Watering Cattle from a Pond

[Spike56]

I would like to pull water from a pond up the bank and install a cattle trough to keep them from eroding the bank. I would say the rise is no more than 10'. The pond is about 2 acres, but the level can be 3-4 feet higher or lower depending on the rains. It is about 2 acres and 10-15' deep.
Unsure what all I need or where to look to get started. There is zero chance of AC power, so it would have to be solar. I would like to NOT have a battery out there if possible.

Anyone with experience here ?

 

[ponytug]

There are lots of choices. With improved solar pump controllers, solar pumps are doing more in the morning and afternoons. For some ideas check out these folks;
Ponds

I would put in troughs that would hold several days to a weeks worth of water for overcast days in December/ January. Or put in a large above ground tank to feed the troughs by gravity.


All the best, Peter

 

[ovrszd]

Is it not possible to place the tank below the water level and let gravity do the work?

 

[dougtrr2]

What about a windmill?

Doug in SW IA

 

[ROUSTABOUT]

Are you fencing the pond off? They get in it to cool off. We do well water for drinking. They have a pond, but they prefer clean water to drink. Weight gain will prove it. Our pond is big and has a live stream feeding it so it's pretty fresh. But I wouldn't want animals drinking from a stagnant runoff pond. I do not have any cattle myself, gave them away. I live alone now. But I'm in on over 3,000 momma cow herd I take care of. Probably closer to 3500.

 

[MGP4506]

I would like to pull water from a pond up the bank and install a cattle trough to keep them from eroding the bank. I would say the rise is no more than 10'. The pond is about 2 acres, but the level can be 3-4 feet higher or lower depending on the rains. It is about 2 acres and 10-15' deep.
Unsure what all I need or where to look to get started. There is zero chance of AC power, so it would have to be solar. I would like to NOT have a battery out there if possible.

Anyone with experience here ?

You can try a siphon system. You would just want it to have a return line back to the pond. This way you will always have a constant flow of water to help keep it fresh.

 

[LouNY]

If cattle or horses are allowed into a pond it will be destroyed, the banks caved in and muck and mud along the edges and it will get shallower and shallower till it's just one big muck hole.
Unless you have some kind of hard bottomed self cleaning pond and I haven't seen any of those.

 

[ovrszd]

If cattle or horses are allowed into a pond it will be destroyed, the banks caved in and muck and mud along the edges and it will get shallower and shallower till it's just one big muck hole.
Unless you have some kind of hard bottomed self cleaning pond and I haven't seen any of those.

In my lifetime I've saw this many, many times.

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

Siphon system if you have an elevation change that works for you on your property?
Drain system to a float valve?
If you ahve to have an elevevation change then a small generator to run a centrifugal pump to a fill a cistern that then fills a stock tank with float valve by gravity.
Or solar pumping to the cistern, then to stock tank via a float valve.
As @ponytug mentions above, a pump controller (Linear current booster/DC to DC converter) will aid a solar pumping during cloudy conditions or at dawn and dusk. A pump controller will give you anywhere from 20% to 50% more water under low light conditions.

 

[Spike56]

Is it not possible to place the tank below the water level and let gravity do the work?

No, not possible in my situation.