
Parts:
Assembling:

| Taking the threaded barbed hose connector, screw it tightly into the 3/4" t connector using the pliers. I learned that hand tight isn't tight enough to stop drips. I also used the pliers to screw the water nipples into the end of the barbed hose connector. I then cut several lengths of the pvc pipe into 8 inch sections to give the girls plenty of room to get a drink and 4- 1 1/2" sections of pvc to connect the elbows and the cross. (This step is not pictured.) |


I then attach the cross to the bottom of the bucket. The 8" sections of pvc to the left and right are next to be attached.
For the bottom of the cross I attached the 4th pvc stub to the 3/4" ball valve. For now it allows easy clean out. In the next week or two, I will extend the pvc to about 4" from the ground, add a 90 degree threaded elbow with a screw in barbed hose end and attach a drip irrigation line to water the chicken forage inside the enclosed planter I'm building. But that will be another blog.
None of the fittings are glued so that I can clean, change or expand the configuration as the flock and run expand. Because of the distance from a water supply and fact that this is not my property, I did not attach a float or automatic fill system. Instead, I have to fill the bucket with a garden hose about every other day. The benefit of the the bucket is I can freeze bottles of water and add it to the 5 gallon pail as things heat up here. Today is a beautiful 75 degrees and I do not need to add ice bottles to cool this system off yet.
I do still have a waterer inside the coop along with a trough feeder.