Controlling algae

TCRanch · Jul 25, 2015

I have no idea where to post this question so . . . What are your best tips for controlling algae in stock tanks & livestock fountains? We used to use carp, which amazingly worked well, but the only place in town we could get them went out of business (naturally). Has anyone used Stock Tank Defense? More importantly, does it actually work? We down-sized from a 600 to a 300 gal stock tank in one of the pastures, mainly because there's a decent pond & the tank was too big for the de icer to effectively work in the winter, plus we only keep avg 8 heifers & a bull in that pasture. Manually cleaning the fountain (Ritchie) at the barn isn't a big deal - but it's not fun. Thoughts? Go!

Rafter S · Jul 25, 2015

TCRanch":3jnp4oi1 said:
I have no idea where to post this question so . . . What are your best tips for controlling algae in stock tanks & livestock fountains? We used to use carp, which amazingly worked well, but the only place in town we could get them went out of business (naturally). Has anyone used Stock Tank Defense? More importantly, does it actually work? We down-sized from a 600 to a 300 gal stock tank in one of the pastures, mainly because there's a decent pond & the tank was too big for the de icer to effectively work in the winter, plus we only keep avg 8 heifers & a bull in that pasture. Manually cleaning the fountain (Ritchie) at the barn isn't a big deal - but it's not fun. Thoughts? Go!

I use goldfish in mine. A goldfish is a type of carp, and you can get them at any pet store. You can get small ones for less than 50 cents at the chain stores. They also eat mosquito larvae, which is an extra bonus.

TexasBred · Jul 25, 2015

Copper sulfate works well. Some companies mold it into a small ball and sell it as "Blue Stone" in a jar. Check with your feed store next time you go in.

fenceman · Jul 25, 2015

Goldfish. Great trotline bait as well.

TCRanch · Jul 25, 2015

Thank you! Would prob have to order Blue Stone as my options are limited where we live but there is a pet store in the county that sells Goldfish.

Workinonit Farm · Jul 25, 2015

I too have used goldfish. They do a decent job.

Jogeephus · Jul 25, 2015

I've used goldfish too. They get surprisingly big with time.

dun · Jul 25, 2015

I tried using fish years ago. Couldn;t figure out why the disappeared until one day I saw a family of coons perched on the tank and fishing. I would put in a half dozen and it would take them a bout month to empty it.

SJB · Jul 25, 2015

When I was a boy, my great grandpa put pet store goldfish in his pond. They grew to be a pound - pound and a half. I cannot tell you how much fun I had catching them things.

js1234 · Jul 26, 2015

granular form cutrine.

dun · Jul 26, 2015

js1234":82ouhjoq said:
granular form cutrine.

In ponds I just broadcast granular copper sulfate. A lot cheaper then cutrine
I wonder if just changing the PH would help. I know that gypsum spread in a pond will change the PH enough that cloudy water from suspended clay will clear. When a new pond is filling that's one of the first things I do.

bball · Jul 26, 2015

I put a half ounce of bleach in a 300 gallon tank when algae starts to come to life. Stock defense never worked that great for me. The bleach concentration is less than recommended dose for water purification, but does a nice job of knocking down algae.

Jogeephus · Jul 26, 2015

I used to have an old galvanized tank with goldfish in it but I had to remove them because the goldfish kept pecking the algae and stuff off the walls of the tanks but this stuff was the only thing keeping the waster from running out of the many holes in the side of the tank.

TCRanch · Jul 26, 2015

dun":1v3bep51 said:
I tried using fish years ago. Couldn;t figure out why the disappeared until one day I saw a family of coons perched on the tank and fishing. I would put in a half dozen and it would take them a bout month to empty it.

Now that's funny. I mean, I'm sorry for the hassle but . . .

TCRanch · Jul 26, 2015

bball":2rc6jzzf said:
I put a half ounce of bleach in a 300 gallon tank when algae starts to come to life. Stock defense never worked that great for me. The bleach concentration is less than recommended dose for water purification, but does a nice job of knocking down algae.

Bleach is something I always have on hand. And I'm not concerned with water purification, seeing as how they use the pond as their toilet. (Why do they do that?!?)

Fire Sweep Ranch · Jul 26, 2015

We buy the tablets that go in the pool filters, about the size of a quarter, chlorine. Drop a few in the water when we notice it getting nasty. Works great, and when we go to fairs the cattle do not have a problem drinking the city water since it smells like chlorine.

fenceman · Jul 26, 2015

In my observation cows will always drink from a algae filled tank. Over one filled with clean chlorinated water.

jedstivers · Jul 26, 2015

I have county water for the house, well water for the cattle. I can hook the county water up easy if the well was to go out and for a long time I used the county water till I was using so much I could afford the well. Anyway when using the county water there's no algae in the tanks. Soon as we change to well water they start growing. Sometime I might, if I really run out of things to do, change over for a week or so and let the tanks clear up.
My cattle never showed a preference as to which one they drank though.

TCRanch · Jul 26, 2015

Jogeephus":3mk4gbnr said:
I used to have an old galvanized tank with goldfish in it but I had to remove them because the goldfish kept pecking the algae and stuff off the walls of the tanks but this stuff was the only thing keeping the waster from running out of the many holes in the side of the tank.

Was the tank that old or full of bullet holes? Because someone (hopefully just stupid kids) actually shot all our stock tanks a couple years ago during the drought. I always have an extra tube of Bondo on hand.

TCRanch · Jul 26, 2015

We only have well water unless there's a drought, in which case we pump/haul from our watershed lake. I did add bleach this afternoon & will see how that works but my to-do list for tomorrow consists of checking the local Coop's to see if they have or can order copper sulfate/Blue Stone, search for small chlorinated pool tablets & visit the pet store for Goldfish. A huge THANK YOU to everyone!

Controlling algae

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