shed water after hay is baled

[Steve Banks]

Does anyone know of a chemical that you could spray on the top of your round bales that you have put in a line that would shed some of the rain water? I know it would have to be food grade for animals. It wouldn't be a cure-all but would help a little. Just a thought!
I only bale around 250 bales a year.

 

[Angus In Texas]

Round bales naturally shed water. The bulk of the loss comes from the bottom of the bale. If you stack your rolls on wooden pallets you will be amazed at how much hay is saved.

 

[1982vett]

For 250 bales, it would be well worth investing in a shed roof. As for something to spray on the hay to shed water --- I think you are asking to much. It would undoubtedly be worth more than the hay.

 

[Angus Cowman]

I think it would be cheaper to buy a couple of good hay tarps and use them if you take care of them they will last several yrs
and As Angus In Texas said the main rot is from the bottom

 

[c farmer]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

 

[lavacarancher]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

This ain't necessarily so. There is only marginal benefit to net wrap - according to several university studies. IMO not enough benefit to spend an extra 5K$ on a net wrap baler plus the cost differential between the wrap and string. Best way to protect your hay is to store it under a shed and up off the ground. The subject of net wrap Vs. twine has been beat to death here and this will no doubt stir up another poop storm.

 

[Angus In Texas]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

This ain't necessarily so. There is only marginal benefit to net wrap - according to several university studies. IMO not enough benefit to spend an extra 5K$ on a net wrap baler plus the cost differential between the wrap and string. Best way to protect your hay is to store it under a shed and up off the ground. The subject of net wrap Vs. twine has been beat to death here and this will no doubt stir up another poop storm.

The only person that can justify net wrap realistically is the custom baler or someone that is rolling thousands of rolls per year since net wrap goes on a bale so much faster than twine. Two revolutions vs. 15 to 20..... Someone that makes more money or needs to roll as fast as possible will benefit the most.

 

[Angus Cowman]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

This ain't necessarily so. There is only marginal benefit to net wrap - according to several university studies. IMO not enough benefit to spend an extra 5K$ on a net wrap baler plus the cost differential between the wrap and string. Best way to protect your hay is to store it under a shed and up off the ground. The subject of net wrap Vs. twine has been beat to death here and this will no doubt stir up another poop storm.

The only person that can justify net wrap realistically is the custom baler or someone that is rolling thousands of rolls per year since net wrap goes on a bale so much faster than twine. Two revolutions vs. 15 to 20..... Someone that makes more money or needs to roll as fast as possible will benefit the most.

Also less wear on the machine over the life of the machine
the water shedding has alot to do with how tight the bales are

 

[Douglas]

We have always used the Bale Bonnets that cost about $6 for individual bales. I would love to hear of something better. I can not stack bales so i put them in a row on pallets. Wish i could find a heavy duty tarp that is long and narrow that would last several years. When i have tried individual plastic tarps they do not stand up well.

 

[grannysoo]

There are two people that love net wrapping.

1. The person baling the hay. I can bale/wrap 2 rolls with netwrap to you baling 1 that is tied with string.

2. The person hauling the hay. Netwrapped hay hauls so much better.

As to the water-shedding abilities, the concept of netwrap is to allow water to run off better. There is a difference, but not that much.

 

[Cowdirt]

Right now my main concern is shedding water while it's in the windrow. Mine has been washed twice already.

 

[dun]

Right now my main concern is shedding water while it's in the windrow. Mine has been washed twice already.

That's what tedders were invented for. Real life (hay) savers

 

[grannysoo]

Right now my main concern is shedding water while it's in the windrow. Mine has been washed twice already.

Just make sure that it's on high ground or on pallets or something. As it has already been pointed out, you will loose a lot more on the bottom than the top.

 

[1982vett]

We have always used the Bale Bonnets that cost about $6 for individual bales. I would love to hear of something better. I can not stack bales so i put them in a row on pallets. Wish i could find a heavy duty tarp that is long and narrow that would last several years. When i have tried individual plastic tarps they do not stand up well.

Have you tried the 10 x100? When I used them, I cut them down to 10 x 20 for easier handling.
http://www.sliponsbalebonnets.com/

Right now my main concern is shedding water while it's in the windrow. Mine has been washed twice already.

I've got some new pictures of the ongoing saga of the opposite problem. Not haveing water to shed. I'll get em up soon.

 

[BeefmasterB]

Right now my main concern is shedding water while it's in the windrow. Mine has been washed twice already.

Just make sure that it's on high ground or on pallets or something. As it has already been pointed out, you will loose a lot more on the bottom than the top.

Absolutely! A 2'-4" rock pad, 4-6" deep, on well drained ground will work well too. The money spent makes sense if you have stored bales every year. There's also been talk of spraying the bales with animal fat or plant oils which repel water, they are biodegradable, and don't harm the cattle. But, they attract fire ants!!

 

[TSR]

There are two people that love net wrapping.

1. The person baling the hay. I can bale/wrap 2 rolls with netwrap to you baling 1 that is tied with string.

2. The person hauling the hay. Netwrapped hay hauls so much better.

As to the water-shedding abilities, the concept of netwrap is to allow water to run off better. There is a difference, but not that much.

And I would add the person selling the wrap. ;-)

 

[dun]

A 2'-4" rock pad, 4-6" deep, on well drained ground will work well too.

That's what we use. The only down side is the rock that is stuck to the bale when you drop it in the feeder.
There was a study posted a few years ago about net vs twine bales. If the twine was spaced at 4 inches the difference between them and net was virtually nil

 

[dyates]

www.qcover.com
Cheapest and easiest hoop structure I could find to put up. I just finished a 36'x60' structure that will easily hold 180 rolls, more if I try a little harder. All materials ended up under 10 grand. Gov't cost-share put it under 5 grand. It took me two Saturdays to set all the posts and build the pony walls. Took one Saturday to put up the frame and cover. That's about $2.30 cents a square foot to store hay. If I fill it every year for ten years, my cost comes to about $2.66 per roll of hay. Pretty reasonable I think.

 

[Jogeephus]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

This ain't necessarily so. There is only marginal benefit to net wrap - according to several university studies. IMO not enough benefit to spend an extra 5K$ on a net wrap baler plus the cost differential between the wrap and string. Best way to protect your hay is to store it under a shed and up off the ground. The subject of net wrap Vs. twine has been beat to death here and this will no doubt stir up another poop storm.

Not from me. I'm in your corner but I hope you got an umbrella. :lol2:

 

[lavacarancher]

I also found out that net wrapped hay seems to shed water better than twine wrapped, but net had gone up alot this past year.

This ain't necessarily so. There is only marginal benefit to net wrap - according to several university studies. IMO not enough benefit to spend an extra 5K$ on a net wrap baler plus the cost differential between the wrap and string. Best way to protect your hay is to store it under a shed and up off the ground. The subject of net wrap Vs. twine has been beat to death here and this will no doubt stir up another poop storm.

Not from me. I'm in your corner but I hope you got an umbrella. :lol2:

I think a couple of folks nailed the BIG difference between net wrap and string and that is time to tie. The folks who bale 4 and 5K bales a week can't afford to be foolin' around tying the bale. For me, a small rancher who bales < 500 bales/year of his own hay, it just didn't seem worth the extra money. I ain't tryin' to convince anybody who can afford a net wrap baler that they shouldn't buy one but if the only reason you're doing it is for better storage think hard on it.

How the heck are you doin', Jogee? You folks over there gettin' any rain?