Hanging Bucket Chicken Nipple Waterer

I have been thinking of building some type of hanger for mine that does not allow the weight of the water to squeeze the top of the bucket together. A U shaped piece of metal to replace the handle. It would make it easier to get the lid on and off. You could cut a wood or plastic lid to fit your bucket... just a plain disc. Add three stoppers around the edge of the lid to hold it in place. OR, you could cut the outside edge of the snap down part of the lid you have. Several vertical cuts all the way around the bucket lid. That makes it easier to put on and off. There are also big plastic "hooks" that are sort of like an old bottle/can opener made for removing this type of lid. They work nicely too.

My complaint with the nipple waterer is that the nipples freeze quite easily, but are hard to defrost. I ended up holding them with my fingers to do that. Brrrr... I'm thinking the real answer is to keep it from freezing in the first place and, I am wondering if a submersible aquarium heater or a bird bath heater would work. I'd love to hear what others have done to solve this problem.