Winter Water

[aart]

Have you tried the salt water bottle trick?
Get a water bottle and make a highly concentrated salt to water mixture in the bottle. Cap tightly, and place in the waterer. It actually works.

Do you use his technique?
Can't for the life of me figure out how it would do any good.

 

[MountainWoman73]

I'm a fan of heated hanging bucket waterers. I keep 2 inside the coop. Your chickens will be just fine for one day if you bring out water a couple of times, but in general they should have access to water 24/7. I'd buy a second extension cord so you can put the water inside when you want to.

(Also, as of last year my coop is fully wired, with outlets and lights on switches, and I LOVE it. Highly recommend. )

 

[mowin]

Do you use his technique?
Can't for the life of me figure out how it would do any good.

Yes I have. It was before I purchased heated bases this yr. Was it fool proof, no. But it did work to a extent. There's a few posts on this site using this method. The colder it is, the larger the salt vessel, and the higher the salt concentration.
In a pinch, it's worth a shot.

 

[Tre3hugger]

Your chickens will definitely be fine with 2 offerings of water for 1 day.

 

[aart]

Yes I have. It was before I purchased heated bases this yr. Was it fool proof, no. But it did work to a extent. There's a few posts on this site using this method. The colder it is, the larger the salt vessel, and the higher the salt concentration.
In a pinch, it's worth a shot.

Just doesn't make sense.
I know salt water freezes at a lower temp, but it being separate from the fresh water<shakeshead>
Might have to set up an experiment.

 

[azygous]

It's easy to solve the problem of tipped over water bowls. I had this problem just yesterday. I found a scrap of wood just slightly larger than the diameter of the bowl. I placed the bowl on the wood right side up and traced around it with a pencil. I cut out the circle with a jig saw just slightly larger than the outline.

Then I found some 2 x 4" scraps and cut them all to the same length about chicken height and glued them onto the flat scrap with the hole. It was finished in an hour. I ran some wood screws from the table top into the legs for added strength and popped the bowl into the hole.

It's impossible to turn over. I use rubber unheated dog bowls for my chickens that aren't able to use the nipple waterers. I fill them with hot water in the morning and the water remains unfrozen most of the day as the chickens keep drinking from it and disturbing the formation of ice.

 

[mowin]

Just doesn't make sense.
I know salt water freezes at a lower temp, but it being separate from the fresh water<shakeshead>
Might have to set up an experiment.

It worked with temps in the 20's. I was using the black rubber farm bowls and while the edges would freeze, the area next to the bottle didn't. Not sure how it would work in a typical waterer though.