Round Bale Covers?

[Douglas]

Do any of you cover your round bails outside with covers for the top and sides. In the past we used a product called "bale bonnets" which is a black plastic cover with corner rings held in place by hay nails. We also stack on top of pallets in a row.

I then tried a small 6X10 tarp because it was a ligher color which absorbed less heat.
After a couple years however the tarps are falling apart.

Anyone had good luck with something similar?

 

[Limomike]

Never have covered our bales, but I know a few that do...using those bale bonnets. To me, its jusr an added expense and more trouble than its worth during the winter. We stack our bales on high ground, with good drainage, so they do dry out fast when it rains or snows. Also keep about 60+ in an old barn and sheds around our place stacked two high.

 

[SRBeef]

We had a very wet fall last year and a lot of snow last winter. By February I was wasting an awful lot of each 6ft dia bale due to mold. I think it is about 1/2 the hay in a 6 ft bale is in the outer foot.

Anyway was going to try to build a hay shed this year but that didn't happen. So I found some bale sleeves here locally and so far they seem to make a big difference. You just have to make sure the bales are really 6ft or whatever size you buy. I had some bales which were over size and ended up slitting the sleeve and duct taping it on the bottom. Next batch of bales was the right size and they went on fairly easily. Takes time but they appear to be worth it, at least in WI weather and my situation for 40-50 bales. Still going to build a hay shed some time in the future... Trying to graze corn stalks as long as possible (Jan 1?) before feeding bulk of hay. I just set a bale out now to keep the rumen going while they eat the corn.

I do set most bales on pallets. I'm going to keep the sleeved bales for last /late winter feeding, using bales with netwrap only first. Here's a photo. Good luck. I think these cost about 2.50 per bale. With hay prices up it makes it worthwhile if they save some hay.

 

[1982vett]

Limomike, I must disagree (respectfully I might add) with it being more expensive and not worth the added expense and trouble. But it can depend on how long the hay is store outside. If you can save 10% of a $70 roll of hay you can feed 10% more animals with the same money or use less hay. If you carry that hay over another season your savings will be much more.

Douglas, I used the same product you are talking about for around 10 years. Actually my uncle use them and when I took over his operation I continued to use them. I did start buying the 100 ft roll and cut them down to about 16 foot long pieces to make them easier to handle instead of using the individual bale covers. It saved a few dollars and saved on the amount of time it took to cover them. I usually fed two or more bales at a time so taking one cover off usuall uncovered what I needed. I used to cover over 120 rolls or more a year and have taken covers of hay stored two seasons to find it looking like it was new hay. Never stacked more than 40 at a single spot in case of fire. I used railroad ties and old light poles to get the bales off the ground and electric fencing around them. I swear by them to be the next best thing to a barn.

 

[SRBeef]

82Vett I like your light poles holding them up - gotta find me some more of those!

Question for you - you mention electric wire around the bales. Do you feed them in place by uncovering and moving the cross wire??

I made a hay corral like that except on the ground and two bales wide about 20 ft apart last winter and it worked well. It would probably be better with the light poles??

 

[1982vett]

I move them to the pasture to feed them. Most all of my cross fencing is electric fence so stacking them in a long row just outside the hay meadow was convenient. Since taking over my Dad's and two Uncles places, I have barns to stack under now, except I did run out of space last year and had to stack around 200 rolls outside. Didn't have the crossties set up anymore and ran out of light pole space. Got re-educated in how much moisture a bale will soak up from the ground. :shock: :shock: I have the poles set up in an area near a couple haybarns. If it rains before I get them stored I move them to the poles to let the bottoms dry before putting them in the barn. As far as what to stack them on can depend on what you have access to. A utility company has and easement for a power line across the front of our place. A number of years ago they replace the poles and they gave them to us. Old cross ties work well even if they are leftover, rotted off corner post. I got a bunch of pallets from work one year, they don't fair to well but do last a year or two. My uncle had tried old truck tires, glad that mess is gone.

I have rings to feed in but recently bought a bale unroller much like this one except it is not John Deere green. So far I think I am having positive results. Seem to be wasting less hay or maybe better control over amount put out avoids wasting as much hay.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Do you have trouble with the plastic covers blowing off?

