Plastic feed trough fix

[Fred]

I used old ratchet straps to replace missing cross-braces on some troughs. Used self-tapping screws to hold it down.

 

[Rafter S]

I did something similar. I took the plastic pan out of the frame and stretched a piece of flashing tin (16" wide, if I remember correctly) across the cross pieces that support the pan, wrapped it around each end, and secured it with several sheet metal screws. Then I put the pan back and added more screws securing it to the frame.

 

[greybeard]

My experience was that they are ok for calves and even larger ones as long as you have plenty enough troughs for all of 'em to eat at. Otherwise, they get to jostling, pushing shoving each other out of the way and ultimately one of the clabber footed ones jumps up in the trough and busts thru even with sheet metal under it.

I liked them at first, but finally quit them and built wooden troughs..

This one didn't last long..

 

[Fred]

I've also patched torn places in the plastic liner with old mud flaps bolted down. I have several troughs over 10 years old.

 

[Fred]

My experience was that they are ok for calves and even larger ones as long as you have plenty enough troughs for all of 'em to eat at. Otherwise, they get to jostling, pushing shoving each other out of the way and ultimately one of the clabber footed ones jumps up in the trough and busts thru even with sheet metal under it.

I liked them at first, but finally quit them and built wooden troughs..

This one didn't last long..

View attachment 26900

I never put a trough that close to a wire fence. Too easy to push into the fence and tear something up.

 

[greybeard]

well, they never tore anything up pushing it into the fence. But, tromped over the top of more than one of them tho, trying to get out of the way of one or 2 late comers or some that weren't even finished another trough and decided to hog into a different one..

 

[CSM]

Never worried about it in the past but was feeding on 3/3/23 with wind gusts over 50 mph. It came out of the frame tumbling across the lot wife and I were in the tractor. I stopped it got airborne jumped the fence and crashed into the cab. Destroyed one mirror but no lights or anything else was damage. It sure did scare the wife maybe me a little too.