Waste-proof, Rain-proof, Mouse-proof Chicken Feeder 

Hey thank you! I appreciate your recommendation. I have people that use these feeding ports for ducks and turkeys and peafowl...as well as for chickens. And yes, they do last forever.

Maybe you already ordered them, but you can buy just the feeding ports if you want the DIY version.

Hi Claudia, I'm also aware that mice and rats can chew through plastic. However, I've sold over 500 of these feeders with no complaints that mice have chewed through the plastic to get the feed, and I've used one myself in my run since 2018. I wonder if since the food container is outside, there are other food sources that are less work to get into than chewing through plastic? Honestly, I don't know the answer. But certainly if anyone purchases one and then finds that mice are getting the into it one way or another, I'd be happy to refund them!

@@revolutionarychicken6251 you should hang it just off the ground instead of on a block it would definitely stop mice and rats

@@UNDERGROUNDCALLING0161 Good idea! I need to try it!

@@UNDERGROUNDCALLING0161 our mice jump and even climb electrical cords like a fire pole on my videos!

I’ve tried this type of feeder, not successful in my case. When I let the hens out to free-range in the backyard the squirrels came. They had it figured out before I could say Jack Robertson.

Thank YOU!

Yes, I have broken several plastic boxes myself while making these. The trick is to push very gently when the hold saw bit goes in. Glad you could make one!

@@revolutionarychicken6251 We have been using our feed box for two weeks now and I only had to fill it once. We did change the pipe from a 45 degree to a 90 degree however, to prevent spilling. Now it works like a charm. The crows took a day to figure it out so they eat from it too now. We don't mind as we still spend a lot less on food because of the prevented spilling. Great solution!

@@osame6802 Hey thank you for your feedback. I'm wondering what you mean by changing the pipe from 45 degree to 90 degree, as they are already 90 degree elbows. I'd be interested if you sent me a picture what you mean. My email is revolutionarychickenstore@gmail.com. Also, I have little 3D printed grates that can go over the ends of feeder ports. They allow chickens to eat through it but prevent birds from getting in. I can send you some for free-just pay for the shipping. My feedback has been that it usually stops birds, but sometimes they figure it out. Crows are pretty smart! Shoot me an email, and we'll talk!

Ha ha ha! Yep--I'm totally a mom and proud of it! Thanks!

The port sizes would be the same. The only real difference would be how high off the ground you could put it. I have a new flock right now with a silkie that is a little younger and smaller than everyone else. So I just have the feeder a few inches off the ground so she can eat from it. Everyone else can eat from it too when it's lower. Eventually when my silkie is tall enough, I will raise it up on a cinder block. I had a bantam once who used this feeder, and it was up on a cinder block...so your bantams just might be fine eating from the normal feeder on a normal 8" base. And you could always move it lower by putting it on a lower base. That said, if you want me to have one port in the normal spot and one port higher, I can certainly do that for you. If I did that, you'd put it on a lower base (like something 4-6"--maybe some stacked bricks). Just send me another message when you order it.

@@revolutionarychicken6251 Thank you! Ok I’ll think this over today and decide.

Yep! I actually did change my container to a white plastic one, and so far so good. Check it out at Revolutionarychicken.com.

Yes, I had someone test this who had a problem with rats. She let me know that the rats could get inside. So I don't make any claims about rats. Of course, I think any feeder that uses the same principle will not be rat-proof.

In my experience with rats, I've learned they are much smarter and destructive than mice. I like your explanation about letting the bin overhang the base so rodents can't climb up on the slippery plastic sides. I have a security camera in my coop, and have watched rats eventually figure out everything I've done to deter them many times. I once hung a feeder so high, my adult Barred Rock Chickens had to stand on their toes and Crane their necks just to reach their food. It didn't take long for the rats to just jump that high without effort. Any chewing is usually done on a edge or a lip in a plastic bin. The rounded bottom edges of your bin in this video looks like it would be hard for a smaller rodent to get a bite on. If determined, a rat will keep at it providing they can smell the feed, and eventually get through. Rats are very efficient jumpers, climbers and problem solvers. They can chew a hole in a wooden coop wall overnight, or dig underneath it leaving an opening for others, including the dreaded Weasel!

@@SPCLPONY what you said. Baking soda sprinkled over feed killed back the varmints in my chicken coop. Now I just sprinkle baking soda in the traffic areas, they’ll absorb the baking soda. It’s at a minimum right now. I’m so thankful!

@@catherinegrace2366 I haven't heard of that idea yet, but I'll give it a try if the rats return. So far, I haven't noticed a rodent problem this winter. Thanks for the tip!

@@SPCLPONY I would imagine that a gravity feeder would stop rats from getting into the feeder. HOWEVER, every gravity feeder I've so far seen allows chickens to fling their food, so you'd have to clean up the waste periodically, or you'd still have a rat problem. Yes, rats are not only very smart, they're also incredibly cautious. They generally only travel paths that they know were safe for them, which is why it's not always easy to catch them with traps. There's even a video of someone putting a snap trap down and the rat TAKING A STICK TO SET OFF THE TRAP, then eating the trap food! I'm honestly impressed with them!

