# Winter Water



## Tyler

I was wondering how all ya'll do you water over the winter. I keep a 3500 gallon tank by the fence and let water out of that into a 50 gallon tub whenever needed. To keep the tank from freezing in the winter, I insulate it with hay bales and keep a heater in it. For the valve, I have an insulated box with a heat lamp inside. This doesn't work quite perfect, so I was wanting to glean ideas from you guys!


----------



## Shelly Borg

I carry 10 gals of hot water 3 times a day out to the goats. Not the funniest of goat jobs.


----------



## cdtrum

Same as Shelly! They love their hot water  !


----------



## Tyler

Wow! How do you heat all that water?


----------



## Shelly Borg

I just run the shop sink as hot as it will go. Then just fill buckets and go.


----------



## Mully

3500 gal is a lot of water to heat. Solar panels would be one of the most cost effective ways when used with a recirculating pump. Electric heating would be so expensive.


----------



## Tyler

It's actually just a regular 100 gallon heater, and with the hay it works great. The valve freezing is the hard part. :roll:


----------



## Mully

They make an electrical "tape" that is used to keep pipes from freezing. It is supposed to run in line and not wrap around the pipe so if you could find a short one that might work. check with AG supply and Farm Boy and see if they have anything. Also a light bulb might work depending on your setup.


----------



## Tyler

Ah! Never thought of that before. Thanks for the suggestion!


----------



## AlaskaBoers

you could buy a stock tank heater...but they freeze up at -20 so It doesnt work for me, I just keep their water in their barn, ane it only gets frost around the rim.


----------



## FunnyRiverFarm

I haul warm water from the kitchen sink twice a day. This is when my "bucket hauler" comes in handy:

http://thegoatspot.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=11124&hilit=+bucket+hauler


----------



## Tyler

Nifty!


----------



## Idahodreamer

I use a milk jug to carry hot water to all my animals twice a day---when I get up in the morning and when I lock up ( 8-9 pm) at night. the house is a ways from the barn so it is NOT fun.


----------



## LomaVerdeBoers

I'm in Sunny Surprise, Az. So I have nipple waterers on all the pens and my well water comes out at about 75 degrees so my line hasn't froze yet :sigh: . I have heat lamps near the nipples so they don't freeze. It got down to 30degrees last night and the goats were drinking water this morning fine.


----------



## Victoria

We keep a pan on the wood stove...in the mornin, my DH carries out to the goaties, the water has been frozen solid in the mornin, so we just pour the hot water on top of two 8 gallon buckets..The goaties love love love it!! That is usually sufficient for the day!!


----------



## goatshows

we haul out hot water twice a day in 5 gallon buckets. I would be to leery to use heat lamps like you guys, I have seen a barn fire caused by a heat lamp so we only use them if its an emergency, i would much rather bring the goats in the house then use a heat lamp where it could easily get knocked over


----------



## LomaVerdeBoers

Our heat lamps are hardwired using conduit and they're mounted about 30" off the ground. We tried ordinary heat lamps but the goats kept breaking them, so we found a permanent solution.


----------



## 3pygmymom

Idahodreamer said:


> I use a milk jug to carry hot water to all my animals twice a day---when I get up in the morning and when I lock up ( 8-9 pm) at night. the house is a ways from the barn so it is NOT fun.


milk jugs, why didnt i think of that??? :GAAH: i carry water from the barn and it sloshes and i have to go down some steps from the sunporch when i carry hot water out of the house. my girls would try putting the buckets in the wagon but of course half of it has spilled by the time they get to the barn :hair: ! i have empty milk jugs washed and was collecting them to use on my plants in the garden in the spring but i think i just found a better use for them, thanks!


