[QUOTE=trubandloki;8934533]
The OP says they do not have access to electricity. Don’t these units require electricity?[/QUOTE]
The Bar Bar A waterer does not.
[QUOTE=vxf111;8934950]
The Bar Bar A waterer does not.[/QUOTE]
Will it stay not frozen in those temperatures?
[QUOTE=trubandloki;8934958]
Will it stay not frozen in those temperatures?[/QUOTE]
I think they have a way to install it for pretty much any temperature. They sink the water line way way way LOW, below the frost line and insulate the entirety of the waterer so cold air can’t get in. They install them out West in crazy cold places. I have one in NJ so I didn’t order the same “cold winter” model with the insulation-- but they sell models for crazy cold climates…
https://www.horsedrinker.com/how-to/automatic-waterers-work/
My understanding is that if you can have a hydrant work, you can have one of these “immediate drain,” no electric waterers work. Same idea. No water stays in the unit once the horse is done drinking, so nothing to freeze. Water stays below the frost line until the moment the horse needs it.
[QUOTE=BroncoMo;8934783]
I’m horrible at explaining this so bear with me. As ReSomething said above, a poster called ‘County’ had done this as well; he must be before my time because at first I didn’t get the reference.
It’s called geothermal tapping (I believe, couldn’t remember the name when I first posted). I’m sure you can google and find more info, but my search is bringing up geothermal heating for houses. My uncle has a geothermal tap to heat his house. Anyways. Using the examples of the troughs I grew up with. Essentially you are sinking the trough in the ground and using natural ground warmth to heat the trough.
The big tank was 10 feet in diameter. So we rented a backhoe and dug a hole that the trough would sit in with about the top 6 inches or so of trough exposed. Then dug the very center of the hole (about 3-4 feet in diameter) to a depth of about 8-10 feet; it may have been deeper, I don’t remember, I’m thinking back close to 20 years here. So, visualize a hole in the ground that the trough will sit in, with the center dug super deep. Then we cut 4 inch PVC pipes to the 8-10 feet in length, duct taped enough of the pipes together that it would fill the deep center hole, and dropped them in the hole. So the natural warmth from down 8-10 feet will rise up the pipes to the bottom of the trough; I’m sure there’s a scientific term for this. So the trough was naturally warmed from the geothermal taps, but we used propane heaters too. And the trough would still ice over if the wind blew out the pilot on the heater, so it’s not perfect. But I’m sure it saved us on propane usage over the long term.
I’ll do some more looking for the info from County. When I did a google search, several threads on here came up, so I may be able to find it. If I do, I’ll post it here or copy the link.[/QUOTE]
Ok I was trying to figure out how you would keep the top from freezing.
With the trough sitting so low (6" above ground) how would you keep the horses from sticking their toes in it?
[QUOTE=saultgirl;8935640]
Ok I was trying to figure out how you would keep the top from freezing.
With the trough sitting so low (6" above ground) how would you keep the horses from sticking their toes in it?[/QUOTE]
Forgot to put that we also cut 2 inch thick Styrofoam insulation to fit across the majority of the top of the water, leaving an 8 inch or so wide area for them to drink out of, and cut a stall mat to fit on top of the Styrofoam. Occasionally the horses would think it’s funny to pull the insulation out from under the mat, and the mat would sink to the bottom. So much fun.
Otherwise they rarely stuck their feet in the trough. Only in the summer, sometimes they would paw at the water to splash away flies. Otherwise, it was never a problem. There was also electric fence lines over the top of the trough to keep them from interacting over the top with horses in the other paddock. The troughs were shared between two or three different paddocks, depending on the trough. The hot fence deterred them from even thinking about stepping in the water.
Worst part about the set up was having to clean them. Obviously you can’t just tip the trough over and rinse it out. It was quite the process in the summer. Had to drain with a sump pump, scrub, bleach, drain some more. I personally wouldn’t do it again, but it’s definitely an idea for those without electricity.
