Stock tanks and cleaning

[glenntwo]

We keep a kiddie pool for our geese, but I am thinking of buying my neighbors used 2'Dx12'DIA stock tank for them. It's deeper so they can actually paddle around in it and obviously has a much larger surface.

I am looking for an economical vac system for cleaning the muck out of the bottom in the morning. Emptying and filling a huge stock tank just isn't economical so I am looking for something that will vac the muck out, while losing as little water as possible.

Does anyone have experience with the so-called "Venturi-Effect" pool/pond vacs? Instead of using a huge vac system, they just use water pressure from a hose to create the vacuum, and either a bag to catch the wast or a hose that will eject it out onto the grass or into a bucket. The ones I have seen run anywhere from $70-100, while the elaborate vac systems run upward of $400.

I love my geese and want them to have the best pool possible, but right now a $400 vac system is out of the question, so what I would like to know is this: Has anyone used the hose-powered vac wands and have they been successful in pulling the muck out of the bottom of the pool? I did speak with a rep from one company that makes them and he told me it would take forever to vac the muck up, and then promptly tried to sell me his $400 model, so I suspect he was trying to bs me.

The models I am interested in are the Muck-Vac, and the Python Pond multi-vac, but if there are others out there, I would appreciate the information. Thanks!

 

[CMV]

I can't give you any advice on pond vacs but check out this post. Long but worth the read if you've never seen it.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=146829&p=1

 

[glenntwo]

Thanks, but I saw that before. It won't work for me for a lot of reasons, namely the fact that something like that is stationary. I move my animal pens around semi-regularly, and need the portability a stock tank and a pond vac give me.

 

[exoticduckluvr]

they work great. I used them when I was using big kiddie pools and the 300 gal stock tank. Just don't get one where you put together the pole in multiple pieces, get a solid one or 2 piece. I had one i thought was metal when I bought it but the parts that screwed them together was plastic and broke pretty quickly. Also get a firm pole not flimsy one and extra bags. You can find them at Lowes for about 30 dollars

 

[glenntwo]

Which one are you using? We are looking at either the "Muck Vac", which uses a discharge hose you can either put in a bucket or onto the lawn, or the "Rainbow Mini-vac" which has the discharge bag that attaches to the top like you described. We were looking at the Python, but it seems the catch tank is on the small side, so I don't think it's going to work. That plus I spoke with the company and the person I talked to wasn't very helpful.

I am partial to the Rainbow, but my SO doesn't want to be handling a bag full of goose muck when she has to do the chore. But I'm also worried about water loss from the Muck vac, as well as the fact that it requires a min. of 50psi water pressure and preferably 60+psi (we only have 52psi from our taps).

I am not sure just how much volume the stock tank holds, but I'm sure it's going to be at least 200 gallons, and I don't want to have to replace 50 gal every few days when we vacuum the tank. The ads I have seen are really vague about just how much water is displaced.

As to the bag type vac, how long do the bags last, assuming they are reusable? They look like nothing more than cheesecloth, so I figure they might be good for one or two uses then need replacing. I figure I need to do this at least every three days, so the discharge hose type might be best for what we need.

Any more info would be greatly appreciated, not only by me but my SO and my little goosters. The like their kiddie pool, but really cant do anything other than splash around. With the stock tank it should be deep enough for them to actually paddle around w/o their feet hitting bottom.

 

[triggfamily5]

Have you decided which way to go? I stumbled across this topic and never thought about using a vac for cleaning. I would be interested in knowing how it turned out.

 

[Shiloh Acres]

I can't comment on the models you asked about but what I do is this.

I put the tank in the shade as near my garden as I can get it (maybe 15 feet). I used an old pond pump and just got fittings and hoses to run a hose to my garden. That way I can quickly pump out all the water every day, quickly and easily water my garden, along with some liquid fertilizer, and give fresh water to the geese for swimming. The llama lays down by the pool all day too in the shade, and she and the goats will drink from it while it's clean, though I have a raised trough for them in another area that the geese can't get into.

Works great for me and I'm very happy with it.

 

[Kim65]

When you go to use your pond pump (or even the pump that was described as being at Lowe's for 30 bucks) do you have to be very careful about large bits of stuff in the water, like leaves or feathers? I have a little concrete pond in my back yard and am thinking about what to get to drain it.

I just don't want to get something that will break after a few uses. It's a small pond surrounded by leafy things. I have a net to pick out leaves and feathers, but won't get them all, and I need something that can handle a few if they get sucked up in there.