Semen tank preferences and why

[blueridge]

I will start AIing my cattle in February my self but currently don't have the equipment to do it. The number to AI should remain between 20 to 30 for the next couple of years. I have read alot of manufacturers literature but want to know from you guys that do it and know what works.

Brand tank:

Size:

Reasonable price:

Average price for servicing:
Closest semen rep is one hour away.

thanks for any and all comments!

 

[dun]

Haven;t paid attention to brands for the past few years, but any new tank by a reputable manufacterurer will work. You won;t be worried about semen capacity, your interest will be in the largest nitrogen vloume and smallest neck opening. The volume of nitrogen and the neck opening are 2 of the factors that limit holding time.
Becasue of the issue of hauling the tank to your local nitrogen supplier a 4-6 month hold time would be the minimum I'ld look for and the longer the better. Within reason of course. You don;t want one so big you can;t lift it in and out of a vehicle. Some companys that supply hospitals are also willing to fill smaller tanks, you might want to check about that also.
Our tank gets filled every 4 months and costs 20 bucks. He comes to the farm with his nitrogen trailer and fills it on his normal route.
A number of years ago I had a 3 hour drive each way to get mine filled, a real pain in the butt.

 

[Frankie]

I will start AIing my cattle in February my self but currently don't have the equipment to do it. The number to AI should remain between 20 to 30 for the next couple of years. I have read alot of manufacturers literature but want to know from you guys that do it and know what works.

Brand tank:

Size:

Reasonable price:

Average price for servicing:
Closest semen rep is one hour away.

thanks for any and all comments!

We have a MVE XC20/20 tank and it's been a good one. We've had bad experiences with the Taylor-Wharton tanks. Two of them failed very close to the end of their warranty. ABS replaced the first one with another Taylor. When the last one failed, we were willing to pay a bit extra and got the MVE. Glad that we did.

Where are you going to AI school? Our tech is an ABS tech and we bought our first tank, used, through them. Wherever you go to school may be able to help you buy a tank.

Our ABS rep is about 1 - 1.5 hours away. He has a regular route. He comes by every 16 weeks, fills our tank, the vets' tank, some others in the area, and delivers any semem we've ordered from ABS. That saves us shipping costs on semen and is one reason we use mostly ABS bulls.

 

[blueridge]

The school is through ABS and is held at Clemson University at the T. ED Garrison facility.

 

[alabama]

We have a MVE XC20/20 and it works fine but one that will hold a little more n2 would save refilling.

 

[TheBullLady]

Generally any semen supply company will help you get your tank filled when you need to. Here in Texas you can either haul it in to the supplier, or some have a regular route.

LIke Dun said.. the small opening really makes a big difference as to how long before you have to refill. Don't make the mistake of getting a huge tank, they are such a pain to haul around, and you'll end up filling it with more semen than you'll use in a lifetime.