Round bales stored outside

[bird dog]

I also have a hay barn. It is a steel, pole type barn. I think it is one of the best investment/improvements you can make for the farm. I cleaned mine out this year for some of the hay had been in there five years. The rolls some rodent damage (and bird crap on top) and the bottom of some rolls had some water damage but all in all I was very pleased. The cows ate it like it was fresh cut.
It was my reserve hay so will have to be replenished this year. Hopefully we will have a good hay year.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

When I say pushed up tight, I mean really TIGHT. I start a row and when I have about 6 in place, I push the row until it is bowing up. I NEVER have any spoilage between the bales. So, I am guessing you are NOT pushing them together tight enough. And they need to be fairly close in size.

 

[herofan]

When I say pushed up tight, I mean really TIGHT. I start a row and when I have about 6 in place, I push the row until it is bowing up. I NEVER have any spoilage between the bales. So, I am guessing you are NOT pushing them together tight enough. And they need to be fairly close in size.

Could it depend on how long it sits outside? The ones that are cut in the spring and fed that following winter are no problem regardless; however, I always have a few left over every season; they will end up being outside for 19-22 months and are usually the ones with the issue.

 

[Lazy M]

Prob the best infrastructure investment that we've made are hoop buildings (upper left side of the pic) for hay storage. I have put up 3 of them. I can store around 300 4x6 bales in a 30x60 building, with little to no hay loss. 2 yr old hay is still in a nice tight roll.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

herofan - definitely hard to keep dry bales out for two years. I wouldn't see spoilage "between" bales, but it will definitely be more on the bottom & outside edges.

 

[Lucky]

Prob the best infrastructure investment that we've made are hoop buildings (upper left side of the pic) for hay storage. I have put up 3 of them. I can store around 300 4x6 bales in a 30x60 building, with little to no hay loss. 2 yr old hay is still in a nice tight roll.

How tall is that barn? 30x60x? I built a hay/equipment shed but am thinking about one of these for extra storage

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Prob the best infrastructure investment that we've made are hoop buildings (upper left side of the pic) for hay storage. I have put up 3 of them. I can store around 300 4x6 bales in a 30x60 building, with little to no hay loss. 2 yr old hay is still in a nice tight roll.

Neat picture.

 

[Lazy M]

Prob the best infrastructure investment that we've made are hoop buildings (upper left side of the pic) for hay storage. I have put up 3 of them. I can store around 300 4x6 bales in a 30x60 building, with little to no hay loss. 2 yr old hay is still in a nice tight roll.

How tall is that barn? 30x60x? I built a hay/equipment shed but am thinking about one of these for extra storage

It's around 20' at the peak of the trusses

 

[Brute 23]

I post this all the time, so I might as well again. A neighbor down the road, had 10 or 12 cows, and put up 40 or 50 rolls. He would lay two light poles down side by side. Maybe left an 18"gap. He would then lay a sheet of old tin on top the hay roll. Weighted the tin down with tires and concrete blocks. It looked like it'd been stored inside, when he fed it. That'd work for a few head. Not sure if Id want to go that route if I had many to feed.

Thats a good idea on the poles. Wonder what kind of creatures you could get living under those bales like that? :shock:

 

[Rafter S]

I post this all the time, so I might as well again. A neighbor down the road, had 10 or 12 cows, and put up 40 or 50 rolls. He would lay two light poles down side by side. Maybe left an 18"gap. He would then lay a sheet of old tin on top the hay roll. Weighted the tin down with tires and concrete blocks. It looked like it'd been stored inside, when he fed it. That'd work for a few head. Not sure if Id want to go that route if I had many to feed.

Thats a good idea on the poles. Wonder what kind of creatures you could get living under those bales like that? :shock:

With my luck, a couple dozen skunks.

 

[Farmgirl]

Wonder what kind of creatures you could get living under those bales like that?

Yep, ask me how I know!

Farmgirl

 

[skyhightree1]

For those of you who store round bales outside for a season, do you put them directly on the ground or put them on something to avoid direct contact?

Mine are straight on the ground use to do tires and pallets but too much work taking up rotted broken pallets and tires were just a pain. I know for sure rats love hay stacked outside provides entertainment and target practice if you put a hose in the hole and watch them run out the other hole and shoot them.

 

[Texasmark]

We put ours on pallets, two pallets for every three bales. When we feed them, the bottom looks just like when it was baled, no spoilage

Me too. Local feed store sells them for $2.25 each. Can't buy anything for that price that works. I find them easy to use and last a very long time and work even when half rotted away.

I stack end butted too and try to find high ground or rock (laid for other purposes) for stacking. Course when using pallets it doesn't matter.

 

[D2Cat]

This is from the Univ. of Mo.

" The modern baler has electric or hydraulic twine tie and we use tractors with cabs making it very easy and comfortable to make a uniform 4 inch twine spacing across the bale. From work done at FSRC in the late 1980's, we found that with hay that was approximately 30-40% legume and 60-70% grass, a twine tied bale with less than 4 inch twine spacing had the same storage characteristics as net wrap bales stored indoors or outdoors. In either case, storage loss was consistently less than 4% total dry matter with no difference in crude protein and ADF between the outer 2 inch layer and the inner 18 inches."

http://courses.missouristate.edu/We...ition\\ForageSystemsv4n3LowCostHayStorage.htm

 

[True Grit Farms]

This is from the Univ. of Mo.

" The modern baler has electric or hydraulic twine tie and we use tractors with cabs making it very easy and comfortable to make a uniform 4 inch twine spacing across the bale. From work done at FSRC in the late 1980's, we found that with hay that was approximately 30-40% legume and 60-70% grass, a twine tied bale with less than 4 inch twine spacing had the same storage characteristics as net wrap bales stored indoors or outdoors. In either case, storage loss was consistently less than 4% total dry matter with no difference in crude protein and ADF between the outer 2 inch layer and the inner 18 inches."

http://courses.missouristate.edu/We...ition\\ForageSystemsv4n3LowCostHayStorage.htm

Time has sure proved those studies wrong.

 

[callmefence]

For those of you who store round bales outside for a season, do you put them directly on the ground or put them on something to avoid direct contact?

Mine are straight on the ground use to do tires and pallets but too much work taking up rotted broken pallets and tires were just a pain. I know for sure rats love hay stacked outside provides entertainment and target practice if you put a hose in the hole and watch them run out the other hole and shoot them.

Same here. I've done cross ties, tires and pallets. I'm back to just setting them on the ground. Pallets were a really bad idea. Their full of nails.... :dunce:

 

[NonTypicalCPA]

Stored mine outside in a one over two triangle, end to end, then tarped. The ends were weathered but everything else looked great. My small barn will hold 28 rounds so as that emptied, I'd untarp a row and move them into the barn on a dry day. That way I only had to mess with the tarp twice, once when covering and once when uncovering. Worked great in our northern winter!

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Year's ago we tarped triangle stack. Disaster. Heavy snow, then melting turned to icy/snow. Would have to fight with it to get it opened up. Never again. Ours stays in great shape just stacked in a row.

 

[cowgirl8]

We usually have over 2000 bales stored, on ground, flat sides pushed tight together and round sides spaced apart. We've fed hay years old with very little spoilage...No way no how could be put something under every one. We just make sure they don't stand in water....

 

[Silver]

I've been kicking around the idea of wrapping what dry hay I would expect to keep over. I think it could be done for not much over a dollar a bale. I wish my wrapper was capable of doing a 68" or so bale.