I have a dilemma

[maggie144]

Hi Everyone

I could really do with some advice, living in the north of england and very remote, you can imagine how cold it can get.

Well i have a large water butt that i use for watering the animals, but every winter it freezes solid, and now that i have a arthritis problem carrying buckets through the house is not an option this year, so i wonder if anyone has any ideas how i could insulate my butt, similer to how you put a jacket on your water tank.

any ideas would be greatly appriecated

maggie

[Stonehead]

so i wonder if anyone has any ideas how i could insulate my butt

More seriously, what sort of animals do you have and do they have access to the butt (eg to rub against, gnaw, etc).

If the butt is not accessible, sit it on a thick pad of glassfibre insulation and then wrap several layers of glassfibre insulation around it. Tape up with duct tape, the cover with heavy plastic (preferably black) and more tape.

Put a lid on it with a thick layer of sheet insulation (salvaged/reclaimed preferably) cut to fit inside the butt. The lid needs to be a snug fit.

If animals drink out of the butt or have access to it, then sinking it into the ground can help but insulation is a no-no as many animals will gnaw it or rub it off (pigs and goats are very bad). You can float a ball in the water, but in the coldest weather even that won't work (below minus 8-10C).

There are water trough heaters in the US, but I've not seen an affordable one in the UK. I suppose you could find a 12v warming pad for plants or brewing, but you'd have to protect it from water (unless it was waterproof), and work out a charging system for the 12v battery.

A pond heater might also do the trick, but again you have the problem of animals eating it, playing with it, etc.

That's about all I can think of now.

[2steps]

if you could get hold of one of those water tank jackets, would that work? or maybe make a simular thing using quilts and some plastic to water proof it?

[Milims]

Hi Maggie
We live in the North East too - so I know what you mean about the winters!! Living next to the sea my first thought was "well the sea never freezes......" obviously adding salt to the water butt is a big no no - but is there something else that could be put in to stop it freezing so much? I'm not sure what but it may be worth investigation. Also - how about making a straw jacket - maybe some hessian type sacks filled with straw or something.
My Dad has (amongst other things) arthritis and he makes use of a sack barrow/trolley thing for carrying stuff - it makes life a lot easier for him.
Chris has also been recently diagnosed with Rheumatiod Arthritis - so if you have any useful tips to offer him they would be much appreciated.
Stay well and stay warm!
Regards
Helen and Chris