Chicken Feeder Makes Chore Time Easy

Chicken Feeder Makes Chore Time Easy LIVESTOCK Feeding Equipment Romie Holl built his chicken feeder to solve a problem he had after putting his chickens and goats in the same pen The goats were eating the chicken feed By putting feed in a plastic barrel with 3-in pvc 90-degree elbows installed at the bottom only the chickens can poke their heads into the barrel to eat In addition Holl appreciates the convenience of filling the feeder every 2 or 3 weeks instead of daily “Regular size chickens have no problem reaching in ” he says noting the elbows may be too long for small breeds He set a 55-gal plastic barrel on the ground and marked 6 holes around the bottom by placing the elbow on a piece of 2 by 4 next to the barrel and drawing around the end That creates a 1 1/2-in space for the grain below the feeder opening He cut the holes with a hole saw and pushed the male end through the hole from the inside leaving about 1 1/2-in protruding on the outside of the barrel and the end inside the barrel facing downward Once he knew how everything would fit he caulked around each elbow with 100 percent silicone caulking inside and outside the barrel After letting it dry for a day Holl poured 20 gal of feed into the barrel to test it Initially he dropped some grain on the ground around the elbow and inside the opening “It didn’t take long for the chickens to figure it out ” he says “The feeder has worked well for 3 1/2 years ” To help grain flow toward the feeder openings he pop-riveted a cone made of 18-in wide flashing and placed it in inside the barrel Besides having a tight lid the feeder is under a lean-to and he’s never had issues with rain getting in the feeder holes As a precaution he drilled a few small pinholes in the bottom of the barrel in case moisture gets inside He makes sure to keep the barrel full enough so it is too heavy for the goats to knock over Having the chickens goats and currently one pig in the same pen works out well Holl notes Chickens eat the flies attracted to the feces and the pig lets the chickens sleep on top of him Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Romie Holl Wis romieh66@yahoo com

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