The mice can't get in because the feeder is too smooth and slippery, so they can't get a toe-hold on the plastic. When they try, their paws kind of windmill on it without getting any traction. The feeder does need to hang over the base though. If the feeder is set on a large enough base so that it is more of a platform, the mice can get in. If you want, I can message you a picture of what I'm talking about. As far as jumping goes, I know that a mouse can jump as high as the feeding ports, so it's a bit of a mystery why they don't just jump in. My best guess is--after watching the mice a long time--that they jump straight up and down, not up and over. I've solved a lot of people's mice problems with this feeder, so I'm confident that it works. When people ask me about rats and squirrels though, I don't make any claims!

I haven't had any trouble with the mash going bad, so I don't know how long. I have six chickens, and I usually refill around three weeks.

@@revolutionarychicken6251 Isn’t mash wet food? I’m new to all this. Lol Thank You for the thorough explanation that helped a lot also.

@@CoyoteCrossingSanctuary That's fine! Mash does sound like it would be wet food, but it's not. It's completely dry, just in a powdered or gritty form. I find that the cheapest way to buy chicken feed is from a mill, and the mills don't process it to form pellets (the mill I go to doesn't sell it in bags either--you need to bring your own containers to fill). That is what is called mash. The chickens still eat it just fine. Otherwise, there are pellets and crumbles. Crumbles are pretty much crumbled pellets. Good luck with this! We were all new to this, and I'm still learning things!

@@revolutionarychicken6251 Thank you! I didn’t find much information out there about mash and now I realize I have that in the bottom of my barrel Lol

Great question. I have a complicated answer. The feedback I get from people who have issues with wild birds is that it does keep them out. But then occasionally I hear from someone who says the birds figured it out and fly down into the tubes. So I'd say 90% it fixes the problem, but for the 10% who still have a bird problem, I designed a 3D printed grate that goes over the bottom end of the feeder port. It's too small for the birds to fly through, but large enough for the chickens to eat through. If I could post a picture in this reply, I would. But if you email me at revolutionarychickenstore@gmail.com, I can send you a picture. Unfortunately, I don't have a mechanism for it to stay on the end, so at this point you'd just need to glue it on. I was skeptical if it would work because I thought the wild birds might just eat through it as well like the chickens, but people who have used the grate say that it helps. For now, I will give them away for free as long as you pay for the shipping, or I'll throw it in your order if you're ordering other stuff. Just request it.

I got them from Home Depot. They are 90 degree pvc elbows. I had to cut off the hubs on one side. However, the notch that sticks out so it locks into place when you push it in the feeder--I 3D printed that. If you want to buy them on my website (Revolutionarychicken.com), it would save you a lot of time. It would also be free shipping.

I designed them and had them manufactured for me.

Probably. So if you have an issue with rats or squirrels eating your chicken feed, better go with a different style feeder. Perhaps a Grandpa's Feeder?

Two jumped out of the bin, one died, and I sold the remaining seven after the test.

Great questions! I think it can handle wild mice just fine since I have no mice poop in my feeder like I used to (and I've been selling these since 2019). Rats, on the other hand, CAN get into it. I don't make any claims about rats. Birds are mostly deterred by it, but occasionally they can figure it out, so not 100%, but pretty darn close.

I did first get the idea from RU-vid, but I don't think it was from Living Traditions. It was a guy with a New England accent, and he did it quite a bit differently. After I followed his instructions, I was still getting a lot of waste, so I modified it, plus changed how it attached to the feeder, and figured out how to attach a hood so it could be rainproof as well. I do learn a lot from RU-vid though!

You can order this feeder at Revolutionarychicken.com. Thanks!

All Out of stock :( Great video though, Thank You 🙏

@@merrymary501 I will be taking off the "out of stock" sign tonight!! I completely ran out and then have been working my tail off to make more--but I'm really sorry for the inconvenience!

@@merrymary501 Back in stock!

It's right under the Shop tab. So first go to shop, select what you'd like. Then go under the shop tab and either select Cart or Checkout. Hope that helps! If not, email me at RevolutionaryChickenStore@gmail.com. I can help you further if you need me to.

Okay, the first time I did this test I did it with two mice for about four days. Afterwards, I let them go in my backyard. And holy cow--they ran right in the chicken run, and my chickens caught and ate them! The second batch (the ten I bought) I sold to someone else after the test. I hope they met a better fate!

Yes--this does keep out birds. I've had several customers with problems with wild birds stealing all their chicken feed. These customers are the most desperate ones--because it's so expensive to refill a chicken feeder every other day. I have heard that this does work keeping the wild birds out. I think they are afraid to fly down into the 90 degree tube.

I would say no. I'm no Mark Rober! :-)

As soon as you put something in the cart, look for a green button above the product that says "view cart." Or, you could click on the Shop tab above at the top right and then click on "Cart." I hope that clears it up for you. Sorry I didn't see this until now!

Definitely!

I had a woman try this feeder who had rats. She told me that, unfortunately, rats CAN get inside. I'm sure that other feeders that have the same concept/design will have the same issue. If you really want to keep rats from getting in, I'm guessing that a treadle feeder may be the ticket. I'm sorry, because those are pretty expensive.

I know. Here's why it works. The feeder is so smooth that they can't climb up it. And the feeding port--once you have the feeder on a cinderblock base--is more than a foot off the ground. Even though mice can definitely jump that high, they seem to not be able to jump that high diagonally or in an arc to land inside the port. That's the only way I can explain it. In the mouse test I did, I actually lost two mice because they jumped out of the large bin, but they still weren't able to jump into the feeder. One more thing--I found that it's helpful that the base the feeder has a smaller footprint than the feeder itself. You want an overhang from the feeder to the base. You can see my mouse test video at ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-g7CI_V1Kpd4.html