ideas for a water trough

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mar2505

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My yard has very strange field arrangments. Basically the fields are electric fence with buckets of water in them. I am tired of filling buckets every day and like horse to have more than YO gives filling buckets. Has anyone any ideas of a free solution, I was thinking of an old batch or something but where do i get one from ?
 
I use water tanks like the ones that used to be pur in the loft for water supply. You can buy them new in most DIY shops. They are cheaper than "proper" horse water troughs and are very durable and safe. You normally have to buy a blank end thing for where the pipes would come out of it though.

Hope this makes sense
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Yes, I don't like buckets in fields as it's tedious filling them up, and there's the risk on them tipping over and then the horse going without...

I wouldn't use an old bath though as they are very dangerous
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Best to invest in a proper trough
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What about plastic dustbins as they're easy to fill and to clean and there must be a lot about now that most areas have gone onto wheelie bins. When we used them we never had a problem with horses not liking to get their heads down into them.
 
Baths are not a free solution. Not by the time youve paid the vets bill anyway.

Most tack shops sell huge plastic flexible tubs that should last a couple of days between filling. Unless you are prepared to put in plumbing for a self fill trough you dont want anything too big anyway, because you will need to change the water frequently.
 
someone at another yard used a big plastic container that was like a drum but cut in half , does anyone know what I mean. difficult to ask them but they seemed ideal???
 
DO NOT use an old bath! So dangerous.

you can buy, relatively cheaply, large tubs of various descriptions from tack shops and DIY stores and even your local supermarket - both Asda and Tescos sell the rubber type.
 
I use an old metal bath - and have safed off any rough edges with an angle grinder. The taps are taken off and it is setled in a trench of sand about 6" deep. Perfectly safe, used it for several years without any problems, but a plastic bath would not be safe

Put a layer of sea shells at the bottom and they help keep the algae down and provide some minerals as they leach into the water.
 
I asked my OH to buy me a new waterbucket as my horse had broken his, and he was off work. I normally buy the big plastic tubs with rope handles from the local garage. He knows the sort of thing I use so I was happy for him to get one (he's not normally to be trusted with horsey purchases since he bought competition mix instead of conditioning mix!)
Anyway, I got home to find an enormous oval plastic tub that I can sit in. He thought the bigger the better especially as it was only £10. It would be if I could actually move it when it's more that half full! I only put about 6" of water in it which is not even 1/5th full and that's more than enough for one night, (he would drink 3/4 of a normal sized one, to give you an idea of how big it is!) If you can find one and fill it right up, it would probably last a week at least. It was just in a petrol station so you should be able to find one fairly easily. The sticker on it called it a storage tub and it had photos of it full of toys, I'm sure you know the sort of thing I mean, except that this is a giant version.

ETA - my husband was off work not the horse!
 
Old freezers, I don't have them myself but have been told that they are better than bathtubs. doors off, working bits ripped out. Added bonus of some insulation. No sharp edges and can easily be sprayed to blend in.
 
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someone at another yard used a big plastic container that was like a drum but cut in half , does anyone know what I mean. difficult to ask them but they seemed ideal???

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Farmers get them with the stuff they use to make sileage. Most farmers will let you have one. I got some for my yard 15 years ago and they are still in use. Just cut in half or cut top off if you want a deeper one.
 
It was just the local garage - you know the sort of things they have on the forecourt along with bags of charcoal and logs. (why do garages sell that stuff, do they think we have steam powered cars!?) You could probably find one at a DIY store or ironmongers etc. I'll try to find a picture of something similar.
 
Why don't you go out and buy some proper plastic water drinking troughs (not metal ones as if a horse kicks out it can break it's legs) and connect it to the water
supply. That way your horses will always have fresh water and there won't be any accidents.

I hope that your perimiter fencing is secure because if any horses do escape it is the horse owner that is responsible for any accidents that are caused.

Paxton make very good plastic field and stable water troughs.
 
go to your local council office(the plumbing bitty) and ask if they have ripped any bathrooms out lately if not then ask them to keep a bath(iron or plastic) for you.

That's what i have done and it was free.

have 2 plastic ones and one iron or what ever it is.

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Another suggestion, Home Depot here (sister store to UK B&Q) sell 75 litre buckets for under $20, that's about a tenner. I imagine B&Q carries them in the garden dept.
 
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