Small Trough De-icers

[Primal Farms NC]

My wife and I own a small farm in Sanford, NC and we are in year one as ranchers As you might imagine we are learning a lot.

It doesn't typically get very cold here but on occasion, it can get down to the teens. We have three separate paddocks that each have small 60-gallon CountyLine galvanized water troughs. These troughs are not located by any electrical sources so I was wondering if anyone had any advice for solar de-icers? When we are home I can easily break any ice but on occasion, like over the holidays, we will be traveling. I don't want our cattle to be waiting on a neighbor to break the ice for them.

Any recommendations for smaller troughs would be very helpful.

BTW- We had a small win for our farm yesterday. We brought our first beef home from the slaughterhouse yesterday from a steer that we finished (our first). We are grateful to the Lord for His provisions.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Does anyone make a solar or even battery powered de-icer??

 

[Primal Farms NC]

Does anyone make a solar or even battery powered de-icer??

I found one that sells for $1,300. Obviously, that is overkill for what we need so I was hoping someone here might know of a smaller, quality option.

 

[GoWyo]

Never found a good solution for stock tanks. It takes someone to go break it out and refill. Automatic waterers are the only solution and still have to check them daily.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

We dig and bury electric lines. Sounds a lot cheaper than solar.

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

Fill your tank with these 4-in plastic balls cows will just put their face through them to drink.

 

[Silver]

Amazing what a little air will do. An air tank with a regulator could make bubbles for a day or two. A little air pump on a solar panel and battery might be better.

 

[Primal Farms NC]

Fill your tank with these 4-in plastic balls cows will just put their face through them to drink.
View attachment 23994

That is an interesting idea with the floating balls. I wonder if anyone else is using this technique.??

 

[Primal Farms NC]

Fill your tank with these 4-in plastic balls cows will just put their face through them to drink.
View attachment 23994

 

[sstterry]

Amazing what a little air will do. An air tank with a regulator could make bubbles for a day or two. A little air pump on a solar panel and battery might be better.

I was thinking about that for my ponds, but it is too late for me to explore that now.

 

[moses388]

Same line of thought as the plastic balls... On this forum someone said to use a jug containing salt water. Freezing point for salt water is lower than 32F. The container is supposed to float around the surface and prevent freezing over. I have not tried it yet...

 

[kenny thomas]

Same line of thought as the plastic balls... On this forum someone said to use a jug containing salt water. Freezing point for salt water is lower than 32F. The container is supposed to float around the surface and prevent freezing over. I have not tried it yet...

I have used this method for several years. I actually put new jugs in all my tanks last night. I use 4-6 jugs according to the size of the tank. Cheap.
A 1 gallon jug with maybe 2-3 cups of salt and filled approximately 1/2 full of water. The jug won't freeze below 0 and a small area around it will be open. The cows will push on the jug to get the water.

 

[daneg]

WaterMOOver

Inexpensive alternative than heating stock water in the winter. WaterMOOver is better than ice breaker. It is the easiest and cheapest way to keep animals water from freezing during the winter.

www.watermoover.com

I have been using a homemade version of this, had to build a screen around the pump to keep the impeller free of debris has been working good to -38c .

 

[Primal Farms NC]

Same line of thought as the plastic balls... On this forum someone said to use a jug containing salt water. Freezing point for salt water is lower than 32F. The container is supposed to float around the surface and prevent freezing over. I have not tried it yet...

I put a few of these in our troughs so we will now soon how they work. Thanks for taking the time to contribute and share this idea.

 

[MurraysMutts]

I put a few of these in our troughs so we will now soon how they work. Thanks for taking the time to contribute and share this idea.

Didn't work very good in my experience.

Just dang cold last time I tried it

 

[chaded]

Didn't work very good in my experience.

Just dang cold last time I tried it

It's never worked for me. I end up just having a frozen tank like usual but with jugs stuck in the ice. The only thing that has worked for me is having a heater in the tank but I only have electricity near one tank so busting ice it is for me until they get moved next.

 

[Primal Farms NC]

It's never worked for me. I end up just having a frozen tank like usual but with jugs stuck in the ice. The only thing that has worked for me is having a heater in the tank but I only have electricity near one tank so busting ice it is for me until they get moved next.

I ended up with three inches of ice with frozen jugs as well. It might work if the ice was a half inch or less.

Axe worked well

 

[kenny thomas]

It's never worked for me. I end up just having a frozen tank like usual but with jugs stuck in the ice. The only thing that has worked for me is having a heater in the tank but I only have electricity near one tank so busting ice it is for me until they get moved next.

Mine didn't work this time as well as usual. Still busted ice but will leave them in for the next round.

 

[M.Magis]

Seems like they would work with 1/4" of ice or less. Any more than that and the cows wouldn't push them enough to break them out. Seems like a 12v submersible bilge pump set up to run intermittently would work but I have yet to try it.

 

[elkwc]

I didn't get the tank deicers ordered that I have found are best. So bought 4 of another brand at the local farm store . They kept the ice a little thinner but still too thick for cattle too break. Had one windmill quit. The freeze mizers kept the faucets and floats y thawed but the tanks froze over. Used the cordless chain saw a lot. It saves a lot of chopping. Fortunately we had sun some everyday so the solar pumps ran. The wind blew consistently so the windmills kept those tanks open. Overall we got through it well.