The ingenuity of some members on this Board is amazing!
Drinking water
- Thread starter Dave
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D2Cat
Well-known member
It's really pretty simple. The framework holds an alum. tubing with a steel shaft in the center with small bearings at each end and seals at each end of the tubing. There is a rubber plug up about 2ft from the bottom (which would end up about 15" above pond level) that can be removed and the lower portion the the tubing is filled with diesel. This keeps the lower end from freezing. The bottom end of the shaft has a blade just like a lawnmower blade about 8" deep in the water.
Doesn't take much wind to make it spin and it brings up the warmer water and keeps the opening thawed.
Doesn't take much wind to make it spin and it brings up the warmer water and keeps the opening thawed.
greybeard
Well-known member
What happens in a really high wind?
Water looks like Melville's Maelstrom?
Water looks like Melville's Maelstrom?
D2Cat
Well-known member
The panels turn faster, so the blade turns faster and widens the open area. In 15 years or so, never had a problem with turning too fast.
In extremely cold climates they had longer (taller) panels to catch more wind to make them bring up more water to keep from freezing shut.
In extremely cold climates they had longer (taller) panels to catch more wind to make them bring up more water to keep from freezing shut.
Dave
Well-known member
Well the river froze all the way across. I opened a couple gates and shut a couple others. There is a couple of places up stream with strong current that didn't freeze. The calves have access to 10/12 acres of snow covered hay field. They are happy with their new found independence. But they were sure happy to come back in for their corn. It is blowing a blizzard out there right now.
greybeard
Well-known member
Does your river have the kind of brutal ice breakup in the spring like I've seen on documentaries of the rivers In Alaska?
Rancher
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-35f here tonite, -40f tomorrow nite, I use rubbermaid 100 gal. tanks with 1,500wat heaters to keep water free of ice! pricey but.... long way from the river which is frozen 4 feet thick anyway
Silver
Well-known member
Sounds like we have the same weather. Wind is howling here too. With the wind chill it's -58F right now
Jeanne - Simme Valley
Well-known member
brrrr - and I thought I was cold at -6F .
Clear ski with an 83% humidity. Our humidity is what kills us making us so cold.
Clear ski with an 83% humidity. Our humidity is what kills us making us so cold.
Dave
Well-known member
No. This river is more like a creek to me. In fact I often refer to it as the creek. Where the calves were drinking it is about 25 feet wide and not much more than 2 feet deep. The ice isn't thick enough to walk on. It is just real tricky to chop ice on. The bowling ball size rocks on the bottom are real slimy. With no open water and current to wash away the chopped ice it makes for real slippery walking.
Rancher
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I was raised in Central Point, Rouge River area back in the 40's Dave so our little Jackson creek froze over and us kids loved to ice skate on it. Doesn't get that cold there since the 80's residents say. Ranchers back then used their small dozers to break ice for the herefords
I have been asked a number of times - how to keep a tank open from ice - with no electricity available. - Saw an article about a wind driven generator that is just a tall cylinder - that wobbles - called a Bladeless Vortex wind turbine.
The principle driving force is a vortex created around the tall cylinder -
Chasing that - for a solution for a relatively safe and indestructable and simple way to keep ice from complete blocking the tank. First pass - one 5 gallon bucket - with a sealed lid - upside down in the stock tank - Bail tied to a cement block - and pulled down to 2 inches below the tank surface. With wind - the ice was kept away from the bucket - at 18 degrees. Principle of the operation, The wind pushes the bucket around and the cord to the concrete block - pulls it back. The bucket is round so the vortex - makes it wobble in the wind. Any energy created is dispersed in the water around the tank. -- The next attempt is to gluegun two 5 gallon home depot $5 buckets back to back - to provide more of a wind surface - and use this instead of a single bucket -- Just starting this testing - 5
For temperatures that stay below 15 degrees, the single bucket test did nothing - it froze solid like the rest of the tank
However this is cheap to implement - But in some locations that dip below freezing or have short cold snaps
- a single bucket - might be just enough
The principle driving force is a vortex created around the tall cylinder -
Chasing that - for a solution for a relatively safe and indestructable and simple way to keep ice from complete blocking the tank. First pass - one 5 gallon bucket - with a sealed lid - upside down in the stock tank - Bail tied to a cement block - and pulled down to 2 inches below the tank surface. With wind - the ice was kept away from the bucket - at 18 degrees. Principle of the operation, The wind pushes the bucket around and the cord to the concrete block - pulls it back. The bucket is round so the vortex - makes it wobble in the wind. Any energy created is dispersed in the water around the tank. -- The next attempt is to gluegun two 5 gallon home depot $5 buckets back to back - to provide more of a wind surface - and use this instead of a single bucket -- Just starting this testing - 5
For temperatures that stay below 15 degrees, the single bucket test did nothing - it froze solid like the rest of the tank
However this is cheap to implement - But in some locations that dip below freezing or have short cold snaps
- a single bucket - might be just enough
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