Most people planning a first flock spend ages on the coop and feed and not much on water. Then the first hot week arrives, the little drinker is empty by lunchtime, and the hens are standing around the tap with their beaks open. Chickens drink a lot more than new keepers expect, and they drink more again when it's hot. Sorting out the best way to water chickens early saves you a lot of topping up and a few anxious afternoons.
There's no single right drinker. It comes down to how many birds you have, how often you're home, and how much work you want to do each morning.
The main types of chook waterer
An open container, like a bowl or a trough, is the simplest. Birds can drink easily and you can see at a glance how much is left. The downside is that they'll stand in it, scratch dirt and bedding into it and leave droppings in it, so it needs emptying and rinsing often. Hanging a trough drinker up off the dirt helps.
A gravity drinker has a reservoir that tips water into a small base as the birds drink. These are what most backyard keepers start with. The ball type poultry drinker is made from UV stabilised plastic, which matters in an Australian summer, and the stainless steel version is made to avoid the rust problems you get with other metal drinkers. A hanging tower drinker with cup drinkers is a good option if you want it sealed and kept off the ground.
Nipple drinkers have a small valve the birds peck to release a drip. The water stays enclosed, so it stays cleaner, but birds need to learn how to use them. A dropper nipple screwed into a bucket or container is a low-cost way to try the idea. Young birds usually take some showing, so watch them for the first few days and make sure every bird is actually drinking.
Automatic drinkers refill themselves from a hose, a tank or a pump. The automatic poultry waterer connects to a garden hose and tops itself up, and there's a low pressure float version for tank fed water. If you have a small flock and no mains pressure, a header tank with a ball valve is the starting point for a gravity fed setup.
How much water and how many drinkers
A common rule of thumb is that a laying hen drinks somewhere between a quarter and half a litre a day, and noticeably more when it's hot. Four hens can get through a litre or two on an ordinary day and double that in a heatwave. A drinker that looks generous on day one can be dry by mid afternoon.
For three to six birds, one decent gravity or tower drinker usually works if you top it up daily. Bigger flocks, or anyone who leaves the birds for a full day or more, should step up to a larger reservoir like the 30 litre drinker on a stand, or an automatic system. Two drinkers in different spots are better than one big one, because dominant hens will guard a single water point and the shy ones go without.
Placement and height
Hang or stand the drinker so the lip sits at about the height of the birds' backs. Any lower and they kick bedding and droppings into it. Any higher and smaller or younger birds can't reach. If you have a mixed flock, you'll need to raise it as the chicks grow, which is where an adjustable hanging setup earns its keep. The guide to raising day-old chicks covers the smaller drinkers they need first.
Keep drinkers out of the sun and away from the roosting area, so they aren't getting fouled overnight. Under the eave of the run or in the shade of a tree is ideal. It's also worth keeping the drinker clear of the feeder, since wet feed goes mouldy fast. Everything else for the run is in the backyard poultry range. If you're still working out the layout, see setting up for your first flock.
Keeping water clean and cool in summer
Water left in full sun in an Australian summer gets warm quickly, and warm water grows algae and slime. Birds drink less of it just when they need more. Shade is the biggest fix. Put a second drinker in the coolest spot you've got, and in a hot spell, fill it with cool water more than once a day. Move drinkers into the shade before the heat arrives rather than after.
A cleaning routine does more than any gadget. Tip out and refill every day, whatever the drinker type. Once a week, scrub it with a brush and warm water, rinse well and let it dry in the sun. If you see green or slimy film, clean it straight away. Don't put chemicals or disinfectants in the drinking water, and if you do use a cleaning product on the drinker itself, read the label and rinse it thoroughly. For anything about the health of a bird that's stopped drinking or looks off, talk to a local vet.
If you're away
A single drinker topped up before you leave won't last a weekend in summer. For short trips, get a neighbour in to check on the birds and the water once a day, and show them where everything is. For regular absences, automatic watering takes the pressure off. A hose connected unit works where you have a tap close to the run, and the cradle stand lets the automatic waterer sit out in the paddock. Test it for several days before you rely on it, and check that the float shuts off properly so it doesn't flood the pen.
One last tip is to check your drinkers at the end of the day as well as the morning. Heat catches people out, and a drinker that was full at breakfast can be bone dry by mid afternoon.
