Water troughs

[SolwayFarmer]

Converting beef sheds into a dairy unit and wondering what to do about water troughs.
We've a pretty poor water supply so fitting a large tank to supply troughs etc.
Don't like the look of the tipping troughs but wondered about the fast empty ones but looking at min of £450 each for a 3 metre trough.
Have people found any real benefit in regularly emptying/cleaning the troughs?
Wondered if I could buy a basic IAE type trough and fit a fast emptying valve?
Any thoughts, recommendations or ideas for a sensibly priced option for troughs would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[som farmer]

we have used a petrol pump, sucks the water out , leaves the crap to shovel out. good for field tanks, not so good for yards.

 

[C&Cows]

Converting beef sheds into a dairy unit and wondering what to do about water troughs.
We've a pretty poor water supply so fitting a large tank to supply troughs etc.
Don't like the look of the tipping troughs but wondered about the fast empty ones but looking at min of £450 each for a 3 metre trough.
Have people found any real benefit in regularly emptying/cleaning the troughs?
Wondered if I could buy a basic IAE type trough and fit a fast emptying valve?
Any thoughts, recommendations or ideas for a sensibly priced option for troughs would be appreciated. Thanks

Spot the beef farmer?

 

[HarryB97]

Hard to beat a stainless steel tipping trough. When milk is mainly water and very energy heavy for a cow to produce clean fresh water and plenty of it is essential. Do something once and do it propely

 

[womble8350]

Do not under any circumstances buy an I a e trough, they will destroy you with their crap services boxes that cattle will loosen not matter how hard you try to fasten them. Buy a Ritchie or something else instead! Or I could you a special deal on a range of I a e ones and I ll put the money to a nice shiny Ritchie one!

 

[alan6430]

400 or 500 gallon concrete troughs are the only way forwards. Tipping troughs aren’t big enough. Iae galvanise troughs all need chucking off a cliff

 

[Horn&corn]

We’ve got lots of iae tippers and every one leaks. Thought we’d be clever and put a plug in a standard trough but nobody wants a wet arm so it never gets emptied. Any suggestions for an affordable stainless option with a large tap underneath? Local chap was £1k each!

 

[Grassman247]

Tipping troughs cause loads of trouble, as mentioned above IAE gale ones want throwing off a cliff preferably with the salesmen strapped inside of them! Concrete are okay but they do build algae really fast and no one likes scrubbing them out.

Stainless fast empty are the way to go, if you make it easy people will do the job.

 

[Kingofgrass]

Teemore stainless troughs here,think it’s an extra £100 to have a stainless one over galv

 

[som farmer]

can't we put goldfish in the tanks? seem to remember they kept them reasonably clean.

 

[organicguy]

No longer allowed to feed fish meal

 

[Holsteinfriesian90]

400 or 500 gallon concrete troughs are the only way forwards. Tipping troughs aren’t big enough. Iae galvanise troughs all need chucking off a cliff

I agree concrete is the way to go. We put in Bateman tipping troughs and they have been good so far to be fair.

 

[Blue.]

Years ago we thought it a great idea to build a 7’x7’ concrete block trough,mainly due to having a poor supply at the time,it was great for about a week!

The amount of shite the cows spat back out into it was unreal,it needed a tanker to suck it out when cleaning it,never again! All tipping troughs here now,helps wet the floor when you get a dry day in July.

 

[Grassman247]

Teemore stainless troughs here,think it’s an extra £100 to have a stainless one over galv

What’s the idea behind the walkthroughs? Would they work with auto scrapers or is it a tractor scraper only idea?

 

[Kingofgrass]

What’s the idea behind the walkthroughs? Would they work with auto scrapers or is it a tractor scraper only idea?

So I can scrape the whole shed with the tractor,it would work with auto scrapers.Quite a few people have copied it now why have you got the 90degree bend pointing that way on yours? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have it so it washes the walk way off?

 

[Grassman247]

So I can scrape the whole shed with the tractor,it would work with auto scrapers.Quite a few people have copied it now why have you got the 90degree bend pointing that way on yours? Wouldn’t it make more sense to have it so it washes the walk way off?

It’s a straw yard for young calves to the right and without the bend water was going into the bedding now it only goes into the scraped passage

 

[Bogeyman]

I’ve a concrete trough with goldfish in it ,1st trough cows head for despite 3 stainless steel tippers

 

[celtis man]

Wynnstay did have 350 gal concrete troughs on offer,
They have a big bung in the bottom for cleaning.