Various options for homemade drinking bowls for chickens
Bird farmers know that chickens are not the cleanest creatures. They defecate in their own food, soil their roosts, and do other such things. And most of all it affects the water. Therefore, a poultry farmer, who can make drinking bowls for chickens with his own hands, is able to make his life much easier. There are several options for the manufacture of such devices, differing in cost and assembly complexity.
Drinking bowl for chickens
Varieties of drinking bowls for domestic chickens
Even before proceeding with the assembly, it is worth looking at what kind of homemade chicken drinker can be made in the existing conditions. It is necessary to find out what materials are required for it, how convenient it is for feathered pets. And it is also advisable to understand how a do-it-yourself drinking bowl for chickens works. Because the principle of operation can also differ for different types of devices. All these structures can be conditionally divided into several types. These are the types of homemade chicken drinkers:
- The simplest option is a regular basin or bucket of water. But his birds can turn over, or stain the drink. Therefore, for such dishes, additional clips are usually made so that it does not turn over. And on top it is covered with a plastic or metal lid with holes.
- The second option is an automatic prefabricated chicken drinker. Water is supplied to it from canisters, from a glass jar or a plastic bottle. Serves either directly into the bowl or using a plastic or metal pipe. A cup water supply system is often used.
- The third option, which is often used by farmers, is vacuum homemade drinkers. In fact, a vacuum device is a kind of automatic drinker. It is often used for feeding small chickens... But it is suitable for installation in a chicken coop for adult birds. The second name for such structures is bunker drinkers.
- Finally, the fourth circuit is the nipple device. And here the most difficult thing is to answer the question of how to make a drinking bowl for chickens according to a similar scheme. Everything, with the exception of the nipple, can be made without much trouble. But it is not easy to assemble a homemade nipple for a homemade drinker. And you usually have to buy it.
In principle, it is realistic to make these drinking bowls for domestic chickens with your own hands. But you need materials and at least some skills in working with the necessary tools. And you will also need the tools themselves, which, however, are usually available to every farmer. These devices are usually less expensive to manufacture than off-the-shelf devices. The only exception can be those constructions that were purchased from other farmers at a negotiated price. Even so, it is usually easier to assemble them yourself.
Homemade vacuum drinker
Vacuum home-made drinkers are used even by those who, in fact, are not very well versed in their device. To make them, you will need to take a jar, or another similar container, with whole walls and a bottom. You can also make a container from a plastic bottle - for example, from a large five-liter container. All the necessary components can be found or made by yourself at home. For making, you will need a whole container, utensils like a bowl and, possibly, a grate that will prevent the bird from staining the water.
The assembly principle is quite simple. Pure water is poured into jars or bottles, after which the container is placed upside down in the bowl. It must be fixed in this position, therefore, a suspended structure is sometimes made, in particular, if the drinking bowl is near the wall. In size, of course, it will be smaller than the drinking cup used for feeding large or small livestock. Horses, sheep, pigs and piglets require much larger containers. And such a device will not work for cows due to its small volumes.
Nipple drinkers for chickens
If we list the types of drinkers for chickens, then drip or nipple drinkers should also be mentioned. All its parts, with the exception of the nipple, are easy to make with your own hands. Such structures are pipes into which water is supplied from a certain container. For chickens, a liter plastic bottle will suffice, and for adult inhabitants of a large chicken coop, a large canister or even a barrel will be required. Often, such a drinking bowl is made from a used sewer pipe, which has been thoroughly washed beforehand.
In any case, each nipple drinker for chickens is made from pipes of one type or another. They must not rust or contain substances harmful to the health of birds. It is permissible to use polypropylene water pipes, which are excellent for these purposes. In principle, you can take a dense hose, but in chicken coop it will not last long. Therefore, it is better to use durable PVC or polypropylene pipes. And such a cup can be made heated, or simply insulated.
If you consider a similar drinking bowl for chickens in a good photo, then its design will become more understandable. Nipples are cut into the pipe, and water is supplied through the pipe from a special container. The drinking tank is usually heated in winter to keep the nipples from freezing. And also so that the chickens do not catch cold in the winter. Usually, farmers prefer to hang such a device on the wall of the chicken coop. It keeps better there, which means it can last longer. Such a feeder for chickens can be of any size, and is designed for both 5 and 50 birds.
