It’s important to keep the chickens well hydrated especially in the summer. A dehydrated chicken can get sick, die, or affect egg production. Having a larger and enclosed chicken waterer system not only simplifies our lives, but keeps the water clean and constant supply. This is a very easy DIY project for creating a chicken waterer system. We used PVC piping, but you can also use buckets. Be creative!! This is also a very affordable project and you’ll be glad you wont be having to add water and be cleaning the waterer constantly.
I purchased the water nipples on amazon for $6 including shipping for a pack of 25. The PVC piping and couplings/connectors were about $30 total, depending on what size you get. We got a 4″ diameter by 2′ long piece for the top reservoir and a 2″ diameter by 2′ long piece for the bottom part where the nipples go, plus the necessary connectors. Purple PVC glue and cement is needed to bond the pieces together. The chickens learn very quickly to drink from the nipples, just place their beak on it to get them going. As long as one tries it the others will follow. Also, the nipples should be a couple inches above the head so they reach up to it. Take a look at a video of my chickens drinking from the waterer. View chickens
There are several references online, here is one video with instructions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4BkyC03fF4
