How to Clean a Horse's Water Trough

A dirty water trough can transfer parasites like strongyloides, strongyles, and pinworns from one horse to another. Regular cleaning of your horse's water trough will keep insects and bacteria from making the water its new residence. Regular cleaning also helps prevent west nile virus, which can be deadly to your horse. Fresh drinking water keeps your horse hydrated and healthy.

Things You'll Need

  • Hose
  • Bleach
  • Scrub brush
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Instructions

    • 1

      Dump the dirty water out by tilting the trough onto its side. Fill with an inch or two of water. If the old water was clear, then you can just pour out most of it instead of refilling it with two inches of water.

    • 2

      Pour a cup of bleach into the water or spray the sides with a spray bottle of two parts water to two parts bleach. You can also use soap, vinegar or iodine scrub, but bleach works best.

    • 3

      Scrub the sides with a scrub brush or an old dandy or hard-bristled brush from the tack box, but don't use one with lots of hair in it as that just makes it harder to clean the trough.

    • 4

      Rinse the sides and pour out the water. Rinse and empty it again until all the beach, vinegar or iodine scrub is removed from the trough.

    • 5

      Fill with the trough with a hose until full.