tarping hay

[Dusty Britches]

Backhoeboogie and you others who use billboard tarps for covering hay -

This year I stacked my hay as to cover 10 bales with 1 tarp. But, I've decided that is too much work and next year will simply run 2 rows and cover 8 bales with one tarp.

My question is, how to you keep the tarps from sagging between the bales with rainwater?

I ran PVC pipe down the sides of the tarps and use that to tie to the posts underneath, but when it rains, they still sag. I also put a pallet in the center, and it helps, but still collects the water.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Pyramid the hay. Two outside rolls on pallets with a vertical pallet between them. Stack a third roll on top, centered. The vertical pallet seperates the two bottom rolls and it supports the upper roll to keep it from crushing.

There is so doggone much "extra" hay this year that I didn't bother to tarp. I've got more hay than I could feed in three years.

 

[Brahma Bull]

My experience with tarps on round bales,is a waste of money.
The traps got weathered and torn up,the hay mildewed,lot of trouble to keep tied down,more hassle than they are worth.So some time soon I will build a barn to put the round bales under.So they are just as fresh as the square bales when you feed them.

 

[Dusty Britches]

thanks, boogie, that's exactly what I was missing.

I like my billboard tarps a lot. Thick, waterproof, easy to tie down.

I already bought next year's hay and we are putting this on old rr crossties which are not good for fences, about 18 inches apart instead of using the pallets. I feed by myself and I've got a bad back. Moving those pallets is a honest pain. I'm hoping I won't have to move the cross ties and I can leave them down. Tying to those cross ties may prove to be my challenge as I have not yet tarped them. I need more tarps.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I need more tarps.

If you can get the hay now while it is cheap, and protect it, you may be money ahead. Hay around here is now selling for less than what it cost to produce it. Many hay growers are simply cutting their losses and letting it go for whatever they can get.

Those Billboard tarps are absolutely the way to go in my opinion. They save the hay if you don't have a barn and they hold up under severe weather conditions.

The tarps, and Caustic's hay tips on hay cradles, have cut my hay losses on a normal year tremendously. Very little hay is wasted and the protective measures permit me to sell more of it, when there is demand for it. (should have sold a bit more last year when people were offering an arm and a leg)

 

[bigbull338]

you got that right hay is cheap this year.buy what you need an store it.theres hay close to me for $10 to $20 a bale.way below baling cost.

 

[branDcalf]

I deal with mostly wind and sun, and sometimes elk. I've had the best luck with the silver tarps. I pyramid the bales, too. The elk will even get down on their knees and stick their heads under the tarp to get alfalfa.

I'd sure like to try the billboard tarps y'all mention. I'll have to call the outdoor advertising outfit.

 

[ollie?]

I've had the best luck tying down a tarp with ag lime. Just make sure you have about 18" of tarp touching the ground all the way around then shovel a little mound of ag lime all the way around the tarp. Just a shovel full touching the next shovel full all the way around. No grommets to rip out and when you're done, just spread the lime out.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I'd sure like to try the billboard tarps y'all mention. I'll have to call the outdoor advertising outfit.

You can get them from eBay but shipping cost a lot of nickels. They are heavy. Much heavier than a standard heavy
weight platic tarp. Still cheaper than the plastic. They are old signs. An advertisement is on one side and the backside is usally white or cream. They do not have grommets. They have pockets that you can slide pipe in or else run cable/rope through.

The self storage unit off of FM 4 in granbury sells them. They are higher than the ones on eBay but there is no shipping cost which makes them cheaper for me to acquire. Plus I can look at them.

These things are made to hang over a large advertisement billboard and are generally about 15 to 20 feet tall and 50 to 70 feet long. They have to be heavy enough to preclude the wind from ripping them etc.

 

[Dusty Britches]

If you call the outdoor advertising place you can get the old tarps dirt cheap and get as many as you want. I set up an appointment to pick them up last year and they were free. By the time I got there a month later, the price was $6. I felt like I stole them.

I got my from Cox Cable in Arlington, TX. It is 3 hours from where I live, but worth the trip. Other people were buying them for pond liners.

They weigh about 60-70 pounds each. Most of the ones I got were labled 12x36, but with the borders were closer to 14 x 40.

 

[backhoeboogie]

By the time I got there a month later, the price was $6.

You did much better than I did. If I would have found them for that price, I'd be expanding the shed to house them :lol: