Chicken waterer nipples

jcummins · May 8, 2017

This spring bought a few ducks and some guineas. I setup to vertical pvc pipes to feed one horizontal pipe with nipples along the bottom. Got that ideas from the internet.

Think it would be a good setup...but it leaks. Got screw in type nipples from Amazon, and used thin wall sewer pipe.

The thin wall pipe might be the issue, the nipples did not screw in securely. I did put sicilone around the bases. I need to redo this, but those who use, advice please on how to setup. PVC sch 40? A better different nipple, note some use gormets. Or use a completely different setup?

Here's what I setup.

Sysop · May 8, 2017

I never had any luck with the dripper style. They always dripped and leaked all over the place leaving a muddy mess. I water my chickens from a spring, so water refills my system all the time. There was no end to the mess...

What I ended up doing was getting some of the flat sided kitty litter buckets and the side mount nipples. No sealant, just make the hole the size they say to make it and screw it in; no leaks. Water comes in from the spring, out of an overflow plumbed about halfway up the bucket, and the bucket sets on a block of wood to be high enough for the chickens. Even has a snap-close lid that came with the bucket to keep bugs and random stuff from getting into the water or getting lodged in the nipples.

jcummins · May 8, 2017

I stumbled across the tough guy auto waterer on Amazon for $16+...it's a fair amount more elsewhere. Anyone used this item?

This item.

nybirdman · May 9, 2017

jcummins said:
I stumbled across the tough guy auto waterer on Amazon for $16+...it's a fair amount more elsewhere. Anyone used this item?

This item.View attachment 508865

That's for a dog I believe;birds would roost and crap all over it.

Sysop · May 9, 2017

Yea, any sort of dish gets nasty a dozen times a day. You'll never clean it often enough... I like my chickens to have clean water that they cannot contaminate. A bucket with a lid and side facing nipples is ideal. These are the ones I purchased.

Amazon.com : 5 Horizontal (Side Mount) Poultry Nipples : Patio, Lawn & Garden

With my system, I dug out and laid some drainage fabric in an area that always has running spring water. Installed a pipe to collect the water from the spring and covered it with more fabric and some gravel. That pipe goes into a box that allows any sediment to settle out of the water. From the box I have a smaller pipe that runs to my chicken watering bucket that has the nipples on it. There is also an overflow plumbed to the bucket and away from the chickens so there is no muddy mess. With a steady flow of spring water, I just have to clean any sediment out of the "spring box" occasionally and it never freezes. There are occasionally bits of ice at the nipples, but the chickens seem to keep it working by pecking at it.

ning · May 9, 2017

I just set up a system with a bucket filled from a hose via a float valvle; a short nipple (MPT/MPT PVC nipple, not chicken watering nipple) on the bottom of the bucket going to a PVC T, then a more-or-less horizontal run of 3/4" PVC from below the bucket. Nipples are drilled in (11/32 if I recall?) to the 3/4" sched 40 PVC line; I used teflon tape but no silicone. No leaks at all.

Part of your problem may be excess pressure - no kidding. These things are meant to have almost no water pressure; if your 2" verticals are full, that's probably too much water pressure. The top of the water level in my bucket is maybe a foot above the nipples.

(BTW - I went cheap on the nipples and expected some duds, but all 10 of mine were fine - Amazon.com : Oasis Poultry Water Nipples, 1 Pack : Hanging Bucket Poultry Nipple Waterer : Patio, Lawn & Garden - I even put 3 into the bottom of a very thin-walled junk bucket I had lying around as a test and then reused them.)

mddorange · May 9, 2017

We use old 2 liter Coca Cola bottles with nipples on them hung upside down and they work very well. The only drawback is that the bottles have to be refilled about once a week. Cost, only the price of the nipples.

jcummins · May 9, 2017

ning said:
I just set up a system with a bucket filled from a hose via a float valvle; a short nipple (MPT/MPT PVC nipple, not chicken watering nipple) on the bottom of the bucket going to a PVC T, then a more-or-less horizontal run of 3/4" PVC from below the bucket. Nipples are drilled in (11/32 if I recall?) to the 3/4" sched 40 PVC line; I used teflon tape but no silicone. No leaks at all.

Part of your problem may be excess pressure - no kidding. These things are meant to have almost no water pressure; if your 2" verticals are full, that's probably too much water pressure. The top of the water level in my bucket is maybe a foot above the nipples.

(BTW - I went cheap on the nipples and expected some duds, but all 10 of mine were fine - Amazon.com : Oasis Poultry Water Nipples, 1 Pack : Hanging Bucket Poultry Nipple Waterer : Patio, Lawn & Garden - I even put 3 into the bottom of a very thin-walled junk bucket I had lying around as a test and then reused them.)

I used thin wall sewer pipe, and believe it is an issue. I tried 11/32, could not get them screwed in. Used 23/64...and believe it was just so slightly to big. After finding this setup leaking, I had a small piece of sch 40, drilled 11/32, and they screwed in.

I bought the same nipples. I also used a couple in the bottom of a thin plastic 1 gal jug in a brooder area it worked fine....something about that sewer pipe I think is the issue.

ning · May 9, 2017

jcummins said:
I used thin wall sewer pipe, and believe it is an issue. I tried 11/32, could not get them screwed in. Used 23/64...and believe it was just so slightly to big. After finding this setup leaking, I had a small piece of sch 40, drilled 11/32, and they screwed in.

I bought the same nipples. I also used a couple in the bottom of a thin plastic 1 gal jug in a brooder area it worked fine....something about that sewer pipe I think is the issue.

Could be. My proof-of-concept bucket was really thin, not sure how it compares to sewer pipe as I've only seen black ABS sewer pipe - if it's sched 125 pvc, I'd be surprised if my crappy test bucket was any better, but then it was a flat surface vs your 2" round - mine are now screwed into a 3/4" round side but it is thicker.

I couldn't screw the nipples in by hand; I used a nut driver and let them spin and then they finally grabbed and went in (I've heard of people tapping a thread, but I'm lazy enough to try without the first time and it seemed to work).

FTG-05 · May 9, 2017

Sysop said:
I never had any luck with the dripper style. They always dripped and leaked all over the place leaving a muddy mess. I water my chickens from a spring, so water refills my system all the time. There was no end to the mess...

What I ended up doing was getting some of the flat sided kitty litter buckets and the side mount nipples. No sealant, just make the hole the size they say to make it and screw it in; no leaks. Water comes in from the spring, out of an overflow plumbed about halfway up the bucket, and the bucket sets on a block of wood to be high enough for the chickens. Even has a snap-close lid that came with the bucket to keep bugs and random stuff from getting into the water or getting lodged in the nipples.

I bought 10 of those horizontal nipples, I have 7n of them in use as we speak.

I use three 5-6 gallon screw-on-type lided buckets, one inside the coop, two outside. Fill them once a week or so, no hurry they never run out.

Here's where I bought mine: 1 Pack Horizontal Water Nipple Drinkers Poultry, Chicken Hen - Screw In Waterer | eBay