----------



## bleatinghearts

I have had really good luck with heated buckets. They are about 5 gallons and make life so nice. I have one in with the buck, one with the others, one that is placed between the dog yards so seven dogs can get to it and a heated dog bowl for the other dogs. Everyone has fresh water no mater what temp it is. This year has been mild but last year we had several days of temps below -30. We saw almost -50 below for a couple days. We just have to check them twice a day to make sure noone pooped in one. If there is a little hay in them we use a kitchen strainer to make it clean again. Picky goats! :wink:


----------



## nutmegfarm

Yeah, I have to manually run water out from the bathtub...oh well, nothing like a frozen pantleg when you spill water while manuvering around Ohio snow right?


----------



## lupinfarm

Well this winter I just took out a bucket of hot water for our two does. Next winter I'm going to buy a heated bucket. Right now I use a heated muck bucket for the horses and I Love it, I have an extra one but they're 250watts so I'll go a size down since I only have 2 does.


----------



## artzkat

We too do the same as Shelly...we save the 2 gallon kitty litter containers, rinse them out well and cart those down twice a day. Like using them because they have good handles and hold exactly 2 gallons each so can carry 2 at a time. Wish I could afford one of those heated water hoses.


----------



## ourlilhomestead

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=221311865723

Anybody use something like this wrapped around a bucket to keep it from freezing? Might even heat the water if you use a longer one and really wrap the bucket well.


----------



## TOU

bleatinghearts said:


> I have had really good luck with heated buckets. They are about 5 gallons and make life so nice. I have one in with the buck, one with the others, one that is placed between the dog yards so seven dogs can get to it and a heated dog bowl for the other dogs. Everyone has fresh water no mater what temp it is. This year has been mild but last year we had several days of temps below -30. We saw almost -50 below for a couple days. We just have to check them twice a day to make sure noone pooped in one. If there is a little hay in them we use a kitchen strainer to make it clean again. Picky goats! :wink:


I currently only have two 2.5 year old packing wethers. I started the winter with a 250 gallon tank in the barn...then we hit a couple of weeks with -5 at night...froze absolutely solid. Grrrrr. The valves froze first, thank goodness I had about 30 gallons out of it already. Its finally melting a bit & I hope to get it drained sooner than later. I use this set up as I don't have water out at the barn or corrals and have to run a hose 4 hoses from the property owners home to fill it.

Then we got the power restored to the barn which is attached to the corrals, so I bought a 6 gallon plastic bucket which use a 120 watts but is also thermostatically controlled. I was trying to minimize the ower usage as I am not paying for it and the owner was okay with "1 light bulbs worth of power "as need. Thing works like a charm, I love it & I got it on sale or $38...one of the best investments I have made & the goats love it.

Now I haul a small amount of water in a blue plastic 6 gallon Igloo water Jerry-can to top it off daily and dump it once a week. Keep in mind it is suspended on the fence post and is at the opposite end of the corrals from their hay feeders. I.E. No goat berries yet and rarely any grass in it. One great thing is when it snows it fills it for me. LOL

http://www.calranch.com/farm-innovators-heated-bucket-flatback-6-gal












> Oversized 5 gallon capacity (holds 24 quarts). 120 watts. Thermostatically controlled to operate only when necessary (on at 35 deg F, off at 60 F). Unique "hide-away" cord compartment on the bottom conceals cord for year round use. Heavy duty anti-chew cord protector to deter chewing. Strong handle with reinforced connectors. Spill-free pour spout.


 BTW, normally I really like my 5 gallon black rubber muck buckets but I am not a fan of the heated versions. I don't care for their chords or their submersed heating element with a grate on top. The buckets are tough but their elements are not so tough and animals mess with the chords as they are more exposed.

http://www.calranch.com/farm-innovators-heated-flat-back-rubber-bucket









My buddy has been using the green one above with his goats for 12 years with no issues & the bucket has been very tough. He also has the 16 gallon version. BTW they make the green one in a bigger and smaller versions. I just don't need 16 gallons worth of water and it has to sit on the ground or must be placed on a platform.

