The last two summers have seen long periods of dry, settled weather and this summer has displayed a similar trend, up until this week. Long periods of dry weather test a water supply. Due to problems such as small pipe sizes, ballcock issues and inadequate trough size, many farmers find their systems are not fit to supply the demand from cattle at peak times.
Teagasc’s Tom Ryan explains that increasing the system pressure to maintain flow rate is not a good solution, but increasing pipe size will have a better result. Good-quality, new water systems aren’t cheap to install at over €10,000 for a 100-acre farm, but for a properly functioning dairy farm, they are essential.
Shane Murphy reports on a contractor which specialises in fitting new water systems or upgrading old ones for livestock farms.
Low-cost grazing systems are seen as Ireland’s completive advantage for milk production. Many farmers are trying to reduce the amount of meal fed or eliminate concentrates from the cow’s diet if at all possible during the grazing year. On page 6, we look at an alternative method of supplying minerals through water systems rather than conventional meal feeding.
The number of septic tank inspections being carried out is just 1,000 per year for an estimated 500,000 systems. The chances of inspection are low, but according to the EPA it is higher if you do not have your system registered. On page 7, we outline what’s involved in the inspection.
Finally we discuss the steps to take to assess and improve your sewage system if you think you have problems.
The last two summers have seen long periods of dry, settled weather and this summer has displayed a similar trend, up until this week. Long periods of dry weather test a water supply. Due to problems such as small pipe sizes, ballcock issues and inadequate trough size, many farmers find their systems are not fit to supply the demand from cattle at peak times.
Teagasc’s Tom Ryan explains that increasing the system pressure to maintain flow rate is not a good solution, but increasing pipe size will have a better result. Good-quality, new water systems aren’t cheap to install at over €10,000 for a 100-acre farm, but for a properly functioning dairy farm, they are essential.
Shane Murphy reports on a contractor which specialises in fitting new water systems or upgrading old ones for livestock farms.
Low-cost grazing systems are seen as Ireland’s completive advantage for milk production. Many farmers are trying to reduce the amount of meal fed or eliminate concentrates from the cow’s diet if at all possible during the grazing year. On page 6, we look at an alternative method of supplying minerals through water systems rather than conventional meal feeding.
The number of septic tank inspections being carried out is just 1,000 per year for an estimated 500,000 systems. The chances of inspection are low, but according to the EPA it is higher if you do not have your system registered. On page 7, we outline what’s involved in the inspection.
Finally we discuss the steps to take to assess and improve your sewage system if you think you have problems.
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