I have seen references to using vinegar many times for many different animals...bi-peds included. My question is:

Is it safe to use the vinegar in a metal container? ie: galvanized, aluminum pot...whatever people put water in for chickens. I realize there would be no problem with glass but what about a metal base a glass jar would be screwed into?

Thanks

-- Heather (heathergorden@hotmail.com), December 11, 2000

Answers

Good point Heather. I never thought about that. I think most chicken waterers are made from galvanized aluminum and in my personal opinion I would think the vinegar would cause the bad stuff to leach out of the metals. I had an old crockpot, one of the first taller kinds, and I've been using it to keep the water for my chickens from freezing. Works great! I've seen these lots of times at flea markets for around $3.

-- bwilliams (bjconthefarm@;yahoo.com), December 11, 2000.

Vinegar is used to remove gavenized coating from tin and sheetmetal to "pickle" it prior painting to prevent peeling. Vinegar will also react with aluminum. I left an aluminum pan full of vinegar for about a week and it ate through. We only use stainless steel, glass or plastic when working with vinegar.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), December 11, 2000.

Jay is right about the galvanized aluminum and vinegar reacting badly. i should have specified to NOT use aluminum pans, or galvanized products with added vinrgar in the water. I assumed everyone knew how dangerous it is to use aluminum or galvanized metal products for ANYTHING that we eat a product from, or for that matter, for the health and well being of ANY animal.

I apologize for the oversight, please do not use these metals as containers to hold your vinegar doctored drinking water for ANY animal, use your imagination to provide suitable alternatives, my favorite is porcelain lined old roasting pans, you know the blue flecked ones like Grandma always used. Foe all other critters, I use the hard plastic ones that don't break, Fortiflex is their brand name, they last forever! Annie in SE OH.

-- Annie Miller (annie@1st.net), December 11, 2000.

You know what makes a great water container.. enameled crisper drawers from old refridgerators,srap yards will some times let you take em.We get on bulk garbage days:)we also use a toilet brush to clean our stock buckets,and a dead microwave for a farm medicine chest in the barn...teri

-- teri m (mrs_smurf2000@yahoo.ca), December 11, 2000.

You can buy plastic chicken waterers at farm stores, the type with the bottle that screws into the base for about $1.50 around here. I won't let the animals have the old enamel roasting pans, I'm still using them!! We used to use the enamelled refrigerator drawers as water pans for our ducks, but we had several ducklings drown in them because the sides were too steep to get out. Use them with caution.

-- Julie Froelich (firefly1@nnex.net), December 12, 2000.

Thanks to all who wrote. I will be on the look out for those refrigerator drawers. I know just the place to look. There is a junk shop near here and also at the dump where people can leave old appliances.

-- Heather (heathergorden@hotmail.com), December 12, 2000.

Hi Heather, Annie is right about using aluminum . We just take discarded 5 gallon oil buckets and cut the bottom off. First measure up from the bottom about 6 to 8 inches and cut around the bucket with a skill saw, put the bottom upside down out side somewhere out of the way for a few days. THis lets any extra oil drain out. THen you can wash it good with soapy water rinse well and use. Here it gets very cold in the winter and the water usually freezes over night. Next morning just toss the water bowl out side to knock the ice out. These last quite a long time. We get bockets from the recycling center if they are empty or our brother-in-laws burn pile. Hope this helps. Michelle

-- michelle (tsjheath@ainop.com), December 12, 2000.

My local source of clean, like-new, empty 5-gallon plastic buckets is a fire extinguisher service company. For $1 each they will even throw in a lid.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), December 13, 2000.

For one and five gallon plastic buckets you might want to check your yellow pages for screen printing companies. We use tons of them and once they are cleaned out very well, first with mineral spirits and then with soap and water a few times they are good for any number of things. You can most likely get them for nothing. I've given away a few hundred already cleaned.

-- Doreen (animalwaitress@excite.com), December 15, 2000.

Excuse me, but why are you using vinegar and what are you doing with? Can you tell that I am very new at this

-- Karen in SC (clutterfre@aol.com), December 16, 2000.

Karen, There have been some previous threads on the beneficial effects of vinegar in animals (and humans) water. It is supposed to help control intestinal parasites among other things...

Check the archives for more information. They are located at the bottom of the forum page. If you can't find what you're looking for, holler back at us and someone is sure to help some more.

-- Heather (heathergorden@hotmail.com), December 17, 2000.