??? about purifying water

DixyDoodle · #1 10/28/08, 01:30 PM

Just got to thinking today (seeing as how the wind is blowing gusters, and they are calling for up to 30cm of snow! ACK!)......if our power were to go out and my livestock needed water, what procedures should I follow to tap into my pond out back to water them? It's a spring fed pond, the creek goes in one end and out the other.

The water would definitely not be given to my animals, particularly goats and horses, without treating it somehow. Do I need those water purification tabs and how do they work? Do they only work on some kinds of bacteria, etc?

Or is it just as easy (or more difficult?) to boil pails of water on the propane BBQ. I would think the BBQ method might take a while!

Any suggestions? These things are best to know ahead of time!

(So far, we haven't had any long-term storms, and I just scoop water out of the horse trough for the goats, that could easily last half a week).

stranger · #2 10/28/08, 02:11 PM

I would just lead them over and let them drink, they were drinking out of mud puddles before we decided what was best for them, I used to break the ice on our pond so the cows could get a drink so they could make milk. JMO.

**fordson major** · #3 10/28/08, 02:38 PM

you have too have an idea of what you are treating for! a generator capable of running your furnace then your well pump would be an idea.

How Do I · #4 10/28/08, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixyDoodle

The water would definitely not be given to my animals, particularly goats and horses, without treating it somehow. Do I need those water purification tabs and how do they work? Do they only work on some kinds of bacteria, etc?

Has the water been found to be tainted? If it has, you (we) would need to know what is wrong with the water source before treating it properly.

LFmenagerie · #5 10/28/08, 03:25 PM

Just use bleach. It's simple and effective and harmless, especially for the relatively short term of a power outage. http://www.i4at.org/surv/bleach.htm
Tom

**fordson major** · #6 10/28/08, 11:53 PM

Protozoan infection is a big one when using surface water. E. coli is another that has popped up in surface waters in Ontario.

DixyDoodle · #7 10/29/08, 06:34 AM

Quote:

why in the world would you NOT give it to your livestocK? Your family - I could understand but not your lievstock?!?!?

Because there have been cases of potomac in our township (which is caused by snails) for one reason, and although my horses are vaccinated, vaccinations do not "guarantee" protection, and also I have other livestock such as goats. Like ford major said, there are a lot of creepy crawlies to consider. Our fields are tiled, so they drain fairly quickly, and yes I know horses drink out of puddles, but the pond is different (ie, slime growth, water parasites, drainage from neighouring farms, etc) and it takes in all drainage from higher areas such as the horse fields.

Horses are notoriously expensive to care for, even without the added expense of vet intervention. It is a pond, after all, not a freshwater river, so yes, it pays to be leery. I don't want to go the cheap way just to save a few bucks (which really, you don't in the long run).

So, do you all think, even just boiling for ten minutes would kill everything, if I'm not sure what could possibly be in the water?

**fordson major** · #8 10/29/08, 07:14 AM

boiling will not get rid of chemicals that could possibly be in the water, boiling water would deal with Protozoa and bacteria,(gan is under a boil water right now) will not effect the turbidity, only time will do that (settles out the sediment!)! too my understanding, potomacc is transmitted by accidental ingestion of caddisflies, that they could get it from swallowing a snail or other aquatic life does make sense though!
that was quite a storm! dw found a very large tree across the road when she had too go in too deal with a power outage at her plant, when i phoned roads at 2 am, it sounded as though there were many trees down! what a way to start winter!

amylou62 · #9 10/29/08, 09:30 AM

We have a running spring that goes through our pond and I use it to water all my critters; horses, pigs, chickens and rabbits. Its alot cleaner than a stock tank.

DixyDoodle · #10 10/29/08, 09:40 AM

Quote:

strange - its a fresh water pond and a creek runs through it -I am really surprised it has a problem. Stagnant pooled still pond water I could understand - but not moving water with a fresh source - thats really strange. Yikes. Sometimes I forget how good we have it here in the land of 10,000 plus lakes!

I actually live in the Great Lakes area. No problem of drought here.

The thing is it is a very large pond and although it is fed by the creek, it's slow feeding, it's not like you see on tv: you know, salmon running through a fast running stream that is clear to the bottom.....it still pretty much looks to be a typical pond with cattails, snails, and algae and clay at the water's edge.....

