Every chicken keeper wants their chickens to stay hydrated and healthy year round but to accomplish this with minimal effort is a bonus, right? An automated watering system is one of the best ways to ensure that your birds have access to fresh, clean water without any hassle. We’ll walk you through how we built our homemade automatic watering system for our chickens so you can build your own. Let’s get going.
My husband built this chicken coop tractor for me in 2009 for my birthday, providing a portable water source was essential. We needed it to provide water for the flock wherever we parked it on the farm, hold enough water so that fillings were infrequent, and be easy to fill and maintain. He did an excellent job in design and function. Besides adding a tee connector to run lines to the rooster and breeding yards, we’ve made no changes and only made minor repairs a couple of times over the last several years.
Supplies for Our Automated Watering Systems
He purchased
- a 30-gallon plastic barrel from a local odds and ends shop for $10.00
- black water tubing because it resists algae growth and is UV stabilized – picked up locally for $10.00 for 30 feet since we wanted to have extra just in case (we still have some of it left)
- 1/4” tee connectors – 10 for about $6
- splicers – for about $5.00
- and the watering cups and mounts – 7 for about $30.
He already had the garden hose to create the attachment to the barrel and the shutoff valve that he added to the hose. These prices are based on the products available in 2009.
How We Built Our Watering System
- First, he laid the barrel down the way it would be mounted and drilled an air hole on what would be the top of the barrel.
- Next, he drilled out the hole for the hose connection and attached it with plastic threaded bolts, silicone, and plumbing tape.
- Then he did the same process with the water line in the other cap. The barrel is mounted using a roofing strap.
- A 2” x 4” frame supports the tin “roof” over the barrel with a sheet of silvered-backed foam insulation between it and the barrel.
- He used tee connectors to run two cups inside the coop and one outside the coop.
Additions to The System
When we enlarged the compound to include the rooster and breeding yards, all it took was a few tee connectors, some water lines, and cups with mounts, all of which we already had on hand. At this time, we wrapped the insulating tape around the lines to help keep the water cooler in the summertime.
Using the System
We run a water hose to the barrel, connect it, turn the water on, open the shut-off on the barrel nozzle, and wait. Once we see water trickle from the top air hole, we know the barrel is full and turn it off at the barrel then the faucet.
This lasts our flock 10 – 14 days depending on the weather. To keep them from running out, we fill it every Saturday. This gives us the opportunity to check for leaks in the line, at the connections, and at the cups. In the last 6 years, we have only had to replace 3 cups. That’s not too bad, we think.
We have faucet nozzles in several locations around the farm. They run from our deep well that is fed by underground springs – always cold and delicious. No matter where the coop tractor is located, we run a hose (series of hoses) to it and fill it up.
When the coop is out of the poultry compound, we provide water to the other yards using one-gallon poultry waterers. We use this system most of the year. If we are going to have prolonged freezing weather, which isn’t often, we drain the system and use the gallon waterers.
Wrap Up
This is an easily customizable system. You can tweak it or make it work the way you need it by adjusting the size of the barrel, creating your own type of connections, and using the number and kind of cups you need for your flock. Once a year, we run a hydrogen peroxide/vinegar mixture through the lines and flush them well.
Here are some links you may like to have to order supplies if you don’t have a place locally, or a company you prefer to do business with.
Be sure to share your comments, experiences, or ideas with us in the comments below.
As always, we’re here to help.
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I wasn’t considering having turkeys until I saw the picture of the heritage Chocolate turkeys!! Then when I read your article I was convinced that I would love to raise these birds. I haven’t raised any fowl before so your article & more research will be valuable assets. Are you selling any hatchlings? Or can you provide the name of a reputable supplier?
Sherryl, Thank you for stopping in and sharing with us. We are so glad you found TFL and hope you are now a part of TFL Community. We do not sell hatchlings but you do have a few options.
The best way is to find a hatchery near you or someone who sells them in your area so you can pick them up directly. The Farmer’s Market is a good place to check for anyone who may have them locally or know someone who does. Also, a local FaceBook Group of poultry lovers is a good place to check.
If you don’t have anyone nearby, I would recommend purchasing through your local farm supply, if possible, when they place an order for chicks in the spring. Hatchlings ship directly to them from the hatchery instead of from truck to truck, handler to handler with mail order.
If this isn’t possible for some reason, I would recommend McMurray’s Hatchery. You could also consider ordering eggs and incubating them yourself.
I don’t know if you’ve heard about the Homestead Livestock Summit which starts Monday. I’m giving a presentation on Raising Heritage Breed Turkeys as part of this amazing summit. You can get your FREE ticket and find out more by clicking on this link. As a speaker, this is an affiliate link, but the summit is free to all who have a ticket.
If I can help you in any way, please feel free to reach out by using the contact form on the site.
What a cool system! 🙂 Thanks for sharing at the Homestead Blog Hop! Hope to see you again this week. 🙂
Thanks Jenna for stopping by to comment. Also thanks for letting me share on the Homestead Blog Hop! See ya Wednesday 😉