Water

Every year by September, my place has gotten very dry. Surface water is gone, my neighbors have the same issues, so it is long ways to insufficient sources that are crowded with cattle. I've wanted to run water to the far reaches of my property for a very long time. The finances and a plan on exactly how I wanted it laid out were finally worked out.

I had a ½ hp water well at the house that is only being used to run the sprinkler system in my yard so my water well service guys ran some tests on it thought it would be more than adequate as it has more to do with the pipe diameter.

A decade and a half ago when I bought this place, I had run a 1¼" pipe from this well up to my shooting range as I built a cover for the range that also serves as a game cleaning area. From there, it is a straight shot down the range to the back of my property some 2500', so it was easy to run it down the range and tee off to go various directions. The terminal end is delivering 15 gal/min!









I'm a 1D1 property without any livestock so I wanted my water troughs to be very specific for my needs. I did not want anything other than concrete and looked at forming and casting my own but found what I needed at Ranch Specialties which is part of the McAllen Ranch near San Isidero. Yesterday, I made the 450-mile round trip to pick them up.







Now a critter does not have to travel more than 300 yards to find fresh water.

Oh, just in the nick of time. We hit 101° yesterday, that has always started the "disappearing act" here. Not a moment to spare!

Significant improvement IMO, looks great and like the concrete "ponds"

BTW, what type float did you use?

Inside the PVC canister in the corner of the pad is a Flowmaster Toilet float.The water flows from that canister through a small diameter hole in both the canister and concrete to the pan. It comes with everything including a tube of sealant to seal the canister to the concrete. I will get a picture of it later today.

Sounds like a solid set up, probably wont find similar here, but could likely copy it. We have more water here, but my little pond can go dry when we get dry like this. I could get by easy with a standard stock type trough and float, but that limits ground birds.

Well done.

That is some awesome stuff. I will probably get two for our Comstock place. One for the dogs in the back yard and one up front for the critters. We go down to the Valley pretty regularly and it shouldn't be too hard to go up to 1017 instead of via McCook, on the return trip.

Thanks a million for posting this.

You're Welcome. Jim McCallen is a hoot to talk! The pickup location is about 11½ miles west of US281 on FM1017. There is a gas station a mile south of FM1017 on US281, but nothing north for 60 miles.

I know the area pretty well, worked Starr County in the Border Patrol and Hidalgo, Starr, Zapata, and south end of Jim Hogg, as a Customs Special Agent.

Thanks again.

Great work! that is some fine looking set-ups!

I would get some cams on those water holes bc they will be getting visits from all sorts of cool creatures

That's gonna be a game changer for you I bet. Very nice set up.

I look forward to seeing you post some pics of them getting action.

I thought I would add a couple of pictures of prepping the waterers; it is very easy. You start by applying silicone, which is supplied, to the hole and then driving the 4". PVC pipe through it. The only thing you need to pay attention to is aligning the hole in the pipe with the hole in the concrete.



The FlowMaster Toilet float, supplied, is secured in the pipe.



Here it is filled.



It is suggested that you use stainless plumbing pigtails. Off the FlowMaster it must be a 7/8" X whatever" Toliet connection. I'm using a faucet at the supply line so I needed to make the switch to 1/2' X 1/2" Faucet. The various connections are identified.



The contact number.

Looks great, I agree set up a camera or two.

That is a great set up.

That looks like an awesome set up. Can't wait to see some pics of the all the critters.

Once I get them in place, I will have cameras on them full time.

First one is up and running. In that I work by myself, not sure how I would get them in without my tractor and front-end loader using a pallet fork. This is kind of a one a morning project. At 700 lbs, no way can you manipulate them with a block and pry bar. They must be very level to get that top rim filled with water and not running out. Anyway, this one is open for business. I will fill around it a bit to finish it off. Found one lone rock right where I was working, it is sitting next to the float cannister. Too nice a rock to toss!

Ours are not nearly as nice as yours, but they serve their purpose.

