Looking to purchase several 300 gallon fiberglass, rubber water troughs. Years ago, I had very good success with Rubbermaid. Looking on the internet, I see a lot of dissatisfaction with Rubbermaid, mostly in the smaller sizes. Do you have a recommendation for a manufacturer for a good 300 gallon trough?
Water Troughs
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coachg
Well-known member
My big Rubbermaid trough has started to split at the top rim . Only 3 years old
RDFF
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Put in used excavator tire tanks instead. Lifetime durability.
RDFF
Well-known member
Use a smaller sized tire if you want it portable. Bolt a circular cut steel bottom up against the bottom bead, sealed with sealant. Lots of guys build them this way too. Drill your holes for the bolts through the steel bottom first, then place the bottom against tire and drill for bolts through the bead, place sealant on bead, then refit the steel bottom and insert bolts (they should fit tight into the drilled holes so they won't leak). Draw the bottom up tight against the bead and the sealant. Put a large drain port of some sort in it if you'll need to be moving it...
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50/50Farms
Well-known member
Portable by hand or by pulling?
A.J.
Well-known member
I'm not sure about the 300 gallon size ones, but our local co-op started carrying the tuff stuff brand, and we've had better luck with them than the Rubbermaid's we used to use.
www.ruralking.com
Tuff Stuff Heavy Duty Stock Tank KMT300
Heavy Duty 300 Gal Stock Tank Recycled Product
coachg
Well-known member
RDFF
Well-known member
Those hard rubbermaid ones eventually degrade and get more brittle from the sunlight. If you're looking for 300 gallon, that's a fairly large tank... so not as "portable" as say a 30 or 50 gallon... pretty much are gonna "prefer" it on a skid to drag. A smaller excavator tire will give you the same capacity, will "drag" just as easily, and will be far more durable. Just using the raw numbers, a 5' OD tire that's about 24" wide will give you about 300 gallons.
Check out this thread from December too: Best Freeze-Proof Water Trough for Central Texas
Check out this thread from December too: Best Freeze-Proof Water Trough for Central Texas
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redcowsrule33
Well-known member
I have had good luck with the Behlen poly 300 gallon round end tanks. They have outlasted anything else. Very light and easy to move around. My oldest one is at least five years old and I've only had to replace one of the braces after heavy use. My biggest complaint is the edges roll in instead of out so dirt and algae get trapped in there if you tip them over to clean them so they never clean out completely unless you use the drain plug.
Are you adverse to aluminum? Relatively easy to move and maintain and we haven't had any problem with the ones we bought 14 years ago.
Redcows, thanks for that. Have a good dealer here who carries Belen. Did yours have the cross braces? TC, am not too comfortable about galvanized troughs draining, loading on a light duty trailer and repositioning. They don't seem to take bumps and dings well. I may be wrong. I have hesitations about mounting on skids, although I do a mineral trough that way, because I haven't figured out how to mount the trough to the skids without drilling through the trough. RDFF, not comfortable with the steel bottom seal to the tire. Probably works great for you, but I'm sure I would mess it up! My permanent tire tanks have not been as bullet-proof as most seem to be. Plan to drain and move these troughs regularly. Thanks for all the suggestions.
RDFF
Well-known member
If you use a good sealant, I don't think it should be a problem at all. If you're concerned, get yourself some of what they use to install windshields... it won't leak, and you'll have to cut that sealant if you ever want to take that bottom off again. Then make a little trailer specifically to put the tire on, and put a drain through the steel bottom to drain it fast, so you can just pull it to where you need it real easy with a 4 wheeler. Make your wheels on an eccentric with a hand crank jack (like an icehouse does), so you can just lift the tank up off the ground to pull it.
Not sure of where you're located... ya know what an ice house is?
If you've had some issues with a tire tank leaking because of the concrete sealing to the tire, ...first question, did you POUR your concrete, or did you use dry sackrete and then just cover it with water? I honestly think that the dry might be better to get a seal... but not sure. If you POURED it, did you work the concrete in underneath the bead and kind of "vibrate" it some (even just working it well with a shovel into all the spaces under the tire and around the bead and the pipe(s) coming in)? If you didn't, you could easily end up with voids. If you DID do it with dry sackrete, did you thoroughly TAMP that sackrete in underneath the bead of the tire AND all across the whole bottom and around any pipes coming up through, so you're sure there are no voids, or lack of concrete density (not fluffy)? If you didn't, that's probably why you ended up with a poor seal. If you do it that way, it should seal up just fine, but if you just dumped it in and covered it with water, I could pretty much guarantee it'll leak. However, if the concrete IS the problem, try draining the tank, then cover the bottom with another couple of inches of TAMPED sackrete, and GENTLY (so as not to disturb the concrete powder) put water in it about 4-5" over the new concrete, and let cure for a day or so, then fill it up. It should seal it up just fine. In lieu of that, break the concrete out and start over.
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greybeard
Well-known member
It's a beerjoint that used to be a full service gas station?
RDFF
Well-known member
No, it's a private little beer joint that beer drinkers pull out onto the ice and pretend they're ice fishing in, while they sit and jaw and drink beer till it's time to go home.
redcowsrule33
Well-known member
"Redcows, thanks for that. Have a good dealer here who carries Belen. Did yours have the cross braces?"
Yes they do.
Yes they do.
1982vett
Well-known member
Must be at least 1200 miles between those definitions.No, it's a private little beer joint that beer drinkers pull out onto the ice and pretend they're ice fishing in, while they sit and jaw and drink beer till it's time to go home.
greybeard failed to mention, if its a true icehouse, one that has survived all the adaptations through the years, it usually serves a pretty good burger.
