Let’s talk breeding/gestation stall water brackets.
When we set out to convert our breeding area to nipple waterers, Dad wasn’t happy with anything on the market. He had concerns about price, sow comfort, ease of installation, maintenance and longevity.
With those five thoughts in mind, we developed a solution called the SnoutSpout that is built to last, easy to install and maintain, and something that is going to hold up over time.
Maybe you’ve come across our water bracket, but worry that it may not install easily on your g-stall divider. Or, maybe you fear gilts will have difficulty accessing the nipple due to its height.
Whatever the case may be, we developed the SnoutSpout to work on virtually any divider with options for height adjustment because of its material and design.
Here are answers to the most common questions I field regarding the SnoutSpout nipple bracket.
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How long is it going to last?
The SnoutSpout is made of glass-filled polypropylene, which is a very tough plastic. For instance, this plastic is beginning to replace metal in automotive air-intake manifolds. We chose this plastic because of its durability and longevity.
If a sow or boar is going to have daily access to something, it needs to be able to withstand years of wear and tear. The SnoutSpout nipple bracket does just that.
At the farm, we installed the SnoutSpout on our boar crates when we first developed it to test out its durability and later sold it into boar studs with absolutely no issue on wear.
The design also aids in the product’s longevity while at the same time
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Will it fit on my g-stall divider and how does it install?
Glass-filled polypropylene, while extremely durable, also cuts and drills like wood. I often tell customers as long as you don’t cut into the pipe, feel free to cut anywhere on the SnoutSpout to get around an obstruction.
The SnoutSpout features a flat plate so there is no way for a sow or boar to turn it. This plate also allows you many options to install. At the top of the plate, there is a “ledge” that will rest on top of a round rod divider or installed underneath an angle iron top.
If your gestation stall features horizontal or vertical round rods, you’ll likely use U-Bolts. We often suggest a hose clamp around the top of the SnoutSpout “ledge” if the divider has a top round rod. Otherwise, you can drill a bolt right into the top if it’s being installed on a flat plate or angle iron.
With a SnoutSpout order, we include a metal template. Once you decide how these need to be installed on your stall, you can take the template to a shop and quickly drill all the holes in the SnoutSpouts. Because these SnoutSpouts are all ready by the time you get to the breeding barn, installation can be accomplished very quickly.
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What if it’s too high for gilts?
Some farms have certain height requirements for nipples in gilt stalls, which makes sense. You want water to be easily accessible to the gilt, and they tend to be much smaller than a mature sow.
We’ve developed these lowering plates for a number of projects that gives you the ability to better adjust nipple placement for gilts. The lowering plate may vary with your stall design, but an inexpensive stainless steel plate and one additional u-bolt is all it would take to lower the SnoutSpout to your height requirements.
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What do you use for threading nipples?
Because you are threading nipples into the plastic, you don’t need to worry about nipples seizing as they typically do with stainless on stainless. For this reason, you do not need Teflon tape. Instead, we recommend using Pipe Thread Sealant when installing nipples. Nipples can be installed and removed with a pliers, which makes any sort of maintenance after installation very easy.
Speaking of, you know those strainers on the backs of nipples that everyone removes? We developed the top of the SnoutSpout to hold one. If there is an obstruction in the hose above the SnoutSpout, you don’t have to reach into the sow’s stall to remove a nipple to clear it out. Everything can be done above the stall.
The SnoutSpout is easy to install, takes little maintenance, and will stand up to years of daily sow or boar use. This fits right in to our motto, that easy really is better when it comes to sow production. Simple changes, like the SnoutSpout, will give you peace of mind throughout installation and use.
Finally, we developed the SnoutSpout to be cost effective. We want you to take advantage of the most economical watering bracket on the market, so we are rolling out our 2018 pricing early.
Pricing is available by contacting us. Call (888) 354-0112 or email info@pigeasy.com for more information or to order a sample so you can see the benefits yourself.
Until Next Time,
Katie
