If you've decided to add molasses as a food supplement for your livestock, then you need somewhere to store it. If you have a spare water tank in a convenient location, you may be eyeing that up as a suitable storage site. Can you store molasses in an existing water tank?

Density Differences

Water tanks are designed to hold water. While you may think that these tanks will also be able to hold molasses, which is also a liquid, this is not always the case.

Molasses has a higher density than water. It is a lot thicker and heavier. Regular water tanks will not necessarily be able to store and hold molasses securely. Generally, they aren't strong enough to cope with a large volume of a higher density liquid.

You may be able to get away with a small amount of molasses, but this may not suit your long-term storage needs. Plus, if your tank can't hold the molasses you store in it, then then tank may break. You'll then lose the molasses and have a difficult clean-up job.

Construction Material Problems

Your water tank may also be made from a material that isn't really suitable for molasses storage. For example, if you have a concrete tank that has joins in its construction, then the molasses will move into these joins when it is stored in the tank. This seepage can damage concrete and may ruin your tank over time.

You may also be thinking about adding urea to your molasses to give your livestock a rumen microflora boost. While this improves the health of your livestock, urea doesn't work well with steel or concrete tanks. If your existing tank is made from these materials, then the urea content of your molasses could ultimately damage the tank.

If you're seriously thinking about investing in molasses, then it's a good idea to invest in a molasses tank at the same time. These tanks are specially designed to hold this supplement safely and securely.

For example, molasses tanks are often made from industrial-grade poly. This material is better able to withstand damage from molasses or urea supplements as it doesn't corrode. Specialist tanks are also usually reinforced with extra strong walls so that they can hold heavier liquids like molasses more effectively.

Molasses tanks come in various sizes. To find the right one for your needs, contact your local agricultural equipment supplier.