STOCK TANK SUPPLIERS TRYING TO KEEP UP WITH DEMAND AMID SWIMMING POOL FRENZY

  

With COVID-19 worries keeping some public swimming pools and summer destinations closed, those looking to stay cool are coming up with inventive ways to beat the heat.

In-ground pools can be very expensive, and plastic above-ground pools do not always provide the look that homeowners are going for, so many have turned to stock tanks—yes, the galvanized metal tubs commonly used as cattle troughs—for their fun in the sun.

The surge of customers looking to get their hands on a new stock tank pool has caused some farm and ranch supply stores, like Somerville Farm and Ranch, to run out of their inventory.  Cole Dismukes, one of the owners of Somerville Farm and Ranch, said the store currently has a waiting list of prospective buyers looking to add to their backyards, and all of the store’s suppliers are out of stock tanks and waiting on shipments.

Dismukes said the store has some eight-foot diameter tanks on order for customers, and even special ordered a ten-foot tank.  He said the store has never ordered one of that size for a customer before.

However, the stock tank pool craze has yet to hit Brenham Produce according to owner Rey Salinas, who expressed surprise at the trend altogether.  He said the store has yet to receive a single call from anyone showing interest in or asking questions about the use of a stock tank as a pool.  He added the store does need to reorder more tanks, but the ones recently sold have been more so for their normal purpose.

A few local pool companies have also gotten involved in the new do-it-yourself trend.  Ashley Burd, office manager for Pooltex American in Brenham, said some customers have come in with questions about what supplies they would need and how to build a setup, such as a deck, around their new stock tank pools.  She said the sale of regular pools has not been affected, and as a result of COVID-19, business has actually been better.

 

Meanwhile, Sun Pools Brenham Office Manager Diane Perkins certainly knows of the recent rise in popularity of stock tank pools, but said business for them has been mostly unchanged.

 

For those that have managed to get their hands on a new stock tank, there are plenty of websites that show the ways to best take care of the tanks and keep them viable for years, while social media has no shortage of creative ways to make the most of the swimming pool substitute.