A heated drinker keeps your chickens' water thawed, even when it freezes. This selection contains the Gaun heated drinker, which works with an electric heating element, plus Excellent Vorstvrij, an additive for the drinking water. The result: drinkable water in the morning, without hacking at ice.
Why water matters in winter
A chicken only eats and lays well if she drinks enough. If the drinker freezes overnight, the birds are without water until you come by. After a few days of frost, you see it in fewer eggs. If you leave early or have a coop at the far end of the garden, you soon notice the difference with a frost-free drinker.
Buying guide
- Power: the Gaun heated drinker needs a power socket. Outdoors, use a suitable splash-proof connection and, if necessary, an extension cable for outdoor use.
- Cable routing: chickens peck at everything. Run the cable along the wall or through a protective conduit.
- Placement: in the coop or under a shelter stops snow and rain filling the drinker and the element having to work harder.
- Pipes: if a water pipe runs to your coop or stable, a frost protection cable keeps it from freezing; you will find those in the stable category.
Excellent Vorstvrij
Without a power socket, Excellent Vorstvrij is an alternative: a 1-litre glycerine-based liquid that you mix into the drinking water, so the water only freezes at lower temperatures. It is intended for cold spells, not for the whole winter; the mixing ratio and maximum period of use are on the label. In severe frost, even treated water will eventually freeze.
Limitations
A heated drinker does not work without power. If an additive is not enough either, swapping drinkers remains the practical solution: bring an empty drinker indoors in the evening and put a full one back out in the morning.
Explore further: frost protection cables for pipes, small drinker towers, large drinkers from 5 litres and all chicken drinkers.
Frequently asked questions
How much electricity does a heated drinker use?
That differs per model; the power rating is on the rating plate or in the manual. Most electricity is used in severe frost.
Can I put an ordinary drinker tower on a heater plate?
You can, if the plate is made for that purpose and the drinker fits on it. Do not use household heaters in a coop with bedding.
Does a heated drinker have to be in the coop?
Not necessarily, but under a roof the water stays cleaner and the element works less hard.