Auto-water- How often do you clean yours?!

[KatieLovesJames]

Just about to fit mine and wondered how often do you empty and clean yours? I'm concerned that there will always be some stale/contaminated water left in there even when the horse is using it often as obviously it doesn't empty before refilling.

If I need to unplug and clean each day I might be as well to just have buckets?

Thoughts please?!

 

[Sheep]

As long as it is used regularly, the water is never sitting still for long. So I don't really thing being 'stale' or 'contaminated' is a problem. However, we tend to check on ours every day, our horses tend to drag bits of hay through them. They are properly cleaned out every couple of weeks.

 

[Gluttonforpunishment]

Depends - if water clean and free of debris then I just empty and clean weekly.

One of mine likes to dunk her hay so I have to do hers daily.

ETA - this is just the stable ones, the auto tanks in the field are only completed emptied and cleaned every few months.

 

[sam72431]

i clean mine everyday, purely because mine are on rubber matting (we arent allowed bedding apart from straw ) so I use the auto water to wash mats, plus mine are filthy and drop hay, frequently poo etc but when they were only coming in for a few hours i just gave it a quick scrub every other week and let the water out into a bucket, I think they are brilliant and if I moved yards i think i would miss them, its so nice not to be hauling buckets around, plus you dont have to worry about your horse knocking a bucket over and being thirsty all night, they are less likely to freeze than an outside tap as well, only downside is you dont actually know what they have/havent drunk!

 

[Cocorules]

I am interested in this thread. My horses are out 24/7 but a similar point applies to field troughs which fill automatically. I keep thinking about getting smaller troughs so when I clean out there is less wasteage.

 

[Tinsel Trouble]

I heard of someone using steradent to clean her auto-waterers. she washed out the residue from the tablets as best she could and let it refill. It's safe for humans to put in our mouth, so her thinking was it's safe for the horses too!

I use it to clean out the fish tanks!

 

[Naryafluffy]

Don't have them on the current yard, but previous yard, I used to clean mine once a week, didn't unplug though, just lifted the flap and held the lever so it didn't refill with water whilst I cleaned it.

 

[forestfantasy]

I don't have auto drinkers on the new yard but when i did i cleaned them every day.
Takes 2 mins - no need to turn off, get a large car sponge & bucket - scoop water out quickly before it fills - simples!
Weekly i gave them a scrub with a washing up brush, turn off and empty properly with said sponge.


Also - wait till they poo in it - lovely!

 

[xhappyhackerx]

I never take the plug out of mine I just scoop the water out of it with a plastic cup every day to refresh it and get any bits out. It refills as you do it obvs but if you scoop fast it refreshes it.

 

[FanyDuChamp]

We do it most times we are up, especially as Caps will pooh in it occasionally. YO does it regularly as well.
FDC

 

[flying solo]

My pony would poo innhis every day! So I cleaned it daily until I covered it over and went back to buckets

 

[Marydoll]

One of mine dungs in his now and then, theyre checked every day and cleaned out weekly or before, if neccessary

 

[KatieLovesJames]

Thanks everyone. Gosh hope my lot don't poop in them!
They will be situated by the door so hopefully they will remain hay and poop free!
Cleaning thoroughly once a week sounds ok lots of time saved there.
I've bought standard size ones but am toying with the idea of changing them for the much larger corner version. Would that mean cleaner or more stale water?!?

 

[sam72431]

How big are your horses as it depends how much they will drink and how big? TBH horses seem to prefer dirty water anyway my mare will always go for a drink out of the trough in her field as soon as she gets turned out even though her auto water is pristine, oh and she seems to like puddles best of all :/

 

[flyingfeet]

In the stables we have the little ones that they have to push to get water, so they don't need cleaning except when out of use (Or the mare managed to poo in it , but even that was quick!)

The big troughs I do only when out of use for a while, as otherwise with a herd they turn over the water enough to keep clean

 

[PoppyAnderson]

Never.