Making a simple nipple drinker
The simplest nipple automatic drinker is made by hand from an ordinary plastic bucket and nipples. Nipples, as already mentioned, are desirable to acquire, since it is not at all easy to make them. It can be 3, 6 or 10 liters, depending on the volume of the bucket and the needs of the birds. It is best to make it at least 10 liters in order to change the water less often. At the bottom of the bucket, 3-5 holes are drilled into which the nipples are inserted. It is best to place them around the edges of the bucket to make it easier for the birds to drink.
They should be directed vertically downward with the metal part, so it will be more convenient for the chickens. It is better to isolate the joints with the bucket from leaks. Otherwise equipping the drinker with a nipple dispenser will be a common waste of time. After that, the bucket is hung at a height where birds can easily reach it. Now all that remains is to draw water into it, and then the birds will figure it out themselves. When they see droplets of moisture at the ends of the nipples, they will begin to peck at them. The water will start to drip, the birds will drink it, and so on.
So that the moisture does not disappear, it is advisable to adapt small bowls to drinkers, into which water will drip.A 0.25 liter bowl is enough for each nipple. Nipple drinkers for a large chicken coop are made in a slightly different, more complex scheme. A container with a drink is fixed at the top point. It is connected with a hose to a pipe fixed in a horizontal position. And in the pipe itself, nipples and bowls are already installed, according to the same principle. The pipe must be closed with plugs so that moisture does not leak.
Drinking nipples
To someone who wants make a nipple drinker for chickens, you first need to purchase or make a suitable nipple yourself. However, you need to understand that different designs are suitable for different birds. One option, commonly referred to as 360 degrees, is the kind in which any pressure causes water to start flowing. These nipples are used in drinking bowls for chickens and broilers. But the autodrinker for adult chickens is usually made with a 180-degree nipple - it only moves up and down.
The design of the nipple can be seen in the video. A thin tube or faucet is a moving part. Inside the nipple there is a shutter that flows around with water. In the initial state, the valve is pressed against the gate from all sides by springs or a spring. When you press it, it moves away from the shutter, and water flows through it. But the spring is compressed, and when the pressure disappears, it returns the valve back. This scheme is easy to understand (from a drawing or from a video), but difficult to reproduce in the materials. Therefore, farmers recommend buying nipples:
“Nipple drinkers are a convenient thing. They are easy to make on your own, and it can be a device from an ordinary bucket, pipe, or even a drinking bowl from a plastic bottle for chickens. And there is no problem to put them in a place convenient for layers. The problem is not the arrangement. And the fact that the nipple must be purchased. To do this, you can contact your local specialty stores, or order it online. It is difficult to recommend a specific manufacturer - you need to look at the reviews and choose the most suitable one that is available. "
Cup drinkers for chickens
There is another difficult, but convenient design, which is often used for feeding animals. Such a drinking bowl for chickens with their own hands is made only by skilled enough craftsmen who can reproduce it in the material. Its name is the Cup Drinking Bowl. And cup drinkers are used both for drinking cows and for feeding chickens. Although for small chicks, a micro-cup design is usually used. But the principle of operation is exactly the same, the differences are only in size and in the material used.
A similar drinking bowl for chickens can be made at home only with certain skills and materials. In bird feeders, the bowl is rarely a liter, or, even more so, of a larger volume. Although in shape it most of all resembles a shallow bowl. It is made for laying hens and chickens, so its length rarely exceeds 10-15 centimeters. The principle is that a tap valve that supplies water is connected to the bowl by a lever. When there is no water in the bowl, a special spring squeezes it out and opens the tap.
The principle of the cup drinker
When enough water is collected, the bowl's own weight begins to overpower the spring pressure. The hens' drinker is lowered slightly and the lever shuts off the water. And he does not let her pour until the bowl is empty. And it can be empty only when layers and chickens drink from it. This regulates the moisture supply and the birds do not get more drink than they need. And if you consider that all the bowls are small, and chickens cannot jump on them, water is not wasted.
Separate drinking bowls can even be connected to plastic bottles from which water will flow. But this design is only suitable for chicks that do not require a lot of moisture. And for a large chicken coop, you will need a large container from which water will be drawn into each of the bowls.Typically, a barrel is used for these purposes, from where moisture is distributed through a pipe system. The tank is usually installed at the top of the system so that no pumps are required.
Conclusion
There are a number of different drinker designs, and each of the options can be used in a different way. And the most important thing for every farmer is to choose exactly the design that suits him.