So we got some new chicks – So, to whip up some cheap feeders…I’ve given up on floor based feeders, they, being chickens, walk through and fill the containers with sawdust instantly… So hanging containers really is a must… but I’m on a budget….and the ones you buy are more than my budget will allow…
Food….. A simple 1 bottle feeder… I used a 600ml bottle, but you could make a larger one from a 2 litre bottle.
Just cut the bottle in half. With the bottom half, cut an opening on both sides. Then put the top half into the bottom half. I used duct tape to stick them together… and a hole punch to punch 2 holes in the top part, to thread a string through. You’ll want the opening of the bottle to be just above the level you want the feed to be at, as it will replenish once the food level drops below the bottle opening.
If using outside, you could put a plate on top
Water….. I googled and found this http://www.waldeneffect.org/20090831water.jpg – Which is a great idea, except it’s on the ground….The idea is that the full bottle won’t actually leak out unless the water level in the container it’s in, is low… so it should create a self feeding water system, without just all pouring out.
So I knocked this up (I originally made one using a peanut butter jar, but while the plastic was thicker and more sturdy, I thought the holder container needed to be taller so it wasn’t so rickety)
I’ve highlighted the cutout with purple so you can see it…. but it’s just a 125lt coke bottle with the top cut off and a window cut in… holes in the sides to hang it… and a 600ml bottle inside…. I’ve found a skewer inside the 600ml bottle elevates it a bit, as I was having trouble with it sometimes not having a gap enough to refill. And a tip…. to save mess when you replace the inner coke bottle… put the lid on, then remove it when it is in place 😀
It is a little prone to leaking, not refilling itself and being spilled when I go to add more water, so I confess, I did end up buying a waterer….. but I did buy the cheaper floor one, and used wire to make it a hanging one.
I also saw this – http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/01/its_for_the_bir.php Which is a bird feeder made from a pringles can and a sardine tin (though I imagine other things could be used). Maybe I need to make one of those… course, it would involve the sacrifice of eating said tin of pringles…. 🙂 and I might need to make another waterer if I did…. necessitating another coke…. Mmmmm yeah!
First feeder idea…. this didn’t end up working so well…. You need the domed bit or the tray part will just tip over… and the idea was that it would gradually keep filling the tray part, which it does, to a point…. but it’s hard to refill… so I ended up thinking up a better way.
To make this one though…. Cut the bottom off the 2 litre bottle…. I added some very attractive duct tape to stop the edges being sharp…. Then cut the 600ml bottle’s bottom off…. I chose to cut it sort of in half, but you can make it taller (holds more) by just cutting the bottom off…. Cut some arches in there to allow the food inside the 600ml bottle to come out as needed…. Poke a hole in the centre bottom of the 2 litre bottle tray you have…. Hammering a large nail into it should do the trick. Do likewise with a lid. Tie a knot in a length of string and thread it through the hole in the 2 litre bottle tray piece, and then up through the 600ml bottle, and thread the lid on… Screw the lid on, then tie a knot. If I had one of those sliding toggles, I’d have used that, so you don’t have to untie the knot to refill it… Though as you can see, my knot wasn’t tight enough, and they did tip the feeder on it’s side – doh! The tightness of that bit stops it tipping over for some reason…..
Obsidian's Ramblings.... 