Insulating Stock Tanks

So, I talk about a guy called NP an awful lot. If ya’ll haven’t caught on he’s my husband and I think he’s pretty fantastic! NP worked in lean manufacturing for 6 years and he makes sure that we use our resources as efficiently as possible.  Soo, with no further ado, please enjoy NP’s first ever blog post on insulating stock tanks and how it saves energy and $$.

Insulating Stock Tanks

The moment you have all been waiting for.   A blog post from NP ;) And to top that, it’s a post about insulating stock tanks!  ​
For some brief background: our Rubbermaid stock tanks have in-tank heaters that mount in the drain hole of the stock tank.  While they do shut off when the water temperature gets to 50 degrees, in the dead of winter, it takes all day to warm up 125 gallons of water.  When you have 2 and sometimes 3 stock tanks, an electricity bill can get  pretty darn high.  Spoiler alert- I will be posting more about using my 6 years of LEAN manufacturing experience to talk about other farm wastes and how we combat them.  But let’s get through this first. 
What I used for material.

• 2x4 boards ripped down the center.
• 1 ½” Foam board.
• 2-3 cans of expanding foam.
• 7/16” chip board. 4 x 8 ft.
• Screws.

I did not include prices on materials, but estimated total cost was $80 for 2 tanks. It will vary depending on size and design of tank.
The first step was cutting down the boards and building a basic framework for the tank.  We’ll just call the frame boards 2x2.

The very first tank I did was constructed only out of foam board and glued together using expanding foam.  It worked great for Rusty (the horse), but the heifers sole purpose in life is to teach me to build things stronger and better.  I’m convinced they could lick and chew through an M3 Stuart tank given enough time.  They had reduced a nicely finished foam tank to tiny 1 inch pieces in a matter of 24 hours.  So, plywood should last through winter and with the savings on the electricity bill, I might be able to afford to make a tungsten plated cover next year.?.?  

With that said, the frame does not need to be built ford tough.  Most of the rigidity will come when the chip board is screwed in place.  The next step is cutting the foam pieces to fit the openings of the frame.  Don’t forget to cut a piece for the bottom.  

​The next step is to cut the chip board for the front and the sides.  I did not cut pieces for the back nor the bottom.  The foam board will be enough to insulate them.  

​Now would also be a good time to cut the floater. This piece is the key to the whole deal.  It needs to be cut big enough to cover as much area as possible and still give the critters a place to drink.  I have seen other styles where a solid lid is placed over the tank with a hole for livestock to stick their head in.  That might work for some folks’ well trained stock, but it would be a disaster here.  With a floating lid the whole piece drops with water level and does not create an air gap.  If your tank tapers down like these do, cut the floater so it will not touch the heater if the water level drops too low.  Nobody likes the smell of melting plastic.

Once all the pieces are cut, use the spray foam to put a bead of foam around the edge of the foam board.  I used a piece of cardboard to smoosh it down.  We are using it for 90% glue and 10% to fill in cracks, smooshing it won’t matter.  Next install the chip board covers.  I used a little more spray foam to glue these together also.  I’m not sure it helps a lot but it made me feel better.  Do the same for the floating lid.  You may have to weigh it down to keep the foam from expanding. Remember glue, not insulation.  

​I cut some pieces to fit in the corners and glued them in as well.  

​The final step is cutting a hole so you can access the heater.  Do that just like a jack-0-lantern.  Angle the cut and don’t make it perfect, cut a notch for the cord and bam, you have a money saving insulated stock tank.  

I don’t have any down to the penny cost savings on this but I can give you some rough estimates.  Typically before insulation, our electric bill would jump up $80-100 or more a month with one tank.  Now having 2 insulated tanks, the bill is about a $30-40 jump.  That’s twice the tanks for half the $$. I’d say saving even $50 a month is well worth it.
 
It is the second week of January as I write this and we are just now plugging in heaters. Even at that, an hour is long enough to heat the water up and keep it from freezing the rest of the day.  My next goal is to find a timer to alternate heaters on a four hour schedule.  The temps have been down into the single digits and the most ice I have seen is less than a quarter of an inch.  Without the insulation I would have been plugged in weeks ago. 

 If you stuck with me long enough to read this far, I’ll throw in my final tid-bit of advice….for FREE!  Fill your tanks in the morning if possible.  Most of the time our critters don’t drink much at night and fresh water in the morning helps warm up what water had been sitting all night getting even colder and not being drank.  Every little bit helps make life easier and lets us spend time and money where it’s needed most.  Thanks again for reading this and feel free to ask questions.  I like to keep things short and sweet, so if you want further explanation, I will do my best to assist you. 

Enjoy!