The Benefits of Automatic Waterers

Jan 24, 2022


A water trough that is always full, stays clean, and keeps water at a comfortable temperature is an attractive offering to most livestock. Especially during the winter months, it is important to encourage your animals to drink by preventing any conditions that could turn them away. Such deterrents include stale and stagnant water, contaminants such as algae, or ice over the surface.
 
Unfortunately, maintaining each trough by yourself is not an enjoyable farm chore. Large farms often have many different tanks which can turn into a time-consuming process when having to clean each one. Small farms, on the other hand, are likely to have too few hands-on-deck to spend such time on one task.
 
            Automatic waterers can help to mitigate the work required to get the job done. Benefits of automatic waterers include:
 
  1. Provides cleaner, fresher water that is less likely to become stagnant
  2. Keeps water cool in the summer and prevents freezing in the winter
  3. Less time and labor spent cleaning troughs; no more lugging around buckets or dragging out the hose to fill up the trough
  4. Provides constant availability of drinking water, therefore preventing dehydration
  5. Less water wasted; no more dumping out gallons and gallons of water to clean buckets and troughs
  6. Reduces energy costs compared to using traditional tank heaters
 
Your local Co-op has access to a variety of automatic waterers and will be happy to provide information and advice on the best waterer to fit your farm’s needs. Even if you decide that automatic waterers are not practical for your farm, we carry plenty of galvanized stock tanks from trusted brands such as Tarter and Priefert.
 
For more content like this, check out the latest issue of the Cooperator.
 
 

Read More News

Mar 02, 2026
Nothing says spring at the Co-op like baby chicks peeping and scratching in showrooms across the state. Raising chickens continues to grow in popularity, not only among 4-H’ers with poultry projects but also backyard poultry enthusiasts who want to have their own source of eggs and meat. Game bird production is also on the rise.  Now is a great time to plan for these projects and take steps to protect the health of your birds.
Feb 23, 2026
As the seasons change, so do our management practices for equine ownership. Here are a few considerations that are important for horse owners this spring.
 
Feb 16, 2026
Chick season is almost upon us. Chicks will start showing up in stores mid- to late-February. The idea of raising a flock can be both exciting and intimidating for first-time chicken owners. With a little preparation, though, it’s easy to master the technicalities of poultry care.