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K&H Ultimate All-In-One Stock Tank De-Icer 250-Watt Removable Floater Ring

The new Farm Essentials line from K&H Manufacturing has reinvented the wheel when it comes to...

General Information

Brand
K&H Manufacturing
Manufacturer
K&H Pet
Model
8425
Product Price
33.78
Buy URL
https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-All-In-One-De-Icer-250-Watt-Removable/dp/B002QXN1H8/?tag=backy-20
The new Farm Essentials line from K&H Manufacturing has reinvented the wheel when it comes to keeping fresh water available in the winter. Every K&H de-icer is safe in all stock tanks, unlike nearly all of the other de-icers available in the market today. No expensive shrouds or cages need be purchased either. Every one of our de-icers can be used as a floating de-icer out of the box or in seconds converts to a submersible de-icer with the click of a button. In the past, all that was readily available were energy gulping 1000 watt to 1500 watt de-icers; Customers had no choice but to purchase these expensive to run de-icers, even when they didn-foott need it. We-footve solved this problem by creating a whole line of de-icers along with a convenient zone chart for consumers to choose the correct de-icer, every time. A free cord safety clip is also included with every de-icer. This ingenious clip secures the de-icer to the edge of the stock tank, bucket or container to help prevent chewing, cribbing or removal of the de-icer from the tank. When it comes to fresh water, K&H Farm Essentials is the choice that makes cents.

Latest reviews

Pros: Keeps water thawed without using too much electricity, sinks or floats, safe for use in plastic buckets
Cons: Protective cage is plastic instead of sturdier metal, won't keep vertical nipples from freezing
So far, I've been impressed with this device. Thanks to the great reviews on Amazon, I chose this brand over some other ones.

Currently, this is being used in a 5-gal plastic bucket with horizontal nipples installed. Coldest this winter has been 4F and has keep the nipples flowing. Last winter, in a 4-gal plastic bucket, it kept the horizontal nipples flowing to -9F. This is the second winter of use and I hope to get many more winters of use. I have heard these devices can wear out after a few years. I will update this review in the coming years.

It comes with a floater ring, which can be easily remove so that the deicer sits on the bottom of your water container, especially useful if using watering nipples.

I paid about $35, free shipping, from Amazon.

It has a built in thermostat...turns on the device at 32F and off at about 45F. So it keeps the water thawed, but not needlessly warm, so it doesn't use extra electricity. No need to purchase a Thermocube. A 250W heat element will last much longer than a 25W one.

By accident, I discovered recently that the auto safety-off feature does work as advertised. And rather than burning out a non-replaceable fuse, it simply shuts off. I unplugged it, plugged it back in and it started working again. This is a priceless safety feature to avoid an overheating situation, which could cause a fire. Obviously, it's best to never let any submersible heating device run dry, for safety reasons.

Previously, I had used a Petco submersible aquarium heater. Once, the water had gotten too low and it melted one of the suction cups, but hadn't shut off automatically as advertised. It also is oriented to be VERY close to the plastic bucket, perhaps a 1/2" gap between the heater and the bucket. This proximity is concerning and potentially much more dangerous than the K&H deicer. The K&H heat element is enclosed in a large plastic cage, which elevates the heat element about 2-3" from the nearest bucket surface. The only drawback of this is you will always need at least 3" of water in the bucket, so it will need to be refilled slightly more often.

This device is much more rugged and designed to be used outdoors. I used to not think this would matter with the aquarium heater, but now I see better. A device designed to be used outdoors is safer and will last longer.

Lastly, we tried the K&H in a 3-gal plastic bucket with vertical nipples last winter. It only worked to perhaps 15F. Below that, the nipples would freeze up. We had to switch to the more dangerous aquarium heater (at a higher electric cost due to keeping the water at 67F) to keep the vertical nipples thawed to about -5F. No problems with the K&H since switching to horizontal nipples.

Note that the dimensions listed on Amazon must be for the box in comes in and not for the unit. The deicer measures about 8" diameter and 5" height.

Comments

Thank you fork this review, I have been wondering which de-iced you were talking about on Aart's thread about their new heated waterer. Nice to know you don't needs thermal cube as well.
 
I have two of these in two coops in 15 gallon containers with horizontal nipples. I wake up at 4am and go out and throw the switch to turn them on. After a night at 22° and the sidewalls and top frozen, but 6am it was all thawed out. They work great!
 

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Category
Waterers
Added by
pdirt
Views
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Reviews
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Last update
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