# Portable/temporary pad to control mud?



## JMT (Aug 10, 2013)

Turned our cows into the corn stalks. Watering from a hydrant into the water tank.

Does anyone have an idea or know of something that can be put under and around the water tank to control the mud and keep solid footing for the cows? Looking for something temporary so it can be taken up and moved to a different hydrant and removed when it is time to plant crops.

Was thinking of heavy rubber mats but don't know if they would be trampled down in the mud. They are also very cumbersome to move especially covered in mud and crap.

Thanks for any ideas.


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## Waterway64 (Dec 2, 2011)

My cousin mounts tanks on four wheel trailers so that he can move them regularily. Don't know if that would solve your problem. Mel


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

Do you have mines in your area? I use the thick conveyor belts in high traffic areas.

It takes a tractor or skid steer to move then once they are caked with mud.


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## deadmoose (Oct 30, 2011)

When I put in my Ritchie I didn't have time to pour a foundation. I built a base of 4x4's the size of the fountain. I put a 3 or 4' 4x4 inside 2 opposite corners. (Kind of like 2 legs). I buried the legs and set it so top of platform was level with ground. Probably had a couple 2x4s inside frame as well.

The plan was to pour in spring and redo. It worked well enough I kept it that way. On 3rd winter now. It stays where it should. Still muddy around it in spring but the Ritchie does good.


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## JMT (Aug 10, 2013)

I have some conveyor belts that I am going to use on a different project. May have to try them to see how they work.

How do you move them with the tractor or skid steer? Roll them up? Or are they small enough to pick up with forks?


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## Tim/South (Dec 12, 2011)

JMT said:


> I have some conveyor belts that I am going to use on a different project. May have to try them to see how they work.
> 
> How do you move them with the tractor or skid steer? Roll them up? Or are they small enough to pick up with forks?


I use the grapple and drive backwards to get to solid ground. Forks would work just as well.

We also lay them across the ground at our gates in the working pen, high traffic areas. I skid them out about twice a winter, lift the belts up and dump the crud, then put them back down.


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## prairie (Jun 20, 2008)

Why is it muddy around the tank?

I try to set temporary tanks up as far from the hydrant or well as practical, usually at least 100' away. We use garden hoses, and/or 1" black plastic waterline with camlock quick couplers on the ends. Set the tanks to overflow back into the road ditch, adjoining field, tree break etc. Works great for frost free winter watering.

In one case, I have about 500' of pipe running on top of the ground from a well, through two culverts under 2 roads, to get water diagnol across an intersection to the edge of a corn field.

I'll try to post up some pictures if I can figure out how.


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## JMT (Aug 10, 2013)

Gets muddy from rain or snow melt and cows standing/tramping ground around tank. We don't use an overflow on the tank because our well has water supply issues. We just fight hoses and monitor tank and flow levels to keep from freezing.


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## prairie (Jun 20, 2008)

I have had few problems with cattle making it muddy around tanks, they generally drink and leave almost immediately. That is with herds from as few as 30-50 head to over 700 head, doesn't matter what time of year.

We take in a couple hundred extra cows for the summer, and they do hang around the water points and make a mess, even climbing into the tanks and fouling the water. When not grazing they can always be found packed in tight around the tank. I am pretty sure that this is because most of the year their owners care leaves something to be desired. When he has them for their water sources and bunk/hay feeder space are many times marginal at best, and I believe they have been conditioned to worrry about where their next drink and bite is coming from, so they only leave the water source when absolutely necesssary. The same goes for hay feeders when they are around them at my place, even though we have never fed them hay. By the end of their 100-120 day stay, they are spreading out more and not concentrating on the tank as much, but the next year we start all over again.

When watering cows, they should most times come and drink in a fairly orderly fashion. If there is a lot of pushing, shoving and tank "guarding" going on, you probably need more tank space or to water more frequently. When you come to fill tanks, they should seldom ever be empty, but have some water or ice in them. You may want to make sure the tank is nearly full before you let them start to drink. If that is the problem, it will take time and diligant monitoring of the water availability to retrain them. Also make sure any mineral feeders, creep feeders, supplement tubs, etc. are *far *away from the water point. That is what I learned from hauling winter water to nearly 300 head for 9-10 years.


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## Bonfire (Oct 21, 2012)

JMT said:


> I have some conveyor belts that I am going to use on a different project. May have to try them to see how they work.
> 
> How do you move them with the tractor or skid steer? Roll them up? Or are they small enough to pick up with forks?


Find some used concrete slats that have come out of a hog house. If you are going to be using a machine to pick up something, I'd rather pick up a several slats than deal with a conveyor belt. Maybe leave them stacked at the field edge during the growing season. A 10' X 4' weighs about 11-1200 lbs. I bought a couple truck loads of used ones and built 30' X 32' pads to feed hay on. Feeder sits in the middle.


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