Poultry encyclopedia · NEXTEKCI School · Farm equipment
Generator and water reserve
The farm’s two insurances against breakdowns: a water reserve covering at least 48 hours of peak consumption, and a back-up power supply for heat, light and the pump. A plan B that has never been tested does not exist.
Key facts
- Water reserve
- At least 48 hours of peak consumption
- 1,000 broilers at about 42 days
- About 360 litres a day, up to double in very hot weather
- Reserve for 1,000 broilers
- At least 750 litres, double in the hot season
- 1,000 layers at 30 °C
- About 640 litres for 48 hours
- Emergency kit
- Checked every month
- Breakdown drill
- Once a quarter
Why they are essential
Without enough water, broilers eat less and stop growing; in layers, a single day without water disrupts laying for weeks. A broken pump, a dry borehole or a mains water cut always comes at the wrong moment.
Electricity runs the pump, the lighting, heat lamps and automatic feeding. In layers, a power cut that shortens the day makes laying drop.
Sizing the water reserve
The reserve covers at least 48 hours of peak consumption. At about 42 days, a broiler drinks about 0.36 litres a day: 1,000 broilers therefore drink about 360 litres a day, and up to double in very hot weather. For 48 hours, plan at least 750 litres, and double that to be safe in the hot season. For 1,000 layers at 30 °C (about 320 ml per hen per day), allow about 640 litres for 48 hours.
Heat drives consumption up: for 1 kg of feed, a broiler drinks 2 litres at 20 °C, 2.5 litres at 26 °C and 5 litres at 37 °C.
Installing and maintaining the tank
Put the tank or water tower in the shade, or paint it white, and bury or cover the pipes: a black pipe in the sun delivers scalding water by midday, and above 30 °C birds drink much less. The tank stays closed and covered: light makes algae grow.
Fit a water meter on the supply and record the water drunk every day at the same time: a drop is often the first sign of a problem. Between flocks, the tank is drained, scrubbed and cleaned along with the pipework.
The generator
The generator covers everything that stops when the power goes: pump, layer lighting, heat lamps, automatic feeding. Install it outdoors, sheltered from rain, with the exhaust pointing away from the bird house and from people: its fumes contain carbon monoxide, deadly and odourless.
Keep fuel in advance, stored away from feed and eggs, and start the generator regularly to check that it runs. For heat, a gas brooder with a spare cylinder does not depend on mains power; for light, charged battery lamps will tide you over.
A tested plan B
Post an emergency checklist and check it every month: a full spare gas cylinder, charged battery lamps, generator fuel, a back-up or hand pump, a week’s stock of feed, dry litter, disinfectant, tarpaulins and ropes, a fire extinguisher or sand bin, and useful numbers (the area vet, a water tanker, an electrician).
Once a quarter, run a drill: “the power is off, show me”. Light the gas, start the generator, fill a drinker by hand. From the start of brooding, a dark period every day gets the birds used to darkness, so they do not pile up in panic during a power cut.
Common mistakes
No reserve, or a reserve calculated for chicks rather than for birds at selling age; a tank in the sun, uncovered and never cleaned; a generator never tested, or out of fuel on the day of the breakdown; a generator placed against the house; no emergency numbers posted.