 

[Merrymoles]

I don't have auto drinkers on the new yard but when i did i cleaned them every day.
Takes 2 mins - no need to turn off, get a large car sponge & bucket - scoop water out quickly before it fills - simples!
Weekly i gave them a scrub with a washing up brush, turn off and empty properly with said sponge.


Also - wait till they poo in it - lovely!

Exactly this! you can give them a quick wipe round the top with the sponge too

 

[forestfantasy]

Never.

Never??
Ours would be scummy after a few days of no cleaning!
You must be in a very soft water area i presume?

 

[Wagtail]

I use a ladel and a bucket and scoop it out when I think it needs it. If horses are using the drinker every day then they stay really clean, except for the horse that dunks his hay and I clean his out every other day. I always clean them out if the horses have been out of the stable for a day or more.

 

[Faithkat]

The winter livery where I am now has automatic drinkers. Being the sad anal person that I am, I drain and scrub it out once a week. It gets all slimy and 'orrible otherwise

 

[J&C]

We clean the inside ones every morning and the ones in the fields get done weekly (or more if they are particularly dirty).
Only takes a second and keeps them nice and fresh.

 

[jennywren07]

we do the ones at work every day. they have a little plug at the bottom that we pull out letting the water into a bucket then a quick squish round with a washing up brush and plug back in. Takes 30s for the dirtyest ones!

 

[User716]

I agree that automatic waterers in stables should be cleaned out often.
The ones we had were small (with no plug hole) and using a big sponge (as described by other people here) worked great.
For automatically filling field tanks and larger stable waterers it is a tricky balance between conserving water and horses actually preferring slightly dirty water and not drinking enough because it's too dirty.
I worried about whether my horse was happy with his water - so I'd offer him the water from the rainwater barrel in the yard (which was normally kept covered with a net to keep leaves & insects out) and this was a good indicator as to whether he was happy with the water in his stable.
I will admit though that I did go back to buckets (2 large hanging buckets on clips).

Anyway, a handy trick for cleaning tanks and large waterers on those in-between days is to use a plastic kitchen sieve (metal ones go rusty) the sort used to sieve flour, and drag it round and round through the water to capture floating bits and dead insects and bang it out on the side.
It's quick and effective for preserving the water.... so long as they haven't pooed in it!!!

 

[KatieLovesJames]

Thanks all. I'll put them in and try the scoop/ladle/sponge methods of cleaning!

 

[milesjess]

Daily. I'll tend to just just my hand and scoop the water out and rub any dirt off. Works fine for me.

 

[emma.is]

I just have a sponge and give it a quick wipe over, get all the bits out, scoop all the water into a bucket and throw it out. Works well

 

[Bridie&theMinis]

I've got a large auto tank in the field. I keep a fishing net next to it and have a scoop around a couple of times a week (and use the net to scrape and collect scum from the sides).

 

[PoppyAnderson]

Never??
Ours would be scummy after a few days of no cleaning!
You must be in a very soft water area i presume?

Cheshire. Not sure if it's soft or hard? Horses drink from muddy puddles, so I'm sure they don't mind a less than pristine water receptacle at home! That said, I'm making it sound like it's filthy! It's not at all, it's totally clear water and mine's not a hay dunker, so it doesn't get clogged up.

 

[legaldancer]

I must admit, I'm the same as Poppy. Unless they've spat chewed hay into it, it doesn't need cleaning. It's situated by the door at the top of the kick boards so they can't poo in it either.

Over summer when they're out the water is turned off and they're thoroughly cleaned then before they start coming in again at nights.

The field trough is another matter. I bought too large a model for the number of horses ( cattle trough) and have ended up disconnecting it as it always went murky. I now sit tubtrugs in it and fill those daily.

 

[DifficultMare]

When my mare had an automatic water bowl I scrubbed it every week, just took out the plug, held a bucket underneath and a quick scrub round with the brush, very quick and easy. My only slight qualm with them is - if your horse is anything like my mare and very inquisitive, you may find yourself being welcomed by a flood one morning after the plug has been investigated at close quarters and the water has run all night Very costly for me as it also flooded about five other stables and I had to replace the bedding!