Mixing feed

tonydigregorio · Jan 16, 2012

Howdy folks, heres the skinny. Closest place for me to buy bulk hog feed is almost 40 miles away. And I only purchase enough for them to make one delivery a season (usually around 7 hogs worth).
So I think I will try mixing my own feed this year. This will make life easier in a number of ways. Now I can adjust protein content as the hogs grow and I don't need to shell out all the cash right away to buy the feed.
I've purchased a gravity wagon that I can tow to my local elevator (2 miles away)to buy whole kernel corn, I have a chipper/shredder that I have been using for sometime now to grind corn for the chickens and I just recently purchased a cement mixer for mixing.
One question I have is: I have seen people talking about oiling the inside of their mixer for easy clean-up. Well I may want to mix some small batches concrete some day but contaminating my feed with used motor oil seems like a really bad idea. Could I use a food grade silicone for that?
Another question would be: does anyone have a link to homemade dust collector? The chipper/shredder makes one heck of a mess and there has got to be a better way to collect the ground corn without making such a mess.
So if any of you folks have any input or any warnings, I would love your feedback.
Thanks
Tony

TractorTidy · Jan 16, 2012

It sounds like a lot more trouble than it's worth and you are using equipment not intended for the purpose of grinding feed. Do you have a tractor? If so and big enough, why don't you look for a used grinder/mixer that does mix feed.

tonydigregorio · Jan 16, 2012

Yes TractorTidy, I have a tractor. But right now I have a total of $350 invested in this project and the "true" feed mixers I have seen will be significantly more expensive. Also, I have been thinking of doing some small concrete projects this summer so hopefully I can use the mixer for that as well.
As for the hard work..... I'm sure it will be hard work but hard work is what keeps me out of trouble

bp fick · Jan 16, 2012

I've been through this mental exercise you're going though, many times. Never could make it work out. My feed mill choices are 22 miles one way or 35 miles the other.

Still, life takes me one way or the other every few months and I just stock up. I cannot make a special trip, so I buy what I need for 3 months or so. I've crunched the numbers, as you are doing. I can barely, just barely buy the ingredients of the feed for what my feed mill sells the complete mix to me. I save 50 cents a hundred by bringing back my old sacks.

I grow vegetables, not field grains, so if I have to buy a small mill/mixer, buy the grains and buy the mineral package, there's just not enough savings to motivate me.

BTW, use a vegetable oil if you do mix.

BHD · Jan 16, 2012

If you want to oil it use mineral oil or vegetable cooking oil for your mixer, it may cost a little more but not be a problem for the feed,

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for small batch mixing, depending on the amounts your mixing, one can have some tubs or containers, and dip an layer in the final container,

I mix up my goat feed,
The mix is 2 parts millet, one part corn, one part peas, ( I am using right now.because that is what I have)

I have millet, peas, and corn in three containers, and then using a #10 can, dip out a can of millet, one of corn, one of millet, one of peas, and start over again, into a third storage container, when I dip out of the storage container the feed is fairly well mixed, in the storage or final container it ends up in thin layers (It may not be perfect but is not bad),

I have used a small cement mixer in the past, but it is a lot of work to mix up small batches with that as well and time consuming,

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at one time they made a batch mixer (usaly about 10 to 30 bushels, that used a vertical auger in a hopper type bin, you would fill by pit in the bottom of the auger and that would take it up and through it out into the top of the hopper bin, and then take the bottom and keep augering and mixing, ( see picture at link)

http://www.feedmachinery.com/Images/vertical_mixer.gif

http://www.dmmc.com/ReVerticalMixer.htm

http://i00.i.aliimg.com/photo/v0/436239914/vertical_mixer_of_feed_mixer.jpg

Depmandog · Jan 16, 2012

You aren't going to grind all of the corn at once are you? If not, 4-5 bushel at a time? I think I would just hand mix and store in covered rubbermaid 35 gal containers.

