Critter water in winter

[Smalltimefarmer]

Amish, I always kept water in the coop, but an expert told me that it added too much moisture and to stop which I did.

Mine freezes in the run too. I poke it with a stick and give them warm water in the mornings to warm them.

Makes me wonder about the water in the coop.

 

[Smalltimefarmer]

I made a water warmer once. Put a bulb in a cookie tin and drilled some holes to let some heat escape. Set the water on top of cookie tin and it stayed thawed. Later I made a larger one and used it as a heater for the coop. In TN, it doesn't get terribly cold for more than a couple of days so I don't use either anymore.

 

[Terri9630]

We used to use a heated horse bucket and an old crockpot.

 

[Biggkidd]

Our turkey coop is earth sheltered on two sides and it's always warmer in winter and cooler in summer. Nothing ever freezes in there.

 

[Amish Heart]

Our turkey run is covered in giant tarp at the moment, and they have a three sided coop of sorts in there. Water will still freeze. We've always keep chicken water in the coop, haven't had any problems. I put feed in there, too, in case it rains during the day, but we remove it at night...everyone's feed, to discourage mice.

 

[Tirediron]

@ Mountain trapper Sinking your troughs in the ground or even partway in the ground will help immensely. I'm always looking for the most economical ways to cut labor on the homestead.

I just a couple minutes ago solved my chicken waterer issue I believe.

A 1156 standard automotive bulb uses roughly 28 watts at 12 volts. I can hook 2 HF panels in parallel to one and put it inside an old pot or such and set the waterer on top. That will help keep it from freezing and help thaw it if it does freeze.

Or I may just seal the bulb up good and solder wires to it and coat in silicone. Then I can sink the bulb in the water. Hmmm????

you should be able to find bulb fixture designed for boat trailer service, or if you can keep the bulb etc submerged all to the time, corrosion shouldn't be much of a problem, RTV sealant will actually cause corrosion, there are sealants designed to not corrode , and an 1157 might be a more effective choice due to the more common usage ang it will give you the option of a few more watts if you need to run both elements or just the lower load for less cold periods

 

[Mountain trapper]

We keep the chicken water in the coop during winter. It freezes solid. Everyday we go out and take the block of ice out and replace with warm water. It doesn't take long before it freezes solid again but the hens get enough to drink. Sometimes I see the hens eating snow too.

 

[Biggkidd]

We had a cold night at about 14F and todays high was only 40. When I went to feed this morning the water was frozen but had trickles and trails melting out from under it the birds were drinking or able to drink. By this afternoon it was well melted not 100% but plenty enough to call it a success for us. Then I realized the panels are DIRTY real dirty so I bet once it warms up and I clean them off it will work even better. If I had to guess I'd say we are getting less than 1/2 power on account of the grim on them. They've been sitting idle for years until now.

 

[LadyLocust]

I'm looking forward to hearing your plan.

Sorry I got derailed for a bit & with the current snow & cold temps remembered. Rather than me sketching, I did find a couple pix. Essentially what I had in mind was like the off-grid hot tubs. It would still require tending, but might keep the water warmer for a longer duration so the cattle don't have to "tank-up" all at once.

As I was looking for pictures, I found another "style" same general concept.

This coil system might be available commercially. (I didn't look into it.) I don't think this one would last as long or be quite as effective - my opinion. Either way, there is a fire that would require firewood and lighting but at least not electric. Also, either method would probably need some sort of fencing around the fire portion for the safety of the critters.
My other idea was to have the tank on a concrete slab and have a sort of rocket stove under it, but I don't know that it would radiate enough heat to keep the top of the water from freezing. Also, this would be a lot of work to create to find out.

 

[LadyLocust]

We keep the chicken water in the coop during winter. It freezes solid. Everyday we go out and take the block of ice out and replace with warm water. It doesn't take long before it freezes solid again but the hens get enough to drink. Sometimes I see the hens eating snow too.

Another non-cure: if you have a couple extra bricks, set them on the wood stove. When you change the ice for water, set the water-dish on the bricks - doesn't keep it from freezing, just takes it longer to do so. Have a couple of new bricks on your stove for the next time you go out & can then keep a rotation. I've done this when running an extension cord wasn't an option - you know, because sometimes that was actually easier. heehee