# Automatic Watering System during the winter???



## ttamd (Sep 11, 2012)

i recently installed an automatic watering system for my rabbits. and winter is approaching. i live in massachusetts so it gets pretty cold here. so i need to think of some ideas to keep the water from freezing. i was thinking about putting a water heater in the 5 gallon bucket. but if i did that i still think that the tubing would freeze up on me (im using the black flexible water tubing, not pvc). but i was thinking about wrapping heated cable around the tubing, and then wrapping the tubing and cable in some sort of insulation. anyways, i just wanted to see if anybody on here had any experience with this or had any ideas!

thanks!!


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## arnie (Apr 26, 2012)

If you have the type of watering tubes that come off the main line to the drinker valve other than heating the building yer out of luck .if you have the valves screwed directly into a pipe that you can keep the heated water cirulateing through it will work or there are ready made systems or DIY THETE ARE ALSO HEAT CABLES made for this pourpos that can be run inside the pipe


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## ttamd (Sep 11, 2012)

yes i do have the type of watering tubes that come off the main line then to the drinker valve but i was thinking i could wrap a heating cable around the actual tubing. you dont think that would work?


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## PD-Riverman (May 24, 2007)

ttamd said:


> yes i do have the type of watering tubes that come off the main line then to the drinker valve but i was thinking i could wrap a heating cable around the actual tubing. you dont think that would work?


How many drinker valves do you have? I have a small set-up of 22 cages and my set-up is Off Grid so wrapping each line is out the question. I watch the weather, if its going to get below freezing I just drain my system by turning one valve open---I have shallow dog food cans that I wire to the cages when cold weather comes. I pour about 80 degree water into these cans using a watering can. I do this in the morning and the water will usually not refreeze till after dark because We do not have very many days here that stays below freezing during the middle of the day. If I am going to have a few days that is going to stay above freezing I re-fill the automatic watering system. Good Luck


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## arnie (Apr 26, 2012)

I have had a little experince with those heat. Cables ment to be wraped around meatle water pipes and they worked whereever they touched and seemed to use lots of electricty you may be better off heating the hole shed .the ones made for rabbit watering run inside the water pipe .I don't want to sound like a salesman for bass equipment co. But in. There catilog rhey have a diagram of the systems avtaliable perhapes you could coustomize somthing to fit your setup .I know living up north its below freezeing for months one end ,the only one I can figger that will work is the brass valves with the 1/2 '' pipe running through or next to the cage so you can keep the heated water circulateing or the in line heating cables.rudolfs rabbits has a website with instructions on how to set it up on the cheep.if you you can google them .


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## Treewhisper (Nov 24, 2010)

I live in MA too. In winter i use small plastic sandwich tupperware containers that you get in walmart at $2 for 4pack. One is wired to the cages and another is placed inside the wired one with water. When it freezes i take the frozen tupperware container out and replace it with a new one with hot water. Its labor intensive but it works and the rabbits know to get the water when they can before it freezes.

What i'm working on now with Arnie is an auto watering system that doesnt freeze in winter. The flexi tubing is 3/16". That wont work in winter it'll freeze right up! I'm not a salesman for Bass Equip either but i like their freeze-X recirculating system and am going to run TWO heat cables THROUGH the pipes which should given protection down to zero degrees with a thermocube to automatically turn the heat cable on at 35F. This will be my first year trying it out. If it doesnt work this year then i will go back to the tupperware and add pipe insulation on next year.

---- this hobby is expensive!!


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## hawksmeadow1 (11 mo ago)

arnie said:


> If you have the type of watering tubes that come off the main line to the drinker valve other than heating the building yer out of luck .if you have the valves screwed directly into a pipe that you can keep the heated water cirulateing through it will work or there are ready made systems or DIY THETE ARE ALSO HEAT CABLES made for this pourpos that can be run inside the pipe


Where can I get the heat cables. Want to rabbits plus auto waters for goats and horse stalls.


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## Forcast (Apr 15, 2014)

They make heated waters. Why reinvent the wheel


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

hawksmeadow1 said:


> Where can I get the heat cables. Want to rabbits plus auto waters for goats and horse stalls.


@arnie hasn't been around for a couple years. I don't know how he had his system set up. This place has a lot of livestock watering supplies. I hope they can help. I use water bottles and heat my rabbitry.









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## birdman1 (Oct 3, 2011)

Danaus29 said:


> @arnie hasn't been around for a couple years. I don't know how he had his system set up. This place has a lot of livestock watering supplies. I hope they can help. I use water bottles and heat my rabbitry.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Bass rabbit equipment sell the heat wires that you can run inside the water pipes , as well a the freeze X water system ,that is circulates and heats water through your system , again it will not work with a flex tube system only where the drinker valves are connected to the supply pipe where the warmed water keeps moveing in a circle through the system


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