I have found the easiest and best way to keep a steady supply of clean water for my chickens and it cut my work load down too. See how to water chickens, importance of clean drinking water, poultry water guidelines, chicken water drinkers and some drinkers I have tested-what works and what doesn't.
Importance of Clean Chicken Water
Chickens need a clean, clear, cool source of water at all times. Water should not be green and should not be allowed to spill onto soiled bedding. Water that is dirty, green or has spilled by the water drinker can give your chickens serious health problems and even cause them to die. During winter months you need to prevent their water from freezing. Water drinkers, and systems should be protected from sunlight which will heat up the water and cause it to turn green. Chickens cannot drink frozen water. People with smaller flocks tend to use stand alone standard poultry water drinkers. This is an acceptable method of watering your birds but there are much better ways that can make watering your birds less of a chore. It is a good idea to get a good watering system. You can easily make your own or purchase one already made (most suppliers give you the parts and directions but you still have to assemble them yourself which is pretty easy to do).
Handy tips when water chickens with five gallon buckets:
If you are planning to use a plastic five gallon bucket as a waterer for your chickens
Handy tips when water chickens with five gallon buckets:
If you are planning to use a plastic five gallon bucket as a waterer for your chickens
- Make sure it is a food grade bucket
- Make sure it is made of sturdy plastic.
- Don't fill the bucket all the way up to the top
- Do drill a few holes in the lid to relieve pressure build up which will cause the water not to come out of poultry drinker cups.
- Do not EVER hang the bucket by the handle, the handle can bend, bow, or come off from the weight of the water. I have actually had this happen- I filled a brand new Tractor Supply bucket with water after putting the poultry nipples on the bottom, hung it in the coop and watched in horror as the handle bent under the weight of the water and came crashing down, cracking the bucket in several places. Thank God none of my chickens were underneath it trying to get a drink which is another reason I prefer drinker cups which go on the side of the bucket and the bucket can easily be set up on some haddock blocks so dirt doesn't get in the cups.
- Do put the bucket in a shady place in the summer as the water will get too hot and the birds will not drink it.
- Always check the water buckets and drinker cups for cleanliness and too make sure they are working properly and not leaking.
Poultry Water Cups With An Automatic Float
I've been using these automatic water cups for almost two years with no regrets.
I decided to try the new poultry water cups with a built in automatic float a few years ago and I am completely impressed. The chickens do not have to press anything to get the cup to fill up because the float controls the water level in the cup. I use them on plastic coffee cans, 2 and 5 gallon plastic buckets, old waterers which no longer work, pvc water lines, and 50 gallon foodgrade blue barrels and have had no problems with them so far. I simply wipe them out every few days and check them every day to make sure the chickens have not put litter in them (mother hens will fill them up with feed and bedding and I end up cleaning theirs out a couple times a day). I really like them and will buy many more of them. I have found an easy way to prevent adult chickens from putting litter in the cups, I simply put the buckets on something high enough so that the cup is chest height to my chickens. (Haddock blocks work well for this for standard size breeds and I use bricks for smaller size breeds). Another convenience of using the poultry water cups with buckets is that I can easily control the water pressure and prevent pressure from preventing the water flow by putting bottles of water into the bucket or barrel. I also poke a few tiny holes in the lid or top sides of the water container lid. Vacumm pressure can cause water to stop flowing to the cups so this relieves the pressure.
How I keep My Chickens Water Cool In The Summer & Prevent Freezing During The Winter
Chickens can overheat which can cause sickness, loss of egg production and even death. I solve this problem by keeping my chickens water ice cold on hot summer days by simply freezing bottles of water and putting them inside the water buckets. I freeze two or three liter bottles for larger blue food grade barrels and five gallon buckets. This also helps prevent vacumm pressure build up. The cold water refreshes the birds and slowly warms up in their gullets which keeps the birds cool for quite awhile. My chickens figured this out too and tend to hang out by the "water cooler" I keep one inside their coop, and a few in in the shade outdoors in their run, and my feathered friends refresh themselves as needed.
During the winter, I use the old fashioned hot water bottles and put them inside the bucket or barrels to prevent water from freezing without using any electricity. For larger water tanks I use pond heaters to prevent water from freezing during the winter.
During the winter, I use the old fashioned hot water bottles and put them inside the bucket or barrels to prevent water from freezing without using any electricity. For larger water tanks I use pond heaters to prevent water from freezing during the winter.
This Is the poultry water cup I stopped using and here is why
Poultry Water Cup that chickens have to peck to get water
The older style poultry water cups that have a yellow tongue in them which is much narrower than the one's I showed you above have some problems. I used them for three years and during that time I had problems with them leaking and had to repair or replace them every couple months. Chickens had to be smart and strong enough to use them. Some of my chickens did not know how to get water to come out of these poultry water cups because they did not have a built in float. Most of my standard sized breed chickens figured out they had to peck at the little yellow thing to get water but not all of them. Some would wait until another chicken got the water to come out and then they would come over to drink it. I could not use these for baby chicks because they were not strong enough to push the yellow tab down so they couldn't get any water. Some of my chickens dehydrated because they did not know how to get water from these cups which is why I do not use them anymore.
Poultry Water Drinking Nipples
Poultry water drinking nipples can be used as an affordable way to water chickens.The nipples are cheap and easy to install. My personal experience with them was not so great. My adult chickens wouldn't use them and every so often one of the nipples would stick open and all the water would drain from the bucket, which is not great on a hot day if you are not home, your birds will end up with no water. I have heard great reviews about poultry nipples from other people who have only occasionally had problems with them so maybe I just got a bad batch. You can find out how to install water nipples here: Go to How to Install Water Nipples
Poultry Water Nipples on a bucket or pvc line-UPDATES
This system works but you will need some patience to teach your birds to drink from them. Some birds take to them right away, while other's not so fast and need you to show them. I do use this system in one of my coops, however, due to the health dangers of water spillage, I have made a small square frame from 2" by 4"'s with hardware cloth covering only the top. I put a shallow plastic pan underneath the square frame with hardware cloth and any excess water spillage falls into it rather than on the ground or in the coop litter.
Update: I came home from work to find the coop flooded because one of the poultry nipples failed and all of the water in the bucket drained out. The pan I put under to catch drips did allow the birds to still have water until I got there but they kicked dirt into the water which is not good and can cause health problems. If this had happened in a brooder tub the chicks would have drowned. If a poultry nipple fails on a pvc water line it would have completely flooded the coop before I got home from work.
This system works but you will need some patience to teach your birds to drink from them. Some birds take to them right away, while other's not so fast and need you to show them. I do use this system in one of my coops, however, due to the health dangers of water spillage, I have made a small square frame from 2" by 4"'s with hardware cloth covering only the top. I put a shallow plastic pan underneath the square frame with hardware cloth and any excess water spillage falls into it rather than on the ground or in the coop litter.
Update: I came home from work to find the coop flooded because one of the poultry nipples failed and all of the water in the bucket drained out. The pan I put under to catch drips did allow the birds to still have water until I got there but they kicked dirt into the water which is not good and can cause health problems. If this had happened in a brooder tub the chicks would have drowned. If a poultry nipple fails on a pvc water line it would have completely flooded the coop before I got home from work.
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