# Best way to store hay on the ground?



## kenda (Oct 10, 2008)

I would use the pallets without the tarp. The tarp will just trap moisture against the hay. As for how many, depending on how high you want to go, you could probably fit 4 pallets in the stall depending on the size of the pallets. The ones I have fit two and a half bales side by side, so per two pallets you could probably fit 5 across and then multiply by how high of a stack you want to do.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

ive got an 8 X 16 hay shed, I laid down a couple blocks, then put down 2 8 foot 2X4's stack a row of hay, put down some more blocks, 2X 4's repeat, as I feed hay back, I leant the 2X 4's up a gainst the wall so I aint tripping over them. Pallets are ok till you step down in between two of them.


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## usandpets (Jan 1, 2011)

Putting them on pallets is a good idea. I don't think I would put a tarp under them. That would restrict air flow and they could easily mold if any moisture got on top of the tarp. 

We have a 10x20 shed about 6 feet high. We can only get about 150 bales in there. Unless you went higher, you could figure about 75 bales in a 10x10 stall.
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## waresbear (Jun 18, 2011)

As long as the hay is up off the ground, you're good. Pallets are good, wood strips are fine, I have seen hay stacked on top of old tires laid out on the ground, all kept the hay from getting rotten on the bottom & no need to tarp if the hay is under cover.
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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Pallets, no tarp. It'll trap moisture. I like Joes way too. May try that next time if I can round up enough block.


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## Lopin N Paint (May 30, 2012)

Thanks everyone for the great ideas. At first I was figuring I would need about 400 bales to last me the year... But now I'm thinking, after feeding my guy the last 4 days, a bale lasts me about 2 days andim generous with me hay... So 200 bales should be a safe bet ( in the winter if he is kept inside he might eat more).

Does 200 bales sound right? I'm having nightmares about being in the dead of winter and having no hay. :lol:

I've managed barns in the past, but never had to deal with ordering hay... It's a big part of my education I'm actually happy I get to deal with now.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Put down a plastic tarp first then two rows of pallets if you have enough. The plastic will stop ground or cement moisture and the double pallets will allow air movement. Leave walk around room or more if you can for air movement. If windows can be opened better yet. The breezes help remove moisture that is in the hay. Close the building up and you'll find half your hay is moldy. This advice is from learning the hard way and this is what works best.


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

You know what we did? we went to our local grocery store and picked up wooden pallets and stack our hay on top of it. Did that for years and it worked out great. You can always pick them up for free form grocery stores.

http://images.bidorbuy.co.za/user_images/410/1068410/1068410_120826215150_wooden-pallet-3736911.jpg


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## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

Quote:...Does 200 bales sound right?

When I'm calculating hay for the winter I go with (assuming an average size 1,000 lb horse give or take a few pounds and also assuming a 50 lb bale of hay) 25 lbs per day per horse. So, for a month for one horse you would need 25 lbs x 30 days / 50 lbs = 15 bales and for a six month period you would then need 15 x 6 = 90 bales plus add on 10 bales just in case for a grand total of 100 bales minimum. It never hurts to have extra hay, by the way, especially if you can store it in a protected (ie away from the elements and sticky fingers) place.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

no plastic or tarps on the bottom. It will hold moisture and they hay will wick that up . 
It depends on your bale size and weight and what type of hay., as an example per horse, I get alfalfa 120 lb bales, heavy bales , not light packed bales, and one bale last about one week. 
so i figure 84 bales for 4 months , plus add a few in case of mold in case a cover leaks and in case of rodent damage. Lighter packed bales I try to figure and extra bale or two per month.
Last year we got 42 tons of hay for 18 horses , August to end of July . I just had to get another 100 bales and it should last to the end of Sept, and I am hoping hay prices drop. Usually does as the protein level drops and the dairy people dont want the hay.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

I agree, no tarps or plastic. If you want, put 2 layers of pallets under them.
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## poundinghooves (Aug 5, 2010)

We have a long building that we are going to use to store firewood in (we heat our house with wood only). Right now it is only a frame. We don't have it roofed yet or anything. My dad set pallets in one of the boxes and put a tarp over the framing and it worked beautifully. There was one area on the bottom where one bale did get moldy though. The others were fine. The other issue I had with this is there was a bee hive under the pallet and when I moved one of the bottom bales when we were moving them to our barn, I interrupted it. Probably not very likely to happen but I thought I'd mention that.


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## littrella (Aug 28, 2010)

I havn't tried it myself, but, the people I bought my hay from this year said they put a layer of road salt down & stack their hay on the salt. He said the salt will trap the moister & what salt does get into the bottom layer of bales wont hurt the animals


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## GracielaGata (Jan 14, 2012)

Lopin N Paint said:


> Thanks everyone for the great ideas. At first I was figuring I would need about 400 bales to last me the year... But now I'm thinking, after feeding my guy the last 4 days, a bale lasts me about 2 days andim generous with me hay... So 200 bales should be a safe bet ( in the winter if he is kept inside he might eat more).
> 
> Does 200 bales sound right? I'm having nightmares about being in the dead of winter and having no hay. :lol:
> 
> I've managed barns in the past, but never had to deal with ordering hay... It's a big part of my education I'm actually happy I get to deal with now.


