New to the Haying.....Barn sizing help

[joeu235]

We have a 60 x 60 x 16 with a road base floor, closed in on two sides and a top half wall on a third. East side is completely open because weather rarely comes from the east. We lay plastic and pallets down before hand stacking. Barn can easily hold 4000 bales. Dad paid $14k ten years ago. I'd guess $20k now.

We get 50 to 90 80 pound bales an acre at the extremes of rain. A "normal" year is probably 65/acre. 1st cutting with winter grass is round bales for our cows. 2nd and 3rd cutting are for sale to the precious horses (owners). Don't think we ever got a 4th.

 

[MichiganIron]

We palletize all of our square bale hay. 14 bales to a pallet, then stack the pallets with the front loader. The pallets serve a bunch of purposes; provide good air circulation to keep the hay fresh, keeps the hay off the floor, and allows us to do all the stacking with the front loader. We made custom 3' x 6' pallets, the 14 bales fit perfect, and not stacked too high to be able to move them around without tumbling the hay. We do about 4000 squares a year this way.

 

[leeave96]

We built a 32x88x16ft high barn this past 2019 for square bales of hay. To give you come context of the size vs available space, have a look-see at my youtube video Final Hay Update for 219... - YouTube and there a few others that show the barn and one at the tail end of it showing pulling my MF 1105 tractor and kicker wagon into the barn.

My advice is both drive thru and side door. Make the barn as big as you can afford. Ours is 16 ft to the bottom of the trusses to allow our kicker wagons to fit in easily and for a tractor trailer to back-in if necessary. If you are stacking hay, I would recommend asphalt vs concrete to help prevent mold on bottom bales.

Another reason to go 16 ft or taller is consideration for a lean to on the sides - tall enough middle part that will allow a high enough roof on the lean to to be usable in all situations. We will probably add a lean to on the non-door side of our barn one of these days - but planned for that height from the get-go.

Also - you want some kind of insulation under the tin on the rood to prevent condensation. We used plywood vs bubble insulation for additional structure and knowing the bubble insulation over time can come loose/off. We also provided for ventilation. Our eves are 2 ft and vented and we have a ridge vent on the barn.

Good luck,
Bill

 

[powerscol]

Question How are you going to pick up and stack your hay? Are you going to us a bale wagon, hand stack, or use a hay grapple of some sort. Bale wagons need headroom and width to move around. So if going this way measure the width and height. For the hay grapple measure reach and width and be sure you have maneuvering room, I suggest you check with others in your area how they have theirs set up. Friend down the road has a simple pole barn open on all sides, but he has roll up side tarps to cover everything when stacked. He uses both a bale wagon and hay grapple on a skid steer.
Hope this helps

 

[5030]

Interesting thread. I've been a commercial forage producer for around 20 years now. If it's been done, I probably did it and if it can be screwed up, I probably did that too.

I run about 200 acres of owned and leased on shares hay ground. Have all the necessary hay tools including the latest and greatest NH stuff. I keep my hay in Clearspan Truss arch storage buildings. The cost per square foot of space is about 1/4th of a pole structure and here in Michigan, a clear span isn't considered a permenant structure so it's not taxable real estate. Keep my tractrors and hay tools in them as well. The first one I out up 20 years ago is just fine btw. They are large enough and the doors high enough to get a full size (13'6") semi trailer in, if necessary.

neither here nor there really. I quit selling hay to horsey people years ago. I really dislike horsey people, most don't know good hay from crap and most are flakey money wise, I quit playing that crap years ago. I have 2 customers now. Both take only rounds in either bet or twine (my round baler runs either),and they pick them up with their semi's out of the field, I load them, thats it.). I get paid for all of it in one shot before the end of the year, every year. It's painless. If I had to go back to small squares and horsey people, I'd quit running hay. BTW, have a nice NH 575 High Capacity square baler in the barn I'd sell. Have not used it in 5 years. Always stored inside. Wif says keep it. I don't see the point. if it ain't round, I don't want to see it.

 

[5030]

We palletize all of our square bale hay. 14 bales to a pallet, then stack the pallets with the front loader. The pallets serve a bunch of purposes; provide good air circulation to keep the hay fresh, keeps the hay off the floor, and allows us to do all the stacking with the front loader. We made custom 3' x 6' pallets, the 14 bales fit perfect, and not stacked too high to be able to move them around without tumbling the hay. We do about 4000 squares a year this way.

You better stick to selling tractors.......lol

 

[EddieWalker]

I keep my hay in Clearspan Truss arch storage buildings. The cost per square foot of space is about 1/4th of a pole structure and here in Michigan, a clear span isn't considered a permenant structure so it's not taxable real estate. Keep my tractrors and hay tools in them as well. The first one I out up 20 years ago is just fine btw.

Is this the link to what you have? ClearSpan Structures | Fabric, Metal & Hybrid Buildings

I had a client that started a business selling something like this, but I don't remember the brand. He built a display building on his land that looked really nice, and I'm sure he sold quite a few buildings, but after a few years, the fabric tore and then the land was up for sale and he had moved away. I don't know the details of why he moved, or why the fabric tore and was left like that for so long, but it did leave an impression with me on that type of structure.

 

[5030]

Is this the link to what you have? ClearSpan Structures | Fabric, Metal & Hybrid Buildings

I had a client that started a business selling something like this, but I don't remember the brand. He built a display building on his land that looked really nice, and I'm sure he sold quite a few buildings, but after a few years, the fabric tore and then the land was up for sale and he had moved away. I don't know the details of why he moved, or why the fabric tore and was left like that for so long, but it did leave an impression with me on that type of structure.

Yep, I have 2 big ones and no issues at all. Cover is guaranteed 15 years, mine is past that. Wife and I and the front end loader put up the frames. A case of Bud and a bunch of guys from work did the covers.

There are imposters out there for sure. Clear Span (Farm-Tek) is the original and the best and no, I don't sell them, just use them.

Eddie, never judge a book by the cover. Always read what is between the covers first. Company I worked for was so impressed with mine, they bought 3 for storing new trucks in. They are fine too, least last time I checked. I retired from there a few years ago.

 

[mdjohn1427]

Thanks all for your input. Working with a builder and I plan to construct a 40x60x14 pole barn (3 sides enclosed) with (2) 20' leans. The base will be crush and run. Pallets will be used. Next door neighbor has already agreed to purchase 200 (5x5) rounds at $40 each. With that, my storage capacity for square bales was reduced by 40%. Still storing about 2,200 squares annually.

 

[CobyRupert]

...but will you be emptying 2200 squares annually.
Do you have to plan for any carry over?