HELP!!! something to keep water clean...(and pics of our 'waterpigs')

[cjeanean]

I don't have a pond, but I do have a large livestock water bin to fill for my ducks to swim in. The problem is that I don't want mucky, stale, mosquito-filled water in it, and I can't afford to keep dumping it out and re-filling it every five minutes (cause that's how quickly they get it filthy) I'm wondering if there's some sort of cheap duck-safe additive I can put in the water to keep it from going stagnant. Would a water pump to agitate the water work??? Or is there some sort of pond additive I can put in there to keep the water mosquito/smell free??? Thanks!!!

 

[mandylovespets]

Do you know how many gallons of water it holds???... Is it a metal bin?

 

[mandylovespets]

I'm not sure what you can do to keep the smell at a minimum... But I do know that beyond preventing freezing, water movement is important in a pond (or in your case a big water bin) for a number of reasons. Keeping pond water in gentle motion helps oxygenate the water, helps leech out chemical and environmental contaminants, helps move nutrients around and prevents pond water from becoming stagnant. This is crucial, because stagnant pond water becomes a growth medium for both harmful algae and for insect larvae. So it will probably be a good idea to put something that will aggitate the water to keep it in movement (I believe that's what you were talking about?). Avoid putting the bin in areas where direct sunlight is the rule and not the exception, preferring areas that are at least partially shaded by trees or other objects. This will help control algae growth. I don't really know about water treaments... You might want to try Petsmart or something like that???....

 

[cjeanean]

It's one of those big metal/stainless steel (?) bins u get from the feed store for watering livestock. At least that's what I think they're for. When we went to get our chicks and ducks they had a whole bunch of them at the store, and that's what the babies were in. It's pretty big, like two or three times the size of a large rubbermaid container, and it's oval shaped. I don't know what the heck it's called.

 

[brettnreno]

Well when you come up with a solution let me know please. I have 6 baby ducks that are two weeks old now and I finally realize why they call them FOWL.

 

[cjeanean]

thanks!!! I was beginning to think no one was gonna answer!!!! So no direct sunlight???? I think we've got one or two places in our yard that fits that descripton....

 

[cjeanean]

Quote:

 

[mandylovespets]

Oh you are very welcome!!!

Good luck! I have 2 duckies myself (both 4 wks old) and I've raised them as pets before... I just use one of those plastic kiddie pools that you can buy at walmart... And I change the water like every 2-3 days...... What kind of duckies do you have?. Can you post pics?

 

[brewmiss96]

DH reading over my shoulder said to put koi in the tub, I think any carp type of fish would work though. Not sure if this would work, but makes sense.

 

[cjeanean]

I have no idea what kinds they are....well, I shouldn't say that, I know that one is a Pekin duck, the other I think is Ancona....but the last I have no clue about....I can get some pics on here if ur gonna be online for a few minutes...photobucket takes forever to load....LOL!!!