Algae in water buckets - Page 1

I change water a couple times a day for my dogs, as I live in extreme heat 100's very common in summer. Even though I change water, and keep buckets in the shade, I still notice that algae starts to form. So, scrub I go! I've tried plastic buckets, metal buckets, all kinds, and all the same. I've tried ones you can, and cannot see through for the plastic. Any tips?

Scrub your buckets with a detergent and chlorine bleach solution. Rinse very well (more than once or twice). Try bottled water. I hope the dogs are kept in the shade too.

I live in California and have the same problem.I don't think there is a remedy short of using an aquarium chemical for algae control which probably woudn't be good for the dog. Some people put goldfish in their horse water tanks for algae control but then again likely not practical.My young male would likely spend his day trying to snatch that fish out of his bucket,lol.I don't think the algae in small amounts is harmful.Just keep changing it daily and keep the buckets preferably in a shady spot.

Usually algae needs sunlight to grow.  If you are putting the bowls in complete shade, it has to be something in the Coliforniya h2o.  Experiment. Go buy some bottled water and put it in the same place as normal. 

I can't believe changing the water multiple times a day still produces algae in the shade.

Belive it. lol

I have to scrub too to get Algae off.  I have a bucket as well as a water trough as well as a kiddie pool.  The water trough is shaded, the others are not.

It doesn't seem to grow as fast as yours seem to... 

I think the chlorine bleach solution as suggested by Sam would help -  assuming it would kill or slow down the growth factor.  The reality is that it will always be something you (we) have to stay ahead of and maintain.  It is what it is.

Anyone with horses in California will attest to the dratted algae in the water troughs, and fish do help but you have to put a crapload of them in to keep the growth down.  And you still have to clean the trough regularly anyway...  and not use any chemicals or you will kill the fish......

Bottled water would certainly NOT be cost effective, IMO.  yikes!  Nice thought though.  Maybe a purified water filter? ...

I'm not going to get into deep conversations about water, but if you don't have a reverse osmosis system for yourself, you are naive.  Whether you are on city water or a well, everyone should have one.  City water is so full of chlorine.  They pump it full of chemicals to get to your house with minimal bacteria.  Cities monitor the water to make sure you have less than an overabundance of harful toxins in your h2o.  Cities do a decent job with the amount of money they have.  If they were to give you good quality water for consumption, it would cost you $5 everytime you flushed your toilet and $50 for a shower.

Well water is just as good.  Bacteria, nitrates, chemicals from farms, septic bacteria etc. etc. 

Forget about the dogs!  Are you drinking/eating this crap?

No kidding!  I agree that our water supply is suspect.    I think the cheapest system (under counter) is around $300 bucks...  If I wasn't renting it would be considered.

Just an observation, Don Corleone....but your posts always seem to have an some sort of anger under the surface... doesn't matter what the topic is.... are things ok in your neck of the woods?

Don Corleone" That is the first great thing Ive heard you say in Months..Yes, you hit the nail on the head...Reverse osmosis is what we all should have..Dont drink or use city water and well water is full of usually too much iron and metals and other crap...

Filter you showers and your kitchen sink and the hoses outside also...buy a filter and holder from Lowes and connect it to your outdoor hose you water your dogs bowls with...very Simple   change filter inside as needed every two or three months or sooner...

Algea grows in the shade in Texas very bad , so it needs no sun to grow here either....and mine is well water , filtered at that..

At risk of someone telling me they don't want to know this (in which case don't read this), I wonder how many of you know how reverse osmosis really works and how good a home system really is (or is not) and just what it will and will not remove?

City water is highly regulated in this country and for good reason. Just a little more than 100 years ago in this country, epidemics of water borne disease were everywhere, especially in cities. Thousands of people died each year. With the advent of better water treatment came better water for most US residents who live in cities. Cities have several options about meeting disinfection, among them chlorination. There is a residual chlorine content that must be present at the end of the system and this is required by federal regulation.

Wells have no such regulations, but they should. Most people with wells don't bother to disinfect their well at least once annually. Depending on where you live, your well water will have a variety of minerals, metals, radon and possibly radioactive components. It may also well have bacteria or protozoans or other pathogens.

A simple and effective method to keep algae from growing in your water buckets is to clear as someone said above with a household chlorine bleach solution, diluted at a 1 to 10 parts ratio. Depending on the size of your bucket, you can also add a few drops of this same household bleach to the water and there will be no algae. Seems like a simple enough solution, assuming you understand the benefit of chlorination.

We are the luckiest nation on the face of the earth in that most of us have some semblance of clean and readily available drinking water. However, most surface impoundments are now contaminated with trace amounts of a variety of contaminants. Bottled water is not the answer because it is most often simply being filled using city available water. Spring and well water reflect the location the water comes from in terms of contaminants, and only the absolute most expensive systems could ever filter out high percentages of the contaminants normally found in water.

Don't like your chlorinated and/or otherwise treated water? Try drinking water in Mexico, South America, Africa, SE Asia, parts of the middle east and Russian federation and many other places on earth. You will regret it.

Source: I am an environmental engineer, among other things.

Hmmmm..just a thought.Maybe they're putting something in our water here in Cali to sterilize our pets..since they're so gung ho on that goal lately,LOL.We have a RainSoft system here..$7000. worth of filtering and still lots of algae in the horses/dogs water buckets,bleh.