Post by macmex on Mar 13, 2021 9:14:44 GMT -6
Just thought I'd add a thread on this topic, as it is an important one. I've used water pans before, but my impression is that it's too easy to skimp on water when doing so. There are automated systems which one can install, and I have no doubt they are very good. It is only with effort that I can get electricity out to my rabbit shed and I'm not best with gadgets, so I have mostly used the regular waterers found in our feed store.
One of the things I've learned to watch out for, are the waterers they sell in my favorite feed store. They're made from a clearer, more brittle plastic. This isn't too bad during warm water, but sometimes I end up filling them during cold weather, and that, from a bucket of cold water. My hands go numb while doing so, and I rush to get done by squeezing the bottle, speeding the filling process. After a person has treated these bottles this way, they start to crack, whereas the softer, less transparent bottles sold at our farmers' co-op never crack. (Okay, almost never crack).
My favorite solution for this problem is 1) buy the softer, more resilient bottles and 2) have enough extras that I can fill them in the house and carry them all out to the shed in a 5 gallon bucket, popping them into place quickly and saving wear and tear on my hands.
But eventually every bottle wears out. These things are not cheap and I am loath to through out a perfectly good nipple and screw on top. So, I have a far number of them in a drawer, waiting for a new bottle.
The other day I noticed that an empty dish detergent bottle looked to be about the right size. I tried it with one of the lids and found that it works!
Now, it's obvious that this bottle won't last as long as a really good water bottle but nevertheless it will work for a while and we do tend to go through dish detergent, so we'll have a regular supply of these.
Two liter soda bottles work. They just don't fit my brackets. I could make a bracket in under 5 minutes. So that's another possibility. 16 oz soda bottles also work, but I want MORE volume in a water bottle.
So, anyway feel free to chime in with other ideas.
One of the things I've learned to watch out for, are the waterers they sell in my favorite feed store. They're made from a clearer, more brittle plastic. This isn't too bad during warm water, but sometimes I end up filling them during cold weather, and that, from a bucket of cold water. My hands go numb while doing so, and I rush to get done by squeezing the bottle, speeding the filling process. After a person has treated these bottles this way, they start to crack, whereas the softer, less transparent bottles sold at our farmers' co-op never crack. (Okay, almost never crack).
My favorite solution for this problem is 1) buy the softer, more resilient bottles and 2) have enough extras that I can fill them in the house and carry them all out to the shed in a 5 gallon bucket, popping them into place quickly and saving wear and tear on my hands.
But eventually every bottle wears out. These things are not cheap and I am loath to through out a perfectly good nipple and screw on top. So, I have a far number of them in a drawer, waiting for a new bottle.
The other day I noticed that an empty dish detergent bottle looked to be about the right size. I tried it with one of the lids and found that it works!
Now, it's obvious that this bottle won't last as long as a really good water bottle but nevertheless it will work for a while and we do tend to go through dish detergent, so we'll have a regular supply of these.
Two liter soda bottles work. They just don't fit my brackets. I could make a bracket in under 5 minutes. So that's another possibility. 16 oz soda bottles also work, but I want MORE volume in a water bottle.
So, anyway feel free to chime in with other ideas.
