I have been working on figuring out this sink system in which we are inventing. I starting researching to find a trough that would fit our needs. Just a Google search of “trough” did not cut it. I looked into all kinds of feeders: hog feeders, goat feeders, horse feeders. Then I came across search water feeders for horse got me somewhere new. I found a hog feeder that had the perfect dimensions listed online. So I contacted the the company selling them Farmer BoyAg but once i got the true inside dimensions it was to small to fit the needs of the sink. So but to the drawing board I went. I settled on using stock tanks. They are made of 20 and 21 gauge steel which is a littler bit thinner than the 14 gauge steel of the hog feeder. The thinner steel will make it easier for us to drill a hole to put a drain in. We got two different sizes of the tanks because we were unsure of which depth would be best. So I called Meg of Dirthugger Farms and ask if she wold stop by and inform me of which she would prefer or if one of each would be best. She picked the 1′ deep tanks. The 2′ deep tanks were just a little too deep and would be a hassle if you were to use it as a dunk tank. So now I am going to return the big one and get another 1′ deep tank.
Now my next task is to figure out a grid system that is lightweight but stronger enough to hold a bus bin full of water and vegetables. I am thinking that pvc pipe will hold up. I am designing a system on sketch up and hoping to do a full scale mock-up this week. Tomorrow I will be testing the strength of the pvc pipe against the bin and water. I am hope it will hold up, if not then we have to move in the direction of a stronger pipe of some kind of metal. This would up the cost but hopefully not by too much.
Lastly comes the stand for the sink. We are pretty sure the top of the sink is going to sit at 30″ height. That could leave a 2′ storage area underneath the sinks for clean bins. Harry had told us that the frame for the sinks can be made out of wood so hopefully that won’t be to difficult to figure out.