Flowing Water Keeps Tank Ice Free

Flowing Water Keeps Tank Ice Free LIVESTOCK Feeding Equipment 26-6-18 Frozen floats and valves in livestock watering tanks used to be a problem for Paul Albrecht, Walnut, Illinois. But he solved the problem with a no-energy solution that stops ice from forming. He started with the fact that water coming into the tank was above freezing. Albrecht figured that if he could keep that warmer water around the float and valve, they wouldn't freeze. He found a 30-gal. steel drum and cut out the bottom of the drum and also cut holes in the sides of it toward the bottom so water could flow out of it into the tank. The inlet for the tank is a 3/4-in. pipe at the bottom of the tank, with a Ritchie tank float valve assembly on it. He simply sets the drum over the valve and as long as the cattle drink from it regularly, the water inside the barrel doesn't freeze. "The top of the drum is held in place with a clamp, so it's easy to get to the valve if I need to," he says. Albrecht says this setup keeps the valve open and the float working, but ice still freezes on the tank in the coldest months. "I still have to chop open a hole for the cattle to drink from once or twice a day in the middle of the winter," he says. "But since I no longer need the tank heater to keep the water flowing, it costs a lot less to operate." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Paul Albrecht, R.R.1, Box 162, 106 Pleasant Court, Walnut, Ill. 61376 (ph 815 379-2598)

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