Water supply for Chicken coop

[RichNJKubota]

The cost is less for a 2 foot trench. The 2 foot trench costs $120 for the rental machine but the local backhoe guy wants $300 for a 4 ft trench that I backfill.
May not seem like a lot more money but I'm on a tight budget and the water line is low on the priority list.
The idea is to not carry water in the winter. I will put a drain valve in the house to drain the line after use.
Any other ideas?

Thanks,
Rich

 

[zuiko]

Why not use a hose in the summer and carry water in the winter? The hose is almost as convenient as the underground line and cheap. I just leave it out all the time. I use a carryall with a 40 gallon rubber stock tank on it to haul water in the winter.

I will put a hydrant right outside the coop when I have some other water work done, but for now it works fine. Electricity to me is way more important for the water heaters and lights.

 

[gws]

Why not rent a 4ft trencher? Around here a 4ft trencher isnt much more than a 2ft models to rent. The last 4ft'er I rented about 2 years ago was only $85/day. I ran a trench to my generator shed and some trenches between the barn, shed and house. About 300ft total and only took a couple of hours.

 

[ljh2]

I guess I'd agree with Gary. If you are going to the hassle of putting in a trench at all, I'd rather do it so you don't have to carry water in the winter. In my opinion, winter is the least enjoyable time to carry water. Slosh it onto your path and after a while you are trying to carry over a bobsled path.

If you aren't going to make the trench winter ready, then I'd just run garden hose. Cheap and easy.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[jimg]

If you do opt for piped water year round you'll also need to figure in electric to run heaters to keep the water liquid in the font and pipes in the freeze zone.