frozen drinking water

[pickledtink]

This is my biggest problem. No they don't like the snow and are staying in the coop a lot. 2 of 4 are still laying but not every day and 1 of the others is definitely in moult so that's normal.
Plenty of deep litter and cozy hay in the coop and layer pellets plus a little mixed seed and a bit of corn twice a day as a treat but the water!
I'm at my wits end. The outside drinker I managed to keep defrosting with hot water and bashing with a stick but now absolutely solid. The inside drinker I go and break the ice and use some hot water but it's clearly freezing over too quickly. Tried putting a cork in to bob about and keep it moving but not working.
I'm snowed in here so hope everything will last but no chance to go and find /buy anything to keep that water supply constant. Any home remedies especially for overnight?

[Glutton4...]

Mine have to make do with me taking a bucket of hot water to them - how they can drink it so hot is beyond me!

[winstonwobble]

Have you tried insulating the water bowl maybe stand it on some polystirine(sp) wrap some hay around the bucket know how you feel im having the same problems

[CoraxAurata]

How to stop water freezing - The Accidental Smallholder

These guys are discussing it too and sugar in water has been suggested.... haven't tried it myself

[MaureenHall]

I wouldn't be too keen on putting sugar in the water, but one of the other suggestions was to use one of the gel hand-warmer thingies. Apparently they'll stay warm for up to 8 hours and you can heat them up again in a pan of boiling water. Going to look out for some of those!!

[CoraxAurata]

Apart from the health issues I'm not convinced the sugar would work - icecream and sorbets freeze afterall....... but trying to find things which any of us would have without going out shopping (I can't get further than my horses and thats walking some days...)

[CoraxAurata]

but I did get some hand warmes a year ago as back up christmas pressies - I wonder if theres any left and wether they were the right sort :: heads of to rumage about a bit::

[Suechooks]

At night I turn the drinkers upside down and loosen the bases then stand on a folded feed sack and wrap the whole lot in bubble wrap and bury it in the straw in the covered run. So far only had a thin layer of ice on top easily melted with a flask of boiling water. The temperature has been -12 at the allotment and possibly less as my thermometer stops working that low!

[shadegrow]

Just wondering would a biscuit tin with 2 or 3 tea light's in it be safe overnight. Even the poo is frozen down to the floor in the house plus frozen sawdust around the drinker.

[Bramble-Poultry]

Hot water actually freezes quicker than cold water due to the distance between water molecules so putting warm water out is of no benefit.

Sugar will freeze in water but at a lower point than water alone as will salt, however you would not put salt water out. remember if you do put sugar in the water it will dehydrate the birds at roughly the same rate as putting salt in the water will!!!

Glycerine works to around -3 / - 4 so if you drain the drinkers at night and fill them up with a glycerine solution in teh daytime they will still freeze but the freezing point being lower it will take longer, you will see ice crystals forming from around -1.5 but it will not freeze solid at this point - but again as glycerine is a sugar substitue so when added in too great a concentration will actually dehydrate your bird - a max of a 10% solution should be fine - the most optimum solution is is a 66% solution as this will not freeze until -46 however obviously this is undrinkable!!!

However nothing will work with the temperatures we have been experienceing the last couple of days and teh only option is to give a little amount of water often, put a small amount out in a bowl, let them have a drink and then remove it and empty it, them pop out a little later and do the same again, this is an exceptionally time consuming method but is the only thing guarenteed to work in these temperatures!! Drinkimg little and ofeten like this is not ideal for the bird but they are going to get more water than leaving them with frozen drinkers all day, and whilst it is time consuming it is far less time consuming than keep defrosting drinkers!!!

[pickledtink]

Thanks all. Basically all I can do is what I'm doing I guess which is keep going out and defrosting the drinker water. Just wish they'd get the idea that it's run and slurp NOW girls while it's there!

[DaisyDiamond]

I only have a couple of chooks in the back garden so small water containers - old milk carton with the side cut out as it is the only thing they don't knock over, with the handle tied to the wire fencing. Much to my surprise they have stayed ice free by keeping them in a protected corner of the run and surrounding them with an inch or so of straw underneath and all around. Despite 8 inches of snow they have not frozen at all during the day, and have only slightly frozen overnight.

[di]

The only problem with have with insulating with straw is that the daft things scratch about in it & end up filling their water container!
As ours are at the lottie,almost a mile away,it's unfortunately not feasible to change them that frequently.
Our lottie neighbour also has chooks and they only live a couple of minutes away from the lottie,so they've kindly said they'll check on ours during the afternoon.Andi will then get to them a bit before bedtime and give them some more fresh before they go to bed.
I'm more worried about how cold their little toes are getting...I put down a load more straw for them this morning,but the rate the snow's coming down now,I imagine it's all covered again.

[Nicos]

I'm lucky enough to be able to walk into my coop, so when they go to roost I go out with a bowl of warm water and offer them all a drink. then maize.
..they never refuse either although the lads always wait till last .

[Snadger]

I am having big problems keeping the chooks watered at the allotment. To crown it all the stand pipes are frozen and I cant get water. I have loads of full butts of water but the majority are frozen solid.
I've already smashed three drinkers up til now trying to de-ice them. My galvanised bucket looks lloke it has been through the mill as well where I've clattered it against the wall to get the ice off it.
One of my water butts is in the run and is supplied from the coop roof. This one I've managed to keep reasonably free of ice but I'm now down to the bottom foot of water.
I have water containers placed inside and outside all the coops and when I left the allotment this afternon I left a galvanised watering can full of ice perched on top of my wood burning stove.

Things are starting to get quite desperate, what with freezing water and freezing eggs!