It’s important to ensure your cattle have access to adequate, clean drinking water. Considering that water is the most essential nutrient to your cattle’s diet, investing in high-quality automatic watering systems can be a key component to your operation’s success. If you have systems in place, now is the perfect time to check your automatic waterers before winter to ensure they’re functioning properly.
Benefits of Utilizing Automatic Waterers
Adding automatic waterers to your farm saves time, money and energy. Benefits of utilizing automatic waterers include:
- No more filling water buckets or troughs several times a day
- No more frozen tanks or water hoses
- No more filling, lifting and carrying buckets
- The water stays cleaner with routine maintenance
- Water is cooler in summer and warmer in winter
- Less water is wasted
How to Check Your Automatic Waterers Before Winter
It’s best practice to check all of your automatic waterers before winter to ensure they’re functioning at their peak performance. Use this checklist for your inspections:
- Clean the valve chamber and drinking areas
- Use a brush or sponge to remove any debris that may have collected in trough areas and valve chambers
- Check the water seals
- Remove debris from the seals to ensure cold cannot get into freeze the valves
- Check the all-weather sealant around the base of the unit
- Replace the sealant if it’s been damaged
- Check the water levels
- Drop the water level a minimum of 1” in the trough. Make sure warm, fresh water passes through the valve on a regular basis to prevent freezing.
- Install optional heaters and test them before the temperature drops
Where to Find Automatic Waterer Parts
If you need to order a new fountain, install a heater or replace a part for an automatic waterer before winter, visit The Country Store in Howard Lake! Call 320-543-3517 or ask to speak to our fountain expert Paul Schleif in-store. For a downloadable guide on how to prepare your waterers for cold weather, visit https://ritchiefount.com/winter-prep/.