Tower-Mounted Water Tank Keeps Supply Constant

2011 - Volume #35, Issue #4, Page #33

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When a severe drought caused the water to dry up on his farm a couple of years ago, Frank Peters, Lacombe, Alta., came up with a novel solution that included building a small 5-ft. high tower out of landscaping ties to hold a 250-gal. plastic tank.
    "I was pasturing cattle so I needed a constant supply of water. Our ponds had all dried up so I had no option but to pump water from our well," says Peters. "It turned out the well had just enough water for the cattle, if I could space out the pumping throughout the day.
    "Another problem was that I live about 3 hours away from the pasture, and the power would often go off for one reason or another. Then the pump would lose all its pressure and the pressure switch would shut off so there would be no water for the cattle, even when the power came back on."
    To solve these issues, he built a small 5-ft. high tower out of landscaping ties to hold a 250-gal. plastic crate tank. He ran a pipe from the tank to a 300-gal. water trough that's controlled by a float. Then he ran a line from the well to the tank, where a float also controls the tank level. "This line was then throttled back with a valve to fill the tank over a few hours. It allowed the well to recover enough to not run dry," says Peters.
    To solve the power problem, he installed a 1/2-in. electric solenoid valve in-line on the line going to the tank. "This valve requires power to hold it open," says Peters. "If the power goes off, the valve will close and keep whatever pressure there is in the pressure tank. As soon as the power comes back on, the valve will open and water will flow again."
    Peters admits the system is a bit complicated, "but it all works and the cattle always have water. Electric shut-off float valves like the one I bought are available at most farm supply stores," he notes.
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Frank Peters, 1-22 Bruns Rd., Lacombe, Alta., Canada T4L 1N9 (ph 587 877-5678; chilko99@gmail.com).

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Tower-Mounted Water Tank Keeps Supply Constant LIVESTOCK Feeding Equipment When a severe drought caused the water to dry up on his farm a couple of years ago Frank Peters Lacombe Alta came up with a novel solution that included building a small 5-ft high tower out of landscaping ties to hold a 250-gal plastic tank I was pasturing cattle so I needed a constant supply of water Our ponds had all dried up so I had no option but to pump water from our well says Peters It turned out the well had just enough water for the cattle if I could space out the pumping throughout the day Another problem was that I live about 3 hours away from the pasture and the power would often go off for one reason or another Then the pump would lose all its pressure and the pressure switch would shut off so there would be no water for the cattle even when the power came back on To solve these issues he built a small 5-ft high tower out of landscaping ties to hold a 250-gal plastic crate tank He ran a pipe from the tank to a 300-gal water trough that s controlled by a float Then he ran a line from the well to the tank where a float also controls the tank level This line was then throttled back with a valve to fill the tank over a few hours It allowed the well to recover enough to not run dry says Peters To solve the power problem he installed a 1/2-in electric solenoid valve in-line on the line going to the tank This valve requires power to hold it open says Peters If the power goes off the valve will close and keep whatever pressure there is in the pressure tank As soon as the power comes back on the valve will open and water will flow again Peters admits the system is a bit complicated but it all works and the cattle always have water Electric shut-off float valves like the one I bought are available at most farm supply stores he notes Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Frank Peters 1-22 Bruns Rd Lacombe Alta Canada T4L 1N9 ph 587 877-5678; chilko99@gmail com

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