I.E. 16 gallon

http://www.calranch.com/farm-innovators-16-gal.-200-watt-heated-tub









Finally, besides hoping to repair the barn's water system next summer, I have plans to build a solar-heat-exchanger hooked up to an insulated boxed water trough or bucket but just didn't get it done before winter hit this year. (I will need it for next year as I will have 8 drinking out of it next year.) It will have a tiny solar sell that will run a small PC fan for circulation. I know a gentleman that has used this in -40 below Montana nights with no freezing for his horse troughs. But...that is for another thread.


----------



## MsScamp

Tyler said:


> I was wondering how all ya'll do you water over the winter. I keep a 3500 gallon tank by the fence and let water out of that into a 50 gallon tub whenever needed. To keep the tank from freezing in the winter, I insulate it with hay bales and keep a heater in it. For the valve, I have an insulated box with a heat lamp inside. This doesn't work quite perfect, so I was wanting to glean ideas from you guys!


For the most part, I have automatic waterers that are freeze proof(at least for the most part) and the girls drink cold water. One tank is a simple galvanized metal tank and I break the ice and throw it out. There is no way in hell that I'm even going to consider carrying warm water for 85 goats - it just isn't happening!


----------



## BrokenArrowRanch

My hot water heater has a faucet on the bottom of it. So I put a hose on it and run it too my horses or goats... or I fill a smaller trough and let the horses out, they drink what they want thats warm, then they know to go back to their pastures... that faucet is nice for random midnight hot tub excursions. A new hot tub is in order...


----------



## backyardFarming

I have one heated horse water bucket and one "ice-be-gone" insert that you put in any other bucket. (I love it) It works great... since I only have a few goats. But it does not keep the water warm, just prevents the water from freezing. But the past few days have been in the single digits... I have been carting hot water to the barn to dump in there buckets.. and they love the warm water! I still carry warm-hot water to the barn 2-3 time a day everyday because we have chickens and a rabbit, and I do not have a heated chicken water trough yet. That's on my list of "to get" by next year!


----------



## TDG-Farms

Direct burial cable (for deicers), laid right next to 1 inch schedule 40 PVC coming from a water source to supply water ending in a frost free spigot. Done


----------



## NyGoatMom

We carry....but we only have 2 goat pens with 7 goats. The chickens have a heated water base. It's the ducks that are difficult, they wanna jump right in it....so a bucket gets tipped over,and a galvanized waterer and base they drain in 5 minutes...so they get water in a black plastic tub we have to break ice out of daily....


----------



## TOU

TDG-Farms said:


> Direct burial cable (for deicers), laid right next to 1 inch schedule 40 PVC coming from a water source to supply water ending in a frost free spigot. Done


More detail please...


----------



## TDG-Farms

Direct burial cable is electrical wire you can directly bury under ground without putting it in a gray pvc conduit. When you trench to lay your waterline, if you do it deep enough (code is 3 1/2 to 4 feet for electrical) you can just drop the cable in the trench next to your water line. 1 inch pvc schedule 40 is the think wall pvc. Everywhere you put a spigot, put an outside rated outlet for power. Frost free spigots, once shot off, siphon the water in the spigot out the bottom into the ground so there is no water in the spigot to freeze. 
Deicers in the winter, automatic waterers in the summer. Simple. 

Note on the frost free spigots, you want the bottom deep enough in the ground past the typical freezing depth. So if you bury your water and electrical at least 3 feet down, you will be plenty deep enough just about anywhere. Cept maybe Alaska


----------



## TOU

TDG-Farms said:


> Direct burial cable is electrical wire you can directly bury under ground without putting it in a gray pvc conduit.


Thank you...excellent info!


----------



## MsScamp

TDG-Farms said:


> So if you bury your water and electrical at least 3 feet down, you will be plenty deep enough just about anywhere. Cept maybe Alaska


3 feet is no where near deep enough in Wyoming, The Dakota's, Montana, or a lot of other places, either. The frost line here is about 4-5', and water lines are buried at least 5' deep, if not 6'.


----------