We used thick molasses tubs buried them 1/2 way and run them off totes with a float. So far they last about 2 months before going empty and the wildlife flock to them in the dry months and heat. We wanted to plumb water to them... maybe in a few years.

They look great, good work!

Those look great! Curious why they make them so think and heavy duty? Wonder what it would take to build a form and pour some of those yourself?

Bet they are thick/heavy to keep hogs from moving them.

I had a guy out here pouring some walkways last month, he's done a lot of work for me, and I showed him the pictures of the waterers and he said he couldn't do the work for anywhere near that price.

As far as the expense of this, the ditching to a minimum of 18" was 49¢/foot. The fellow I used said he can do about 2500' a day with a single ditcher and they have two so they can cut 5,000' in 8 to 9 hours in my type of sandy loam soil. This work included laying the pipe and covering the ditch. Materials, using 1¼" schedule 40, was $1.03/foot.

They waterers weigh 700#, nothing is going to move them. It is sitting where I cut the soil to form a pad with my bucket. When I fill it to ground level about 4" of the waterer will be under.

Will set another one in the morning.

Got the last one planted in place today. Man, these are a handful for one guy alone. Could not have done it without a pallet forks on my frontend loader. I probably picked each one up 5 to 10 times to get them level even with the sites prepped level.

My goal was to finish before it hit 100°. Was a day late because we hit that yesterday. Supposed to see 105° to 108° today.

There is rain in the forecast for the next four days. Hope it happens as I'm waiting for the rain to settle the soil on both the waterline and around the waterers before I finish it with the bucket and blade. Once that is done, the cameras will go up as I don't want any obstacles while that work takes place.

You seeing activity around them? Tracks or have cameras?

I finished all the dirt work and gone by to check on them. The fresh dirt is covered with all kinds of tracks. I had dumped the carcass of a large hog about 200 yards from one of the waterers but found the remains of the rib cage at the waterer. Looked like a coyote brought it there and ate it!

I had a lightning strike up at entrance to my place that fried the electrical stuff so last week and part of this week will be spent up there. Once finished, I plan to get cameras out.

Awesome project.

Hey GG!

I like your ponds, we have something similar but not quite so heavy, and the critters love them.
I like them better than the deep tubs and troughs, they rinse quickly and critters do not drown in them.
We made a rain catchment system on the barn to feed ours, we never ran out of water yet. Well we did run out once but not due to a lack of rain, a little frog decided he was going to live on top on the float. We fixed that problem.

I had a few minutes to take cameras out last week, I pulled the card from the waterer in front of my house but will leave the ones out back for probably a few more days.

This waterer sits about 50 yards out in front of my living room window out along my driveway, and under the shade of a couple of oaks. It has been dominated by four young bucks, two 8's and two 9's. Other deer are using it but only under their supervision.



This waterer is fed from the irrigation line that runs to the oak motts along my drive so I must watch the water level as they only run every other day. The deer visit it all day long as of late. Besides dawn, dusk, and during the night they arrive about 10:30 and 3:30. I have a remote for my irrigation well, so I just will turn this station on to fill it and then shut it off. My well service outfit will be out next week to run a dedicated supply line to it.

I hadn't run a pipe to it initially, as I wasn't sure it was a right place for it but holy smokes, it has brought a crazy amount around the house, so I'm going to leave it. One buck, the fellow at the water, has decided I'm okay and doesn't have a problem with me being around him. He has to make that decision, it spooks him when I decide, but I'm good with that. I was working on the sprinkler heads a couple of days ago at this set, and he came out right there with me, very curious as to what I was doing. He also comes up to the house about an hour before dark wanting me to give him some corn. Will come right out my window that I sit near and wait. I suspect he was one of the fawns that were placed near the house. I see them while I'm working, act like I'm avoiding them while I stay on task but softly sing nursery rhymes to them while I'm near them. Never had one run and suspect this guy has studied me thousands of times.