A set up to keep the cats’ water from freezing is now set up in the sun room.

We will know by tomorrow, if not tonight, if it will work.

Here is the set up.

First, the heat source: an incandescent light bulb.

This is what my brother had used under the kitchen sink, to keep the pipes from freezing while the house was empty.  The first potential problem I saw was the fixture holding the bulb.  While the opening in the concrete block I had would fit the bulb, no problem, the fixture looked too wide.  So I had a terracotta plant pot as a back up.

There was already a 60 watt bulb in the fixture.  The various instructions I’d read called for a maximum 40 watt bulb, but these were all on sites in US states that don’t get as cold as we do!  So I kept the 60 watt bulb.

The plant pot is what I ended up using.  The cement block was not stable.  I could have removed the fixture, but it’s what was holding the bulb upright.

The narrower bottom (now top) of the pot meant I could not use any of the containers we are currently using for water.  So I dug around in the Old Kitchen and found a cookie tin.

The tin is not completely water tight; there’s a slight drip at the seam.  So I used aluminum foil around the base, which will also serve to stabilize it.

That left an issue of height.  The cats were immediately curious (and Doom Guy was drinking the water in the tin as soon as I had it on the floor, before I put the foil on), and I could see that there were potential issues for them to reach the water if it gets low.

To solve that, I put the concrete block near it, for them to sit on.  Between that and the kneeler, they should be able to reach the water.

The terracotta pot should absorb and radiate a gentle heat as well.  I would not be surprised to find cats huddling up to it at some point.

For now, though, they are very curious about the whole set up, and even having fun playing around it!

Which means on of the things we have to watch out for is them knocking the water right off the pot.  We’ll be keeping an eye on them!

The Re-Farmer