Mineral Feeders?

[Cedar]

Anybody know a good mineral feeder: one that cannot be tipped over and dumped out, (and perhaps worn as a "necklace" out to the pasture!), or dumped in a mud puddle, or dumped on the bull's back, and that will keep the salt and minerals dry???? Or maybe even just the plans for such an innovative invention?

[charliep]

Lewis cattle oilers used to sell one that attached to their cattle oilers that was virtually destruction and weather proof. I have a few of them around here, and bought some separate from the oilers and installed them in pipe corrals where they work very well.

[smcgrath76]

Take a steel barrel, cut a hole out of the side, opposite the small air vent on top. bolt a chain to the top, using the small vent hole. Hang the chain off a pipe structure or over a branch.
the barrel will hang at around a 15 degree (?) angle and rotate against the weather (you may need a chain on the bottom as well. Cheap and relatively indestructable. You can split a piece of 1/2" plastic pipe and screw on around the hole you cut as a safety measure if you want.
You can build a lot of these for the price of a storebought.
We have one storebought oiler with a tank that cracked. Instead of $400 worth of plastic, a $60 steel tank from Princess Auto and 5 minutes on teh drill press solved our problem for eternity. We cut the axle apart on an old auger in the bush, drilled a couple of holes and voila, a wheel kit. (later our neighbour asked if he could use our bush auger. He was going to take the axle out of his old one and weld it on the one we dragged out of the bush / win some lose some).
I think minerals pay, for us oilers pay only because they pull cattle to lesser used areas of pasture.

[smcgrath76]

I wouldn't agree with hanging the mineral feeder over a branch. A bull banging the feeder around with his head might break the branch and the mineral could end up on the ground, not what a producer would want if they are concerned about the environment.

Mineral sheds work well, and many of the ones that I have seen are homebuilt on skids and have a face d**** type of fly control device built in.

[countryguy]

I use feeders I bought at the local coop.They are round plastic with belting material covering the whole thing.The animals have to lift the belting to get in.They are pretty much indestructable and totally weather proof.I highly recommend them.

[PureCountry]

emrald1 I really don't think Sean's going to be dumb enough to hang the barrel feeder from a spindly little poplar branch or something. Like anything else, common sense prevails. We've used plastic store bought ones, and home-made barrel types, even made a couple out of old galvanized hot water tanks. Only complaint I've ever had was the plastic ones eventually weaken and crack. Metal ones might rust but not if you slap on a coat of rustoleum every now and then.

[PureCountry]

The reason I mentioned the possibility of mineral feeders becoming dislodged from trees was the point out possibility of salt being dumped onto the ground. I know it may seem like a foolish comment to some but an ounce of prevention is a good thing.

At no time did I infer that anyone was DUMB...

[smcgrath76]

LOL...

We don't actually have any trees big enough to hang a feeder on so have to resort to oilfield trees. I will clarify... a big branch.
Just an additional note that building them is cheap if you don't count your time. If you like frigging around and inventing stuff (I do) then you can write your hobby off as a farm expense and your labour to good fun. The first one always takes the longest.
We have also constructed our own solar fencers, solar water pumps and I am currently working on sorting out a solar operated pasture pipeline system. Like everything, experience costs time and money, but I know that I can build a solar pump as good as any of the $2500 variety for $500 or less (other than aesthetics). That leaves me $2000 per pump to justify my time and my tools, and our cattle gain better and it helps the environment.
I would love to hear more cool projects people are working on as they may be something we could apply at home.

[samsdad]

The round plastic mineral feeders with rubber flap for lid (as mentioned by countryguy) are excellent. The mineral is completely protected from weather. I will use nothing else.

[Cedar]

Wow! Excellent response, thanks guys!

emrald1: The Lewis cattle oilers mineral feeder is the one the one bull always dumps on his back, and has otherwise tried to destroy (big hole in top of it)! He's such a jerk! Anybody wanna buy a bull? ;-)

smcgrath76: Now that sounds more like it! But don't they rot out fast from the salt? Maybe hafta line them with some rubber or something?

emrald1: What the heck is a mineral shed? Got any links to any plans or pictures or anything?

countryguy: Yep, I got one of those too, that's the one that always winds up upside down in the mega-puddles! ....or getting shoved out under the fence or something! Hmmm....maybe that same bull has something to do with it! I've also noticed with that one that some of the younger calves aren't real eager to stick their heads in there.

PureCountry: That's another good one...it just so happens I have an old hot water tank in my basement right now....hmmm!

Thanks again, guys.

[Cedar]

There were two types of mineral feeders with the Lewis Oilers. The one I have no bull could dump on his back because it looks like a little house built onto a side arm of the oiler.

A mineral shed is literally an open front shed on pipe skids with space for two or more of the large feed tubs built into it under the roof part ( think of a large two seater outhouse concept and you will have an idea of what they look like ).

I think you can likely find plans for them on AB Ag's website or visit a farm trade show and there will likely be one on display that you can take a pattern from. They work in areas where you want to move the minerals to the cattle and need a good substantial feeder that won't get knocked over or blown over. The ones I have seen are made by DarTar Manufacturing and they would withstand any bulls scratching or rubbing etc.

[PureCountry]

Bout as good of a description as one could think up emrald1. Two-seater outhouse -lol- that's a good'un.

One other thing I remembered...for anything steel, there's all kinds of paint-on products that'll protect the inside of the barrels/tanks and what-have-you. Pipeline primer is way more industrial grade than old rustoleum, and it's farily cheap.