I didn't say I have a problem here, though, only that there has been potomac in this region (according to vets) and I do have snails which he said are what cause potomac (the bacteria is erlicili or something like that). It doesn't have to be stagnant water, only dampness which is appealing to snail growth....you do not necessarily need to have water/pond access to get potomac, athough it helps. I don't want to take that chance.

Ford major, I heard the Gan advisory was lifted as of yesterday? I'm thankful I don't like there, but then again, I'm not that far from it either. I think that was due to the rains......just what they don't need, another Walkerton.

Forerunner · #11 10/29/08, 09:45 AM

Bleach is one of the worst things you can use to purify water for consumption by man or beast. Hydrogen peroxide is just as effective and also offers many internal health benefits as well. As for chemicals in the pond referred to by the original poster, we've been given no evidence to indicate a problem.
Biological contaminations can be remedied by one cup of hydrogen peroxide to 500 gallons of water, roughly.

http://www.lenntech.com/water-disinf...%20drinkwater?

DixyDoodle · #12 10/29/08, 09:50 AM

No, no problems here that I know of, I was just thinking what to use as a preventative. I don't think chemicals would be much of a problem as a lot of this water system is under the care of the water conservatory and may be possibly part of a system that supports "sensitive" species.

I did use a water/bleach mix for my horses' water troughs (very minute amounts of bleach) but the horses wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole.

YaHu · #13 10/29/08, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixyDoodle

Because there have been cases of potomac in our township (which is caused by snails) for one reason, and although my horses are vaccinated, vaccinations do not "guarantee" protection, and also I have other livestock such as goats. Like ford major said, there are a lot of creepy crawlies to consider. Our fields are tiled, so they drain fairly quickly, and yes I know horses drink out of puddles, but the pond is different (ie, slime growth, water parasites, drainage from neighouring farms, etc) and it takes in all drainage from higher areas such as the horse fields.

Horses are notoriously expensive to care for, even without the added expense of vet intervention. It is a pond, after all, not a freshwater river, so yes, it pays to be leery. I don't want to go the cheap way just to save a few bucks (which really, you don't in the long run).

So, do you all think, even just boiling for ten minutes would kill everything, if I'm not sure what could possibly be in the water?

It's going to take a lot of wood or fuel to boil that much water. If you're just looking to kill micro organisms, you might try and make a shallow trough with a UV type bulb above it (if you have electricity). Run the pond water down the trough in a constant but thin film with the light directly over it. This would use far less fuel than boiling water for your animals.

Some information on it here:
http://www.americanairandwater.com/lamps.htm

Bleach is a bad thing and your horses thought so too. lol

**fordson major** · #14 10/29/08, 10:47 AM

yep, Leeds Grenville and Lanark health unit got clean tests back so the boil water is lifted! they are very quick to issue boil water orders now ever since Walkerton. we sample our well water quite often, easier to monitor and treat the water than treat sick animals!with the explosion of the deer and beaver populations, surface water has become a game of Russian roulette. RVCA Dixy? this year i think we shoulda been building the Ark!

DixyDoodle · #15 10/29/08, 01:46 PM

Thanks for all the tips, everyone!

fordmajor, yeah I suspect there will be more BWA's when this snow here melts; so far we've never had any here. ***knock wood** Supposed to go back up to spring weather again here come the weekend. Ug, I wish it would make up it's mind, although I can't say as I miss winter.

**fordson major** · #16 10/30/08, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DixyDoodle

Thanks for all the tips, everyone!

fordmajor, yeah I suspect there will be more BWA's when this snow here melts; so far we've never had any here. ***knock wood** Supposed to go back up to spring weather again here come the weekend. Ug, I wish it would make up it's mind, although I can't say as I miss winter.

town near us had a BWA last winter, all the result of a bad sample! water was fine all along, municipalities and health units do not take chances!
municipal water is getting better though dixy!! today's operator has far more testing to do than when walkerton occurred! now too get the general populace testing their wells more! its a free service but it has too be used to keep it going! we test our well at least once a quarter and after an event, changing out a piece of the system or an earth quake etal.