If you are looking at an upgrade for your Chicken Coop or to learn more about Chicken Drinker Lubing Cups this information is for you. We have put together a list of our top 10 questions regarding lubing cups to help answer all your questions. So here is Everything you need to know about Chicken lubing Cups.

1. What is a Lubing Cup?

Lubing Cups are a water-delivery system for Chicken and Poultry drinkers. It is designed with a special valve float. When depressed by the hen, water from the Chicken drinker flows into the cup. Lubing cups are purposefully made for poultry hydration. The float valve helps stop spillage by providing water on-demand. Most birds use it without any training. Lubing Drinker Cups help prevent contamination of the drinking water. They also avoid wet litter, and may also help to deter pests such as rodents.

The additional free bonus of purchasing a Dine A Chook Chicken waterer is that the float valve has been upgraded by Dine A Chook. Our upgraded patented float allows more water to be released. Being larger it is also easier for chickens to press.

2. Why use a Lubing Cup drinker?

The German company Lubing is the world leader in hydration systems for poultry farmers and breeders. Their professional drinker cups are made for long-term as well as high-volume use.

As Poultry Feeder and Drinker manufacturers ourselves, we experimented with a range of drinker outlets. After our testing we can confidently say the drip-free outlet and also the contamination-minimising design, make Lubing the number one choice. It is perfect for professional as well as backyard chicken keepers alike. Lubing Cups are engineered and manufactured in Germany to the highest standards.

3. What is the difference between Lubing Cups and Nipples?

The two main forms of water delivery for poultry are chicken drinking cups and nipples. They both are effective ways to prevent water spillage, drips and mess. They are also equally both effective in preventing contamination of the drinking water.

Drinker Cups have a small amount of water that hens and other poultry can insert their beaks to drink. They 'naturally' release more water by way of pressing the float valve. Many backyard chicken keepers prefer this more "natural" delivery system.

Nipples have special tips which release water when pressed. They are the preferred choice in commercial and large-scale chicken farming operations. The majority of commercial systems have a drip tray to prevent wetting the litter. Nipple Drinkers are also a good option for waterfowl such as ducks, as they prevent splashing of water which leads to a mess throughout the pen.

If you use a Nipple Drinker with ducks, you shall still need a wet location where they can fully immerse their head and beak as well. This could be a pond or even an additional bucket of water. You should try however to keep this wet location away from feed areas.

4. Can ducks use Lubing Cups?

Depending on the size of the duck beak, your duck may be able to happily use a Drinking cup. However as ducks love splashing water around, some of our customers prefer Dine A Chook Nipple Drinkers.

5. Can other birds use Drinking Cups?

Our customers have reported success with: chickens, bantams, turkeys, guinea fowl, peacocks, ducks and also waterfowl such as ducks.

6. Do Lubing Drinker Cups leak?

Lubing Drinker Cups are designed to be leak and also drip free.

If the drinker begins to leak, this can be caused by contamination or calcification of the valve in the cup. The build-up of sediment over time is inevitable. To stop the leak, follow the maintenance instructions below in Section 10 of this page.

7. What is the Dine a Chook lubing cup float up-grade?

Our Dine A Chook engineers have experimented and examined conventional lubing cups, and we found a flaw. After some redesigning and moulding, we designed a patented Dine a Chook float to fit the Lubing Drinker Cups. Our float allows more water into the cup, meaning higher resting water levels.

8. How many cups do I need?

To ensure adequate access to water, we recommend one Drinker Cup for every six chickens. For Automatic Chicken Waterers, you may be able to have one Lubing Cup per 8 birds.

9. How do I clean my Chicken drinker Cups?

Keeping your Lubing Drinker Cups clean is easy. Just give them a hose out when you are topping up the Dine A Chook Chicken Drinker. This is enough to keep the cup clean. We also recommend giving them a deep clean every couple of months to ensure they keep working in the long-run. Dine A Chook recommends thorough maintenance (see Section 10 below) every few months. With little maintenance, these chicken drinking cups will still look amazing after years of hydrating your hens.

10. How do I maintain my Lubing Drinker Cups? Instructions for a deep clean

To maintain your Drinker Cups, we recommend doing a deep clean every few months. To do this, remove the nipple valve as shown below and wash in warm, soapy water. Rinse well and reassemble. Ensure you clip the valve back in correctly and spin it gently with two fingers to ensure it is moving freely.

If you wish to really service your Drinking Cup, you can completely disassemble it, as pictured below, and then follow the instructions above to clean it. When reassembling the cup, take special care that the lugs align when reattaching the red cup to the main, yellow body. Also, ensure that the top, stainless steel valve has clipped back into place.

If you have any issues with cleaning your Drinker Cup or reassembling it get in touch, it's our pleasure to help you.

If you would like to learn more about Backyard Chicken Keeping, visit our free information articles in our Chook School.