My girls love the new feeder and waterer! Thanks a million! –Michelle This is some of the feedback I have received (I promise I’m not making this up): I have been selling this feeder locally for almost a year now, and I have some very happy customers. There is a notch on top of the port that locks it in place once it’s inside the feeder. To assemble the feeder, follow these instructions: A DIY “port-only” version of this feeder is available.However, if you live in Minnesota or North Dakota, this may not be the feeder for you. I have been testing several of these throughout the winter and after, and none have cracked.They can safely use it at about six weeks old, although not on an 8″ stand (it would not be mouse proof until it is raised 6-8 inches off the ground). Newly hatched chicks can fall in the ports and get stuck.Six to eight chickens can use this feeder.Chickens are not shy about sticking their heads in the ports to get food! It comes with two ports, limiting squabbles over who eats first.The dimensions of the feeder are 17 L X 11.5 W X 12 H. Six-eight inches high is about right for full-grown chickens. You will need to put this feeder some sort of base or stand (like a cinder block).Occasionally you do need to thump it to get the feed to fall evenly underneath the ports. I have used both, and they both work fine.

This feeder holds over six gallons of feed, so you don’t need to fill it very often.After four days, the mice had not so much as licked the peanut butter. That way I’d surely be able to tell if a mouse got in. I bought two mice, put them inside of a large totes box with the feeder, and smeared peanut butter on the surface of the ports. After all, I was leaving it overnight in the run with the two ports uncovered. I still wondered though if mice could somehow get into the feeder. So not only did the new feeder seem to prevent mice from getting to the feed, but now that I could place it directly in the run (since it was rainproof), the mice left the coop. This had been a constant source of angst for me–who is okay with their chickens eating mouse poop? Not to mention that every time I opened the coop door, a mouse would scurry away. Once I started to use this feeder, I noticed I no longer had mouse droppings mixed in with the chickens’ feed. The chickens could poke their heads into the feeding ports (elbows) and not spill any food they ate. I designed two hoods out of plastic and wrapped them around 90° PVC elbows. I opted for a transparent box so I could easily see how much feed is inside. The design is so simple, yet so functional. Long story short, after lots of failed tries, I came up with a feeder that was everything I wanted. There had to be a way to build a no waste, rainproof feeder that wouldn’t break the bank. I searched for a solution, but didn’t find any that seemed to be in a reasonable price range. In addition, I didn’t like having to put the chicken feeder in the cramped coop, but I knew if I left it outside, it would only be a matter of time before the rain would spoil the feed. It bothered me that so much of the feed was being wasted. It doesn’t seem like a big deal at first, but the cost of chicken feed definitely adds up. Have you ever closely watched your chickens eat? If you have, you know that they are messy eaters.

Diy chicken feeder and waterer