Foolproof "Water Sled" For Pastured Cattle

Foolproof Water Sled For Pastured Cattle LIVESTOCK Beef I needed a better way to water cattle on rotational grazing So I built a low-cost æwater sled that makes use of an off-the-shelf stanchion watering bowl It s virtually foolproof says Craig Carlson Hamburg Wis He used recycled 2-in dia metal water pipe to build a 3-ft wide 4-ft long frame and clamped a high flow valve drinking bowl to it The bowl bolts to a length of vertical pipe that s welded on top of the frame A 6-ft long hose stays with the sled and attaches to a coupler at each paddock The hose comes up through the pipe and then goes through an elbow on top of the pipe and back down to the bowl One end of the sled is fitted with a pair of D-clamps To move the sled between paddocks Carlson pins a removable handle to a clamp and pulls the sled by hand to the paddock then removes the handle and pins the clamp to a steel T-post I use it with a herd of 30 cows and haven t had any problems with it at all says Carlson My only cost was the $40 I paid for the water bowl I had been using a rubber tank equipped with a float valve However I didn t like it because every time I wanted to move the tank I had to dump out 20 gal of water on the ground If I lost water pressure and the tub was empty the cows would tip it over or break the float And if the set screw on the float ever became loose the tub would overflow all day long resulting in a large mud hole My cows have never tipped this water sled over and there s no float that can overflow Also there s no water to dump out at moving time Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Craig Carlson 10849 3rd Lane Hamburg Wis 54411 ph 715 443-6647; ninepatch@airrun net

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