water

whelan1

ok , so we have had a major thaw , how long should it be before there is water in the drinkers , not one of them has water today:mad: i have water in the house , dairy and milking parlour but not a drop in the drinkers... could it be airlocked ?

reilig

whelan1 wrote: »

ok , so we have had a major thaw , how long should it be before there is water in the drinkers , not one of them has water today:mad: i have water in the house , dairy and milking parlour but not a drop in the drinkers... could it be airlocked ?

The pipe work to drinkers don't usually airlock. Its just still frozen in a covered area or maybe under ground. It could be another day or 2 at least. I'm in the same boat for cattle - and worse than that the central heating is frozen coming into the house and still hasn't thawed. Its been fun keeping the house warm for a new baby for the last few days

bbam

The thaw so far is only on the surface, the ground here is still rock hard to walk on and I opened a round bale this morning and it was still frozen solid under the first layer..
We had friends last year and it took two weeks for the water into the house to thaw under tarmac..
I'd say as long as the water system is holding pressure it's frozen rather than burst...

irishh_bob

whelan1 wrote: »

ok , so we have had a major thaw , how long should it be before there is water in the drinkers , not one of them has water today:mad: i have water in the house , dairy and milking parlour but not a drop in the drinkers... could it be airlocked ?

pipes ( leading to the drinker ) underground are always the last to freeze but also the last to thaw , you will know they have thawed when the drinkers are overflowing as the flow valves inside the ballcocks will most likely have perished :mad:

John_F

heat the elbows, joiners and any valves on the ballcock

whelan1

there is no water coming anywhere near the ballcock , elbow or joiner:rolleyes:

pakalasa

Drive something down into the ground and you'll see, it's still frozen down deep.
Patience ! Make take a day or too.

whelan1

pakalasa wrote: »

Drive something down into the ground and you'll see, it's still frozen down deep.
Patience ! Make take a day or too.

just getting fed up with bringing hoses around every day all day...

pakalasa

I had to draw water from the bathroom of the house. Filled old milk churns with the shower hose and drew them on the wheelbarrow to the cattle.
So I know the feeling.:)

Muckit

Do you think will this 'big freeze' make lads think about doing remedial work next summer to lessen the impact of any future freezes?? (ie lowering and insolating pipes)

In the states I think they use heated drinkers aswell

Mrmoe

We are the opposite, water every where outside from own source but nothing inside as it is supplied by the council and has been cut off for the last 24 hours with no sign of returning soon. We are now drawing it in from outside. The plus side is that it tastes better.

whelan1

have water in all drinkers except one..... thank god

5live

water came back in the cattle houses yesterday morning but only arrived in the house last night at 11. The water pipes are just in front of the house on the north side so it will take a lot longer where there is shade. On the plus side, the threat of divorce has gone way down since 11 last night:)

whelan1

isnt it mad how much we take flowing water for granted

Shauny2010

Muckit wrote: »

Do you think will this 'big freeze' make lads think about doing remedial work next summer to lessen the impact of any future freezes?? (ie lowering and insolating pipes)

In the states I think they use heated drinkers aswell

A neighbor of mine dug up the pipes into his shed last summer, he insulated them and sank them down two foot -- the frost still got to them. He reckons that the frost can penetrate through freshly dug ground much easier.
Im thinking of doing a bit of diggin as well but Im thinking of putting sand down on top of the pipes when they are relayed

irishh_bob

Muckit wrote: »

Do you think will this 'big freeze' make lads think about doing remedial work next summer to lessen the impact of any future freezes?? (ie lowering and insolating pipes)

In the states I think they use heated drinkers aswell

water pipes should be three feet underground like they are in canada , on most farms in ireland thier closer to three inches underground :rolleyes:

pakalasa

If you want to judge how something conducts heat (freezes quicker), just leave your hand on it. Good conductors of heat feel cold, poor conductors feel warm.
So for example, rock will conduct heat better than earth. Wet soil will conduct better than dry.

I always though that 2 feet deep was plenty. At the height of the freeze, heard Gerard Fleming of Met Eireann say that the frost had gone down 1 foot in places, as if that was a lot.

Muckit

irishh_bob wrote: »

water pipes should be three feet underground like they are in canada , on most farms in ireland thier closer to three inches underground :rolleyes:

I'd say they're more like 5-6ft underground in states/canada. They's be hittin -30C most winters. We've ours over 2' underground (not insulated) and they froze.

I heard that weather programme about freeze 1' into ground so I'm puzzled

whelan1

our last drinker thawed out this evening :D time to put the hoses away til next time - thank god

Muckit

whelan1 wrote: »

our last drinker thawed out this evening :D time to put the hoses away til next time - thank god

"i have been using a single hosepipe to do 250 cattle everyday"

That must be some huge pin you've got in that shed whelan1!:D