Installing a Rain Water Barrel with Nipples for my Chickens

To prepare to leave the homestead for a week, I install a 35 gallon rain barrel with nipples so that the chickens have plenty of water while I'm gone.
Welcome to our self reliant homestead! Join us, Shawn and Dervla, as we create a resilient, abundant and sustainable ecosystem that feeds our families from the land in Ontario Canada. Using permaculture as our guide, we strive to become independent in water, food, energy and shelter, focused on beauty in form and efficiency in function.
Our Self Reliance is a life of compromise between my two daughters and my wife's preference for culture, comfort and formality, and I, with my love of chaotic and beautiful but challenging and often uncomfortable wilderness living. The resulting homesteads are an eclectic blend of modern with traditional, whimsical with practical, formal with informal, civilized with rustic.
Over the last five years, my wife and I designed and built our dream homesteads from scratch with very little outside help; from undeveloped, declining forest to a comfortable home and cabin with a prolific edible landscape for people and wildlife equally. For many years, we have strived to lessen our burden on others by taking full responsibility for the health and welfare of our immediate family while building a strong community around us, both online and offline. Now that the infrastructure is in place here, we will be spending more time working cooperatively with community members, including extended family, to collectively become more resilient while living a deeply satisfying and meaningful life. Thank you for being part of that!

#homestead #sustainability #farming #offgrid #selfreliance

[dyana]

Being self reliant is really a great idea for your family. God bless.

[brucebarrera]

I love the guitar 🎸🎶🎶. It takes me back to another time, when I was younger. Thank you 🙏. 🤍 ISRAEL ✨

[jorgearturojimenezvargas]

Saludos James lo siento como un amigo a la distancia, gracias me relajan mucho sus videos, desde Costa Rica te veo

[rosearnold]

Love the progress. What an amazing goal for your family. Self reliance. Very admirable.

[sandratweedale]

Chicken utopia, heaven, blessed birds. Brilliant as always Shawn

[gregmason]

Possibly the most spoilt and happy chooks on the planet.

[almathees]

Best Chicken coop!!! I’m the Canadian Woods!🐓
Something to “ Crow!” About!! 👌🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[marygordon]

Wow Shawn l didn’t know that there’s nipples for chickens, and thank you for being the first one to share this, you’re the best! 👏👏👏🤩🤩🤩💯💯💯😎😎😎

[susanbellefeuille]

Those are some happy chickens! What a great idea.

[denisfrancine]

Those chickens are pampered! Lucky birds!

[threewins]

This is so beautiful and I appreciate this very much. Thank you for this.

[shy_pilgrim]

Beautiful, peaceful, another great use for rain water catchment

[SpringHills]

You are doing an amazing job. Inspiring.

[gazzalanche]

Never thought I would see the word nipples on a Reliance vid title.... As everyone else says, well cared for chooks produce and I reckon these ladies will be abundant deliverers!!

[chongseitmooi]

Nice garden with healthy blooming flowers 🌹 . happy chicken running in d field 🎉

[Offgridlee]

Looks good! All the rain we had this weekend would have nearly filled it. Your flowers are very pretty, enjoy your day!

[elizabethjoypodesta]

I had chooks for years they make great pets

[LiveAlohaOhana]

🐔 Awesome idea Shawn ! Now those are some happy chickens 🐔 😃 We missed ya this weekend ' hopefully you got some fishing or hunting in or just some good quality time in with family ❤ Have a wonderful week friend ! 🐕 🐻 🌲

[janetwithers]

I can just feel the serenity. Lucky chickens. ❇️💞❇️

[californiadreamer]

Love the chicken setup ❤ If using rain roof catchment for the nipple chicken waterers, a fine screen at the top of the barrel before the water goes in it is crucial because the little nipples easily clog even with tiny pieces of leaf debris. Also the nipples easily freeze in very cold weather. Learned this the hard way😊