Water Systems That Don’t Suck: Nipples vs. Tubs vs. Troughs
When it comes to hog farming, every farmer is all too familiar with the "water dance". That moment when you walk into the barn and notice a valve had stayed open, one of the pigs turned the trough into a makeshift swimming pool or the last nipple is completely dry.
Water is the lifeblood of any hog herd, and the delivery system is a key factor in the health and well-being of the pigs. The most common setup systems are gravity-fed, manual, or automated.
The Classic Tub (or Basin)
The old-school approach. You fill a heavy-duty tub or a cut barrel, and the pigs drink.
The Good: It’s cheap. There are no moving parts to break, and you can see exactly how much they are drinking.
The Bad: Pigs are pigs. They will poop in it, stand in it, and flip it over just for the sport of it.
The Verdict: Great for a temporary "hospital pen", but for a production scale? It’s a labor trap. You’ll spend more time cleaning and refilling than you’ll ever save in equipment costs.
2. Automatic Troughs (Float-Valve Systems)
These systems use a float (like the one in your toilet tank) to keep a basin full at all times.
The Good: Multiple pigs can drink at once, which is great for reducing competition in larger groups. They are also excellent for very young weaners who might struggle to learn a nipple system.
The Bad: If that float gets stuck (and it will), you have a swamp. Also, standing water is a magnet for bacteria and mosquitoes.
The Verdict: A solid middle ground if you are willing to commit to a daily "scrub and check" routine.
3. Nipple Drinkers
The gold standard for modern small-to-mid-scale operations, and the one that we employ for our operation. The pig bites or pushes a pin to release water directly into their mouth.
The Good: Biosecurity. The water is always fresh and never exposed to the air (or manure) until the moment it’s consumed. Waste is minimal, and your bedding stays much drier.
The Bad: There is a learning curve for some pigs, and in the dead of winter, these are the first things to freeze if you’re in a cold climate and don't have heat tape or a circulating system.
The Verdict: If you value your time and your herd's health, nipples are the way to go.
Now, there is one thing we should mention regarding nipple drinkers. Let’s be honest: hogs are basically 200-pound toddlers with wire cutters for teeth. It is not uncommon for a bored hog to decide the nipple is a toy and rip the entire fixture right out of the barrel or line. You might walk in one morning to a "piggy pool party" and an empty tank. However, despite the occasional hardware homicide, this is still the best system. The trade-off of a rare repair versus the daily drudgery of scrubbing manure out of a trough is a no-brainer. Some folks have had success using a steel backer plate on both sides of the barrel wall to distribute pressure when the hogs start nudging it, but we haven’t tried this yet.
If you’re moving to a nipple system, mounting height is everything. If it's too low, they’ll leak it everywhere; too high, and they won’t drink enough. Aim for about 2 inches above the shoulder of the smallest pig in the pen.
What are you running?
Are you a "nipple-drinker-only" farm, or do you prefer the visibility of a trough? Leave a comment below and let’s talk shop!
