Winter water nipples

[FernwoodHollow]

Folks who have chickens in cold climates like mine I'm curious if you deal with any frostbite issues because of water nipples. I'm thinking of switching my cup style waterers to nipple waterers but my chickens are pretty dainty about their water drinking and they're good about not getting a bunch of water on their wattles and their beards before they go to bed in the cold weather. I worry that the nipple drinkers because they have to push the nipple in with their beak and it dribbles water out does it get their wattles and beards and chins wet and has that affected your frostbite issues? I've been able to avoid frostbite all winter with many negative and Sub-Zero subfreezing days but it is annoying having to dump half the water out every time I go out there to clean out the cups. I'd rather stick with having to clean out the cups than deal with frostbite but curious about other cold weather chicken keepers and their experience with water nipples.

An easy solution may be just deal with cleaning out the cups or trough style waterers in the winter and then switch them over to the nipple waterers in the summer.

 

[GoosesGeeses]

I live where it can get to -15f in winter, and i had to stop using these water nipples because it was freezing to their wattles. Yeah, they got a lot of frostbite.

 

[FernwoodHollow]

I live where it can get to -15f in winter, and i had to stop using these water nipples because it was freezing to their wattles. Yeah, they got a lot of frostbite.

That's what I was thinking would be a problem, they seem to understand with my trough style and cup drinkers they just use their beaks to scoop and their chins and beards and wattles don't get all wet. Maybe I'll just do the nipple waterers in the summer plus I feel like it would be hard to keep those nipple waterers from freezing, even with one of the heat belts around it very close to the nipples, with the little metal pin I feel like it would be hard to keep it melted anyways. Thank you so much for letting me know and confirming my suspicions! Maybe I'll try the nipples over the summer and switch them back out to the trough or cup style in the winters!