 

[1982vett]

Do you have trouble with the plastic covers blowing off?

Not to much but it can happen. If the "nail" placement is close to the edge of a bale it is more likely to work loose in blowing winds. I found that covering on nice sunny days when the plastic can "warm up" in the sun you can get a tighter fit to the bale to help keep the wind from getting under the plastic. In May of 2000 we had a pretty good wind/hail storm blew thru. It tore up a bunch of trees, took half the roof off one of Dad's barns, took the whole barn of a neighbor. The only plastic that blew off was on 3 bales, 2 of the bales were blown off the stack :???: and rolled across my electric fence then left setting in the pasture about 50 feet from the stack. :shock: The plastic itself is 10Mil and pretty tough. I guess the biggest loss to damage was rat/mice chewing holes in them and one stack of bales must have made a pretty good radiator for some buzzards one winter. They tore holes in 50 feet of covers one winter roosting on top of the bales sunning themselves. After the mice hole incident, instead of storing them folded and on a shelf, I folded them and cinched 3 together with baling twine, then hung them from the rafter in a shed.

 

[Limomike]

Limomike, I must disagree (respectfully I might add) with it being more expensive and not worth the added expense and trouble. But it can depend on how long the hay is store outside. If you can save 10% of a $70 roll of hay you can feed 10% more animals with the same money or use less hay. If you carry that hay over another season your savings will be much more.

I guess that is the difference... my hay doesnt cost me $70 a bale. Only cost me $18. We keep our hay stored outside until spring, then move all remaining bales into the barn. But you guys up north have totally different weather problems than we do, so I understand your thinking on covering it up.

 

[1982vett]

Limomike, I must disagree (respectfully I might add) with it being more expensive and not worth the added expense and trouble. But it can depend on how long the hay is store outside. If you can save 10% of a $70 roll of hay you can feed 10% more animals with the same money or use less hay. If you carry that hay over another season your savings will be much more.

I guess that is the difference... my hay doesn't cost me $70 a bale. Only cost me $18. We keep our hay stored outside until spring, then move all remaining bales into the barn. But you guys up north have totally different weather problems than we do, so I understand your thinking on covering it up.

Cost of the hay or hay loss does come into play as well as rainfall amounts/deterioration rate. Preserving quality ranks high in the cover/no cover formula also.

 

[1982vett]

I like feeding with a bale unroller. It gives the calves a clean dry place to lay while mama eats and it helps resow the grass after the cattle trample all the seeds in.

I havn't had to feed in wet conditions in longer than I wish to remember. I'm thinking I'll probably use the hayrings if it ever gets wet again.

 

[Douglas]

Sorry to be bring this out thread of retirement, but the black plastic has me wondering about holding heat. The reason i looked for a tarp instead was to lower the temp. I wonder if the black plastic makes the hay look dry but has hurt the quality because of holding the heat in the summer. I guess the only way to know is to have it tested.

 

[SRBeef]

Set out two bales today - the one on the left was net wrapped only and pushed tight and stored outdoors since September.

The bale on the right was covered with the black plastic bale sleeves shown in an earlier reply above outdoors since July.

The covered bale looked like it had been in a barn. The net wrapped only bales had about 6" spoiled on top.

This is a strong vote for bale sleeves.

The other comparison here is pushed tight vs space between bale ends. The pushed tight really looked better on the ends. That's the way I'm going to do it from now on - bale sleeves pushed tight.

This is also only early December. By March 1 I'm sure the differences will be much greater. FWIW.

 

[Douglas]

^ Thanks for that picture, Let us know which bale the cows perferred

 

[houstoncutter]

I have used the Super Bonnet covers which I think are the black plastic covers that are a 100 ft long... Have used those for the last 10 years they are about to wear out , but they have served me well... The clips that they provide for them are not that good, so I have improvised... Now I just take a small poker chip some wire and twist those together. They survived Hurrican Ike and Rita....I also use some big gray tarps to cover my hay as well, if done correctly they will do the job for u as well... I am in a part of the country that gets a lot of rain in the fall and winters....Here you better cover those rolls in other parts of the country the extra work might not be called for