DIY Network

Dog Watering Trough From "Barkitecture" episode DBAR-213

The Barkitecture crew works to build a custom water trough to keep the dogs cool.

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	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F
	Figure G
	Figure H

Materials:

safety glasses
tape measure
electric drill
wood screws
silicone sealant
caulk gun
dishwashing liquid
(4) 5 gallon buckets
concrete vibrator
9/16" drill bit
cement mixer
(1) Sheet of melamine covered particle board (4'x8')
(1) sheet of 1/4" PVC (4'x8')
plastic foam blank (min. 12"x36")
stainless steel decorations if desired
sand (2 parts)
gravel (3 parts)
cement (1 part)
water
concrete dye color as desired
1/2" copper tubing (approx. 8-10" in length)
rubber stopper for copper tube

Dog Watering Trough

1. First, you will need to build the exterior mold for the trough. To do this, use 1/2" thick melamine-covered particleboard and cut one at 13-1/2"x36", two at 10"x36" and two at 13-1/2"x10 1/2". Use a circular saw to make your cuts (figure A).

2. Lay the 13-1/2"x36" bottom piece flat onto a work surface and then take the two other 36" pieces and set them on either edge of the bottom piece. Use the two smaller pieces for the ends of the mold. To attach them, pre-drill 1/8" holes all along the edges where two pieces intersect and then attach them with 2" wood screws. When you are done, you should have a 36" long and 10-1/2" high exterior mold (figure B).

3. Next, seal the inside seams of the mold using silicone sealant (figure C). Place a small bead of sealant along all the seams and then smooth out the bead with your finger (going over it a few times to get rid of the excess sealant) or a sealant-cornering tool (figure D). Be sure that the seams are as smooth as they can be.

4. The interior mold for the trough is made from a block of plastic foam (figure E). Shape the plastic foam into a rectangle 33"x11". You can do this yourself by using a hacksaw blade or you can get it done by your local foam dealer (usually at minimal additional cost).

5. Cover the foam mold with 1/8" thick PVC plastic sheeting. Cut the PVC, using a circular saw, to a size to fit over the foam mold (figure F). Make sure that the PVC fits tightly at the seams and use silicone to adhere it to the foam.

6. Before you place the foam and PVC interior mold into the wooden exterior mold, you can add decorations that will be inset into the concrete of the finished trough (figure G). It is recommended to use metal (i.e. aluminum, stainless steel, etc.) when adding things to the concrete. Use silicone to stick the decorations around in the mold, on the interior mold or on the walls of the wooden exterior mold. The pieces that you add should have some sort of protruding piece that the concrete can harden around to keep it in place. Place as many or as few as you would like.

7. Once you have decorated the molds, place the foam and PVC mold centered into the wooden mold (figure H). Make sure that you leave equal distances from one side to the other all the way around. This distance will be the thickness of the walls of the trough, and the thicker the better.

8. The next step is to mix the concrete (figure I). Use one part Portland cement, two parts sand and three parts pea gravel. It is recommended to use a cement mixer and these are readily available at your local equipment rental facility. Mix the ingredients in the mixer and add water until you get a soupy mixture. Dies are available for concrete, so don't settle for plain old gray. In this project, a blue dye was used (figure J).

Figure I

Figure J

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