Good Float Valve on Gravity Fed Trough

[Rydero]

I'm curious if anyone knows a good high flow float valve to use to gravity fill a trough. I run a solar waterer and after the main trough (150ish gallons) I fill a tank (600gallons) and gravity feed a 2nd trough (200 gallons) for about 100 pairs. The problem I'm having is the cows all come to drink at once, rush the troughs and drain them, then destroy things fighting over the water pumping out of the well and gravity flowing out of the 600 gallon tank. this past summer I used a 1" Hudson valve which is the fastest gravity valve I've found to date but still not quick enough according to the cows.

 

[Caustic Burno]

I wish I was out Sonora way as every water trough has the same valve on gravity feed.
I could have taken a picture.
Grey beard might know as he is familiar with that area.

 

[Lucky_P]

Been gravity-flow watering out of ponds for nearly 20 years.
Hudsons... have a bunch I'd sell to anyone, CHEAP!!! They just don't work in my situation - too much algae, etc., clogging the screens... have to take 'em off an clean 'em several times a day.

A.Y. McDonalds have worked way better, but still not without some issues... Balls sometimes come out of the cup, and you drive up to find the waterer overflowing full-bore, with a whopping big quagmire all around the waterer. Or, the cows drink the water down faster than it can refill (combine tire waterers) and in the process of fighting one another to get at the inflow, they break off the riser (GRRR!).

 

[pdfangus]

problem is not the valve.....you do not have near enough water trough for 100 cows.....need to have at least 2000 gallons sitting there for 100 cows to drink all at one time...

 

[76 Bar]

pdf is correct...rule of thumb is a minimum of 20 gal/hd x 100 hd = 2000 gal just for the cows. Doesn't allow for calves, bulls, excessive/prolonged high temp situations and also dependent on the moisture content of feed being consumed.
The majority of floats aren't fool proof and each have their strengths and weakness. One thing is certain...if the cattle run out of water its a given they'll damage your system.

 

[jltrent]

Robert valves are excellent......I have used them for over 20 years with very little problems. Bury them under ground and forget about them. The water gravity flows from the float box to the trough and you can set the level in the float box. These will cut off under high pressure, unlike a lot as I have upwards of 60 psi and some of the troughs. No problems with algae either.

https://www.statesupply.com/valve/float/complete

 

[Rydero]

Had the same issue w/ algae in the Hudson too, lol. I check things every day so got in the habit of cleaning it out, if it needed or not. I'll check out the AY Macdonald. Talked to a solar guy and he was talking about a 2" valve so I might go that direction too.
Thanks for the input but I don't think I need 2000 gallons sitting there. Bunch of times last summer the herd followed me to the troughs when they were full and if I pulled the line off the Hudson valve and gravity fed a 1" line they'd all get a drink and lose interest by about the time I drained 250 gallons. Pump would also be filling the primary trough at about 10 gpm, so about 800 gallons or less at a time consumed. They seem to drink 2 times a day, maybe more. That's why I think if I had a float valve that put out the equivalent volume of a 1" line free flowing I'd be ok. At another location I put a few freestanding panels around a trough they were messing with, which limited how many could get around it at a time and that helped get rid of 90% of the problems.

 

[Rydero]

Robert valves are excellent......I have used them for over 20 years with very little problems. Bury them under ground and forget about them. The water gravity flows from the float box to the trough and you can set the level in the float box. These will cut off under high pressure, unlike a lot as I have upwards of 60 psi and some of the troughs.

Interesting set up. The 2" might work for what I want to do. I move the second trough and the tank around from pasture to pasture so not really for me but that's a neat concept.

 

[kenny thomas]

Robert valves are excellent......I have used them for over 20 years with very little problems. Bury them under ground and forget about them. The water gravity flows from the float box to the trough and you can set the level in the float box. These will cut off under high pressure, unlike a lot as I have upwards of 60 psi and some of the troughs. No problems with algae either.

https://www.statesupply.com/valve/float/complete

Great setup. I put in 2 mire like that this winter. So far never an issue. Only difference is I put the float box in the fence line to remove any possibility of a cow getting on top of the lid.

 

[Cross-7]

http://floatvalveusa.com

 

[pdfangus]

Robert valves are excellent......I have used them for over 20 years with very little problems. Bury them under ground and forget about them. The water gravity flows from the float box to the trough and you can set the level in the float box. These will cut off under high pressure, unlike a lot as I have upwards of 60 psi and some of the troughs. No problems with algae either.

https://www.statesupply.com/valve/float/complete

Great setup. I put in 2 mire like that this winter. So far never an issue. Only difference is I put the float box in the fence line to remove any possibility of a cow getting on top of the lid.

I am making the assumption that the float is level with the water level in the trough....can not tell that from the picture.

 

[kenny thomas]

http://floatvalveusa.com

Yes the float is level with the water in the tire. But it's totally protected from freezing and the cattle.

 

[Rydero]

http://floatvalveusa.com

Checked out the catalogue and these guys have lots of good ideas. Found a new set up for my pump control switch and a 26 gpm gravity flow valve. Should be just what I need.

 

[Nesikep]

I have yet to find a good cow-proof float valve.. We get a lot of silt and sand in our water and have high pressure (60-110 PSI).. Either they just can't shut off under that pressure or any dirt makes them leak like sieves. I designed my own and made a prototype that worked fairly well, but don't have the machining capabilities to make it compact enough, it was pilot operated and would run either fully on or fully off, which helped a lot with dirt buildup, and it was a essentially a wide open 3/4" pipe when it was open, so a heck of a flow through there

 

[pdfangus]

http://floatvalveusa.com

Checked out the catalogue and these guys have lots of good ideas. Found a new set up for my pump control switch and a 26 gpm gravity flow valve. Should be just what I need.

I found this link to this catalog to be very useful.....thanks for posting it

 

[jltrent]

They make a good swimming pool also......

 

[pdfangus]

They make a good swimming pool also......

finally an illustration that has practical value...

 

[Lucky_P]

Bumping this one up with a question...
Intrigued with the 'remote float' idea... certainly would eliminate the continual problems we've had with the cows breaking off the floats &/or risers(Schedule 80 pvc). But... we gravity-flow from a pond well up the hill from the pastures, and while there's pretty decent flow/pressure at present, if I'm depending on gravity flow from the remote float box... will that be adequate to fill the tire tank and keep up with consumption when a bunch come to water at one time?

 

[kenny thomas]

I can't answer your question but in one area I decided to go with a 4 ball instead because I only had 10ft of fall. That's 5lb of pressure but it works fine. Check out some high volume, low pressure floats.

 

[Hippie Rancher]

Bumping this one up with a question...
Intrigued with the 'remote float' idea... certainly would eliminate the continual problems we've had with the cows breaking off the floats &/or risers(Schedule 80 pvc). But... we gravity-flow from a pond well up the hill from the pastures, and while there's pretty decent flow/pressure at present, if I'm depending on gravity flow from the remote float box... will that be adequate to fill the tire tank and keep up with consumption when a bunch come to water at one time?

remote float box is THE best way to deal with float problems, whether from cows, horses or freaking bears. the flow will be determined by distance and pipe diameter between the box and your drinker. I am sure somebody out there (NRCS? extension? plumbers?) has formulas/specs with real numbers.