Frozen Water

[boondocks]

Ugh. In a moment of optimism, with days in the high 50's-60's and nights well into the 40's, we took the heaters out a couple of weeks back. There was no extended period of super-cold on the horizon. Starting last night, we got about 5-6" of snow and temps plummeted. Going down to 12 tonight (not counting wind chill). We had the hoses to the 2 troughs on overflow to keep water moving but they froze up today. So we have had to cobble together a work-around and punch holes in ice. I'm fairly sure they will be re-frozen by morning.

After a mild winter, this is the latest super-cold snap we've had. Usually we will get the obligatory April snow, but only an inch or so, with temps around 30 and it clears off in a couple hours. This is supposed to linger a couple of days.

Slap me if I do this again next year, please.

 

[dun]

No matter when you do it you'll be wrong a lot of the time. My annual protest to winter is I quit shaving in September. No matter when I shave it off in the spring, March, April, May it invariably gets cold enough for a while that I wish I had left it grow.

 

[boondocks]

You're right, Dun!
Our heaters cost a good bit to run. But a couple years ago, we took them out too early. So this year, even when it seemed like we were well past a long sub-freezing snap, we still waited an extra week before taking them out. If we hadn't taken them out, it would be 80 now and I'd be fretting about fly treatments instead.

Glad our 2 calves arrived a week early or they'd have come in the middle of this snap. Hope they do ok.

 

[dun]

Don;t they have a thermostat so they only run when it's cold? We use the sinking kind in the tanks that need them. They only come on when the water gets around 35 degrees. We do have to fill the tanks and disconnect the hoses and drain them several times a day if the day is cold. Otherwise we leave them on during the non-freezing time and drain them at night when it starts to get cold again.

 

[pdfangus]

those frost free water troughs like mirafount sound nice about now don't they...

 

[M.Magis]

Glad I'm not the only one that jumped the gun. With temps in the 70s for over a week a couple weeks ago, the grass started growing and I let myself run out of hay. It was 24 this morning and highs this week barely making 40. Been feeding small squares this week to tide them over until I can get a load of rounds tonight. They aren't happy with me, but at least they're staying in the fence. So far.

 

[Aaron]

2 weeks ago, 50-60 degrees in the day and 40 at night, I almost shut the power off as well. But I quit drinking the kool-aid and left them on. Really gotta kick this electric waterer habit and see if I can replace with Cobett waterers this year.

 

[ez14]

You're right, Dun!
Our heaters cost a good bit to run. But a couple years ago, we took them out too early. So this year, even when it seemed like we were well past a long sub-freezing snap, we still waited an extra week before taking them out. If we hadn't taken them out, it would be 80 now and I'd be fretting about fly treatments instead.

Glad our 2 calves arrived a week early or they'd have come in the middle of this snap. Hope they do ok.

well dangit know i know who to blame for all this dang snow and cold next year just leave them in all year

 

[skyhightree1]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

 

[ez14]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

A torpedo heater will also catch your gloves on fire if you`ve been working outside in the cold and can`t feel your hands :nod:

 

[boondocks]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

A torpedo heater will also catch your gloves on fire if you`ve been working outside in the cold and can`t feel your hands :nod:

Sounds like personal knowledge? :shock: Have done that to boots around a bonfire. Problem there is that once the rubber starts to melting, it keeps on, even when you pull your feet back away from the fire.

Re the mirafounts (or similar), I think we either need to look into something like that, or do as suggested and keep the heaters on year-round. The days were getting sufficiently warm that the troughs had a lot of algae, so we figured the heaters might be contributing.

 

[ez14]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

A torpedo heater will also catch your gloves on fire if you`ve been working outside in the cold and can`t feel your hands :nod:

Sounds like personal knowledge? :shock: Have done that to boots around a bonfire. Problem there is that once the rubber starts to melting, it keeps on, even when you pull your feet back away from the fire.

Re the mirafounts (or similar), I think we either need to look into something like that, or do as suggested and keep the heaters on year-round. The days were getting sufficiently warm that the troughs had a lot of algae, so we figured the heaters might be contributing.

yup its personal knowledge :cowboy:

 

[skyhightree1]

I haven't had that pleasure

 

[Supa Dexta]

Freezes up? How's that happen :cowboy:


Keeps on, keepin' on.

 

[dun]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

A torpedo heater will also catch your gloves on fire if you`ve been working outside in the cold and can`t feel your hands :nod:

It will also melt your brand new shop vac, tank and top.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

I use a torpedo heater to thaw out frozen hoses but you have to watch it carefully and move it to keep from melting the hoses

A torpedo heater will also catch your gloves on fire if you`ve been working outside in the cold and can`t feel your hands :nod:

It will also melt your brand new shop vac, tank and top.

:lol2: :lol: :lol2: :lol:

Hah!! I bet there's a great story to go with that!

 

[greybeard]

And set the legs of a pair of Carhart insulated coveralls on fire too...

 

[ez14]

And set the legs of a pair of Carhart insulated coveralls on fire too...

Well your wearing them?

 

[boondocks]

And set the legs of a pair of Carhart insulated coveralls on fire too...

Oh my.

 

[boondocks]

Freezes up? How's that happen :cowboy:


Keeps on, keepin' on.

What brand is that, SD?