Figuring hay needs- when we moved here to eastern WA, with our horses at home (never had done that before), everyone told us to figure 2 ton of hay per head for the 3 hard winter months. That is with really nothing to eat on the ground because of the constant-doesn't-melt-away-snow. And you also have to figure: another 2 ton of hay for another 3 months there as well, if that makes sense- hay isn't easily accessible or necessarily cheap (if it is accessible) during the winter and fall months- so we put up enough to get us through from ~September/October to May/June, figuring on the 2ton/head/3months-ish math. it worked for us this winter, and we way over fed. Hope that helps!


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## Blue Grass (Jul 31, 2013)

GracielaGata said:


> Figuring hay needs- when we moved here to eastern WA, with our horses at home (never had done that before), everyone told us to figure 2 ton of hay per head for the 3 hard winter months. That is with really nothing to eat on the ground because of the constant-doesn't-melt-away-snow. And you also have to figure: another 2 ton of hay for another 3 months there as well, if that makes sense- hay isn't easily accessible or necessarily cheap (if it is accessible) during the winter and fall months- so we put up enough to get us through from ~September/October to May/June, figuring on the 2ton/head/3months-ish math. it worked for us this winter, and we way over fed. Hope that helps!


So your saying 4 tons per horse should be stored for the off season? How many small/ large bails is that anyway?


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## Phly (Nov 14, 2012)

35 small bales is roughly a ton. Depends on the hay though. 

What we do is prebuy round bales and our hay guy stores them for us. We pickup as needed, and feed free access. 

I'd think even at 400 small bales you'd be close (Indiana winter, idk where you are) but I seriously doubt you'll get 200 in that space. 

Stacking that many bales straight up would be TALL. 

I'd pre buy and pick up 30 or so at a time, it's manageable and would fill that space safely.
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## GracielaGata (Jan 14, 2012)

Blue Grass said:


> So your saying 4 tons per horse should be stored for the off season? How many small/ large bails is that anyway?


Yes, 4 bales would be about it, I would think. No quoting and suing me if it doesn't work! lol 
We are aiming to have 8-10 tons for 2 horses.
Amount of bales is dependent on how many bales make a ton for you. 
We get hay from 2 sources- one is 33 to the ton, the other is 22 to the ton- that is a big difference.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

2geldings.. We have to purchase pallets here ! ..


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

For pallets, try The Freecycle Network it's like craigslist for people that want to find homes for their "junk" rather than fill up the landfills. I found a nearby boarding farm that buys stuff by the truck load that was throwing their pallets away. When they unload a truck, they call me and I pick up the pallets.
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## Koolio (Apr 7, 2010)

To get through the winter, I use about 360 x 60 lb bales for 4 horses. That means I feed hay from October until the end of May. Over the years I have tried a number of different ways to store hay on the ground, but last year's system has worked the best.

I purchased 2, 12x20' portable garages from a local hardware store ( on sale for a out $250 each) Basically they are a metal frame with a heavy duty fitted tarp over the top and have a roll up door on the front. Inside, I laid a tarp directly on the ground and then laid a layer of pallets on top of that. The hay is stacked on top of the pallets so that there is a out 4-6" of air space between the tarp and the bales. We stacked to the roof, but made sure to allow a bit of space on the top and sides for good air circulation. Last winter I got 220 bales in one shed and never lost even one bale to mould, wet or rot. I still have a out 8 bales left over from last October that are perfect. The covers are still in great condition, so we have done the same this year. I just got 360 bales and stacked them in the two shelters. To make sure everything was dry, I kept the front flap open for a couple of hot days to ensure no condensation on the inside, and we made absolutely sure the hay was nice and dry when we got it.

Summers here can be very rainy, with rain showers almost every day. I check regularly to ensure the shelters don't sweat from the humidity, but so far, I have had none, so the air flow is good. Once winter comes, it will be frozen here for a out 6-7 months, so I don't need to worry about moisture. It is also much easier unzipping the flap and grabbing a few bales than fighting with an ungainly tarp. The snow slides right off the top.


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## Lopin N Paint (May 30, 2012)

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions. We are considering our options and making a game plan!


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Don't know if anybody has mentioned it, but if you're dealing with humidity, salting the hay keeps it from molding.
Cattle salt, loose, a layer of bales- generous salt layer thrown on, layer of bales, salt. The salt takes the excess moisture and brings out the essential oils too, so hay smells good as a nice side effect. Horses like it, and the excess salt just falls to the ground. 
I also works for possible excess moisture within a bale.


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## stevenson (Sep 12, 2011)

DHW, never heard of that, but it seems as though it would work . good idea !


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