You could use an electric drill and a paddle bit for that final mixing. You know the kind you use to mix drywall mud?

If you are grinding more of the corn at once, where are you storing?

I agree that the concrete mixer might be more of a pain. Put the milled corn into your rubber trash can, add other grains, protein and molasses or whatever - stir it up with the paddle bit.

tonydigregorio · Jan 17, 2012

Depmandog said:
You aren't going to grind all of the corn at once are you? If not, 4-5 bushel at a time? I think I would just hand mix and store in covered rubbermaid 35 gal containers.

You could use an electric drill and a paddle bit for that final mixing. You know the kind you use to mix drywall mud?

If you are grinding more of the corn at once, where are you storing?

I agree that the concrete mixer might be more of a pain. Put the milled corn into your rubber trash can, add other grains, protein and molasses or whatever - stir it up with the paddle bit.

View attachment 246882

I will go thru 3 ton of feed this season which I believe to be around 100 bushel. I have a bin to put the corn kernels in and would like to grind and mix it as needed. The feeder I use will easily hold a weeks worth of feed. Last year I tried hand mixing with a drill and drywall mud mixer and it was a nightmare. If I have to mix by hand this season, I will just stop the hog operation. I had orignally thought about building a mixer more suited to my needs and running it off my pto but after pricing parts needed I thought Id try a small electric mixer for a season. If it seems better than hand mixing I will go ahead with building what will work better for me. If not, I'll have to put that sidewalk in that my wife wants so she doesn't hold it over my head that I bought the mixer :laughing:

Depmandog · Jan 17, 2012

tonydigregorio said:
I will go thru 3 ton of feed this season which I believe to be around 100 bushel. I have a bin to put the corn kernels in and would like to grind and mix it as needed. The feeder I use will easily hold a weeks worth of feed. Last year I tried hand mixing with a drill and drywall mud mixer and it was a nightmare. If I have to mix by hand this season, I will just stop the hog operation. I had orignally thought about building a mixer more suited to my needs and running it off my pto but after pricing parts needed I thought Id try a small electric mixer for a season. If it seems better than hand mixing I will go ahead with building what will work better for me. If not, I'll have to put that sidewalk in that my wife wants so she doesn't hold it over my head that I bought the mixer :laughing:

Ok, how about a cheap mixer like this:

It's a Northern Industrial Cement Mixer With Poly - 2 CF Drum
EBay has then for $200 plus shipping. Quick search.

ncnurseryman · Jan 17, 2012

On a side note, what do you do with seven hogs. I raise two last year and bought the premixed feed from the local farm supply. Believe it or not, I couldn't give away any cuts to my family. We had them butchered at our usda inspected facility and it was all vacume sealed. Two hogs was too much for us, I just need one but I heard that there needs to be two or more because they are social animals, don't know it that's true or not though. We didn't save any money all said and done but the quality was fantastic.

tonydigregorio · Jan 17, 2012

NC, we keep one hog for ourselves and sell the rest. Believe it or not, we have a waiting list of people wanting to buy pork from us. We do charge a premium price because our hogs are feed corn, soybean meal and a calcium supplement. No hormones, no antibiotics. We take the cost of the piglets, the feed and the processing for our hog and divide it by twelve (6 hogs = 12 halves left to sell) and thats what we charge. So our only income for doing the work is a freezer full of pork. Pretty good deal for us as far as I'm concerned. Every year I put a little of my own money in to help make life a little easier for me or to find a way to lower the price for our customers, hence the feed mixing set up I'm trying to make happen.
As far as hogs being herd animals, yes that is what I understand too. But, my dad has a neighbor who gets one hog every year, lets it grow to 500 lbs. and then butchers it for himself. So I guess there is exception to every rule. For us it was just easier to spread the cost out with more hogs.
So from everyones much appreciated input, it looks like mixing with the cement mixer I bought from Harbor Freight isn't gonna be as easy as I'd hoped, but we'll give it the ol' college try anyway this year.