Store-bought pig feeders can be quite pricey. They can also be very lightweight, which means that a full grown hog can easily wreck them if they aren’t chained down. We have always found it easier and cheaper to build a homemade automatic pig feeder from Plywood instead of buying one. It only requires 4 materials, a few simple tools, and about 2 hours of time.
Once a year, in March, we pick up our piglets from a neighboring farm. We feed and care for them through July, and butcher when they are about 6-7 months old. The pigs are usually around 200 pounds at that point, and yield very tender pork. Obviously, to go from the 25 pound piglet to a 200 pound pig requires a lot of feed. But, if the pig pen is set up properly with an automatic nipple waterer and enough automatic feeders, the work load is minimal.
What Do You Need to Build an Easy Pig Feeder from Plywood?
Materials
- 4′ x 8′ Sheet of Plywood. 1/2 inch or thicker works well.
- 14′ 2×12 board
- Box of 100 2 1/2″ GRK Cabinet Screws. Each box comes with its own Torx-15 bit.
- Box of 67 3″ Decking Screws. 67 is the smallest box that Home Depot sells right now, but you will only need about 20 of them.
Tools
- Impact Driver or Drill
- Circular Saw for the large cuts (a jigsaw or table saw would also work, but are not ideal).
- Measuring Tape
- Framing Square or other accurate straight edge.
- Jigsaw (optional, but is helpful for doing the chute cutouts).
Cutting the Pieces Necessary to Build an Easy Pig Feeder from Plywood and a 2×12
- Use the Circular Saw to cut the 4’x8′ sheet of Plywood into four 2’x4′ pieces. Only 3 of these will be used in the earlier steps.
2. Two of these Plywood pieces will make the front and back of the grain storage bin. They have to be notched at the bottom to allow grain to flow out into the trough area. For pelletized pig feed, this notch or cutout should be 4 inches tall and make sure to leave 2 inches of plywood on each side of the notch to help prevent splintering during assembly (see photo below for reference). We did not do a full 2 inches on the first one we cut, and we definitely had some issues with the plywood wanting to separate and splinter because of this.
3. Cut the 2×12 into the following pieces:
- Two 4′ pieces with square ends. These will make the sides of the grain bin.
- Four 1′ pieces. Cut these pieces on a diagonal across the short length of the board. The top of the diagonal should be 1′ in height and the bottom the diagonal should be 5 1/2″ in height. Again, see the photo below for reference. These will make the sides of the feed trough.
- The remaining 2′ piece should be stripped lengthwise to make two 6″ pieces (the 6″ measurement is approximate since a 2×12 board is not truly 12 inches wide). These pieces will make the front of the trough.
4. Cut two pieces from the short length of the extra plywood piece. Make one piece 6″ tall and the second one should be 7″ tall.
Assembling the Pieces to Build this Easy Pig Feeder
- Take the diagonal 2×12 pieces and screw the long edge to the notched pieces of plywood.
2. Screw the the 4′ pieces of 2×12 to the other side of the notched plywood in order to form the sides of the grain bin.
3. Attach the second notched plywood piece to the open side of the 2×12. You should now have a solid four-sided grain bin that is only open at the top and bottom.
4. Next, screw the 7″ and 6″ pieces of plywood together to form a 90 degree angle. This will form the grain diverter for the bin.
5. Slide the diverter into place at the bottom end of the grain bin.
6. Cut the corners off the extra piece of plywood. Screw these into the corners of the grain diverter to prevent it from either falling out or over-rotating.
7. Screw one of the original pieces of plywood you cut onto the bottom to make a floor for the entire feeder.
8. Slide the 2’x6″x2″ pieces into place to form the fronts of the feeding trough. Secure them with screws.
Comparisons and Tips
Comparison:
Tractor Supply sells one of the more popular automatic pig feeders. It is made from galvanized steel, holds about 115 pounds of grain, is one sided, and sells for $190. The galvanized steel has the potential to last longer than wood. But, this feeder is very light weight and a full grown hog can easily toss it around if it is not chained down.
In comparison, the feeder we built:
- Cost $125 (it used to cost us around $90 to build before Covid sent the cost of wood sky high).
- Holds over 250 pounds of grain.
- Is double sided.
- It is very heavy-duty. We have never had a pig flip one of these.
Tips:
- Sometimes plywood will tend to splinter if you are screwing into the side or into a small piece. If you find this happening, go ahead and use a small drill bit to pre-drill the holes. This should prevent any further splintering.
- Make sure to put the feeder in a dry portion of the pig pen. Try to keep it away from their watering spot and away from their toilet area. You can also put it up on skids or blocks once the piglets are tall enough to reach it. Or position the skids where they stick out in front of the trough and the smaller piglets can use them as a stepping block to reach the feed better.
- If the feeder is in an area where it will be exposed to any moisture, then consider painting the outside to help preserve it. I just would not recommend painting the surfaces that directly touch the food. You do not want the paint flaking off into the feed and being ingested by the pigs.
The Payoff
All this work has to come with a reward, right? This is nothing quite so mouthwateringly delicious as homegrown Pork. When cooked right, it is tender and juicy with incredible flavor. My husband’s favorite cut is the Pork Chop. I always ask our butcher to do them 2 1/2 inches thick. Then, I sear them on both sides and finish them in the oven in a maple sauce. They are the only thing my husband refuses to share with anyone outside of our immediate household.
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