with fresh warm water. They have black ones at the feed store (black ones are better absorb heat) that are similar but large than mine.

The chickens congregate around them like people having their morning coffee. The only draw back is my yard is pepper with small ice bergs the size of the buckets.

April looks after that however..




Heat???
Nobody "I know" heats a chicken coop.
I live in Canada last year was subject to -40º (C or F take your pick) no light or heat in coop NO PROBLEMS. You your chickens have to be cold hardy and feed heavier during cold snaps with extra.
Chickens have been raised on this continent for over a hundred years without heat.

Acclimatize

Chickens will die from cold if not given the chance to acclimatize. Hydro is more apt to go out in an ice storm or blizzard when subject to below 0º temperatures in my opinion.


How would you supply heat then to your un-acclimatized birds ???

Diary of last winter cold snap check out the link:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/738994/chickens-arctic-conditions-prolonged-period

 

[skunknchatter]

I run a cord out to the coop and plug in a heated dog water bowl for the winter. Easy peasy. They only cost between $10-$15 at most feed stores. They are super easy to keep clean and usually have a thermostat built in so they only run when the temps get low enough. Saves a little on power in the late fall/early spring.