Frozen Side Mounted Horizontal Nipples - How to keep them from Freezing?

[JesseM]

Just checked girls about the time you where typing. The 3 lower nipples where froze up. Upper ones all worked great! Move them up 2 or 3 inches and skip the insulation for now!

FYI 4f here today

Thanks for the update! We'll try moving the nipples up in the next few days (need to buy more & a new bucket) and see what works. We're trying the oil in the meantime and will post results.

Really...you have a thermometer in the bucket?
What are your ambient temps?
Not sure oil will work-never heard that one before, but it might, look forward to hearing results.
Oh and Welcome to BYC!

Thanks @aart. We basically built our coop based on this site. Love it! I have a zigbee temp sensor that reports to SmartThings so we can monitor the water temp

Ambient has been around 10-15 degrees in the daytime, and +/- single digits at night.

My secondary concern is that we've had two 250 watt K&H Pet Products Ultimate Pail Deicers that send the temp as high as 110 degrees before turning off. Haven't figured that out yet, but seems like a huge waste of energy (unless its keeping the nipples from freezing!).

 

[PingoBags]

My secondary concert is that we've had two 250 watt K&H Pet Products Ultimate Pail Deicers that send the temp as high as 110 degrees before turning off. Haven't figured that out yet, but seems like a huge waste of energy (unless its keeping the nipples from freezing!).

An easy solution, you could add one of these from amazon.
Set the temp to something lower to save on energy, put the sensor in the water.

 

[JesseM]

An easy solution, you could add one of these from amazon.
Set the temp to something lower to save on energy, put the sensor in the water.

Thanks, Can't believe I haven't seen that before now for all the time we spent looking at options. Might try that once we get the freezing issue solved. It just kills me since the heater is only supposed to "warm" the water to keep it from freezing.

 

[PingoBags]

Thanks, Can't believe I haven't seen that before now for all the time we spent looking at options. Might try that once we get the freezing issue solved. It just kills me since the heater is only supposed to "warm" the water to keep it from freezing.

I used to use one for water. Also used it for an incubator, brooder, seed starting, even in my greenhouse. Has multiple uses, not just for winter waterers.

 

[blackdog043]

I’m surprised that doesn’t transfer enough heat to defrost the nipples.

Are you talking about the little red cup, where the water is freezing or the whole nipple so it doesn't work?

 

[JMotuzick]

The nipple does not work. Froze up.

 

[koopmaster]

Looking forward to hearing how folks solve this. We are in MA where it hasn’t been above freezing for a week. This is our first winter with chickens and our 2 gal bucket with a 250 watt heater and horizontal nipples freezes a couple times a day. The water temps never get below 60 (and often up to 100) so I’m surprised that doesn’t transfer enough heat to defrost the nipples.

We are going to try a little vegetable oil on them to see if that helps but already are using most of the suggestions posted here without luck. We’ll also try to better insulate the bucket and hope the warm air escaping the insulation helps prevent freezing. Any suggestions for insulation chicken-safe material?

I'm curious to see if the vegetable oil makes a dicferance! Great th I nking!!

 

[JesseM]

Are you talking about the little red cup, where the water is freezing or the whole nipple so it doesn't work?

The little red cup AND the metal nipple have enough ice on them to stop working. The water in the cup effectively makes an ice dam that blocks the metal piece from moving. Unfortunately, the oil had no impact that we could see. However, I went out last night after the girls were in the coop and got the nipples running, then used a paper towel to carefully soak up the little bit of water in the cup. At 6am (with an overnight temp of -4) they were still working when the girls got up. I think the trick there was to make sure there was nothing to freeze up & block it. Until I replace the bucket with ones with the nipples mounted higher, we'll do that so that we don't have to get out there before the girls get up (much rather be in the coop at 5-8pm than 5am!).

 

[Terri126]

Update: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I57ZFEU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Finally decided the 150 W Chicken Waterer Deicer from Farm Innovators. We have had a steady temperature over the past 2 weeks of 20's and teens to single digits, this has been working like a charm!! So happy...Hope I didn't just jinx myself!

 

[JMotuzick]

Things have been good here too, -2 f today and we had water. Real test will be Saturday calling for -9 we don’t get that cold but once every 20-30 years if it lasts that we should be good!