# Show me your manure forks!



## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

I too have limited space, I will try to take a photo. There is a squeezy space for a muck cart next to the loft stairs, and there I have a row of mucking tools hung on the wall -- one fork, one snow shovel (ideal for shoveling up wet spots of shavings off stall mats), and in the back harder to reach is a hay fork that I never use, and a square edged garden spade I use for chipping frozen turds out of ice, and freeing up frozen gates. 

Then in the third stall, which has been divided in half, the back half for the goats' night stall, I have a little rack with two brooms, a dustpan and whisk, and a (clean) extra muck fork. There's no wall space in the tack room for those, and I store my baled shavings and extra buckets etc. there as well. It took some little time to figure all this out. I'm still re-arranging the tackroom continually.


----------



## Cynical25 (Mar 7, 2013)

I've got my favorite manure fork (big basket!), 1 snow shovel & 1 straw broom hung where I park the wheelbarrow, because those are my most used items. All other shovels, the big push broom, spare t-posts, random bits of rebar & pvc pipe get slipped into a pallet mounted to the wall beside the main barn door.

You can shove a single hook/hanger on any 12" wide wall space you can find- your tools don't all have to be grouped together, they just need to be up and out of the way. I actually like being able to reach for the nearest hanging item, rather than walking allll the way across the barn to a single storage spot, lol.


----------



## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

I have mine hung up in two walls in my feed room area - pretty standard looking stuff.

I was wondering if something like an old freestanding coat rack could be repurposed to hold forks? It wouldn’t take up much room and could be moved when necessary. Alternatively, if someone in your family is handy with wood working then a purpose built fork rack along the same idea could be made???


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Hi AA, All

I use one of these. I got it years ago with an "ergo" Aluminum handle, and simply swap in a new head when I break a tine. It's lightweight, and does a good job. It lives in the muck cart, which in turn is either down by the poop pile, or parked just inside the paddock gate, depending on where I call it a day. I also keep one in the tackroom of the trailer, along with a big soft-plastic bucket for "the goods".
I also have a steel pitch fork, a square-point shovel, and a plastic scoop-style shovel that is mostly used for snow. I just broke that one a couple of weekends ago, and need to find another. There are nails to hang these in the barn, but mostly they are just standing in the corner behind the "human" door.


----------



## Hondo (Sep 29, 2014)

This thread is so embarrassing to read. I must be a total disorganized clutter freak.


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

hahahaha! @Hondo... no, I should have taken a picture of my 3 manure forks, two shovels, two brooms, two hay forks, and a rake just slowly dragging their way down in a corner of my barn. Everytime I need something, I need to move other things, and the floor under them never gets swept. Enough is enough! I moved the shovels to their own corner of the barn (metal round mouth for really hard frozen manure, square plastic for shoveling out a path to the manure pile in the winnter). I hung the wider broom but the smaller straw broom still lives with the manure forks (all three). The hay forks have been divided up - one is now with the hay, the other, which is actually for prying frozen manure balls, is with the shovels. 

I still have three manure forks and a broom that just sit on the ground... hooks are fine, but I can't hang all those things on one hook. I'll take a photo in a bit so you see what I mean.


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

@george_the_mule yes, I buy the same ones. But darn it, those tines sure do break easily when it's -20C here. So we only have one that has all of its tines (you know you're a horse person when you get excited because you bought a new manure fork). I bought the metal heavy-duty pitchfork specifically to pry up the manure in the winter. The round mouth shovel is also used, especially when the manure is all stuck together.


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Posting this just 'cause


----------



## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

10 -penny nails...
We all have walls...nail about 12" - 18" above your head so when you walk your skull is beneath the tines...
Hang with tines up, handle down...takes up less space and you can stagger utensils so you can hang more in less space...
With a long handle as each piece has you can hang higher, lower, higher...
All those hay strings make great loops for hanging things that otherwise don't have a drilled hole in the handle...drill a hole in the handle and hang what must be hung at shoulder height...
My water bucket scrubbing brush, small rake ....
My very large, very sharp hay hooks hang only in my feed room through the wall metal grids. I use livestock panels for my upper stall wall separations... Then there is a solid sheet of plywood behind here so when I stack hay 8 high no one is "snacking"...it protects curious noses from pokes too. :|
I no longer use the wheelbarrow often but my tractor bucket to clean stalls into...a muck basket with rope handles occasionally, that hangs outside my barn on the back wall, on a 10-penny nail. 
My wheelbarrow stands up against the barn out of the way. 
I put a brick under the nose of it so it not sit in mud or wet earth and rot the handle frame. 
My husband screwed 2 screw-eyes into the barn side to tie rope behind the wheelbarrow up so it not fall and break something in a heavy wind.
That is about what we do for our utensils in the barn. 
We do the same in the house garage to store shovels, rakes and tools...hang them up...
We don't discuss what is kept on the floor in the "found" space beneath. :icon_rolleyes:
:runninghorse2:...


----------



## rambo99 (Nov 29, 2016)

Pitch fork ,broom and rake are hung up on wall. Wheelbarrow ,shovel , ladder bagged bedding are in extra stall. 
The wheelbarrow was free on dirt road we ride. In good shape so I went back with pickup truck and got it. Have a rubbermade wheelbarrow also it's kept in hay barn. 

Nothing fancy about my barn but it works and is well built. East door is big enough bobcat can get in there. One huge isle ,stalls on North side along with tack room/feed room. West door opens into a three sided shelter.


----------



## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

george the mule said:


> Posting this just 'cause


Can I get that as a sleeve patch for coveralls?


----------



## jaydee (May 10, 2012)

My barn tools are hung off one of those garage organizer thingys you can buy from stores like Home Depot. I have one either side of an inner doorway, they don’t take up much space and the pooper scoopers also hang off them. 
My manure fork, since you did ask about them! was given to me in the 1960s by my grt grandfather who was born in the late 1880’s. 
My dad had a rubber handle fitted to it and I painted it green


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Avna said:


> Can I get that as a sleeve patch for coveralls?


I don't know, but you can absolutely get the graphic printed on a t-shirt (I gots one . So probably out there somewhere.


----------



## Hondo (Sep 29, 2014)

Avna said:


> Can I get that as a sleeve patch for coveralls?



Make a nice winter time embroidery project.


----------



## Hondo (Sep 29, 2014)

Tank tops, baseball caps, t-shirts, sweat shirts, metal signs, coffee cups are all available. But not a patch to be found.


https://horseloversgifts.com/manuremoversofamericasweatshirt5220sw.aspx


----------



## ChieTheRider (May 3, 2017)

I just ordered a big basket fork today. I have shavings in the stalls and when I try to sift the manure from the shavings it all falls out of the little fork. I need a big one. That's the kind I use at work too, though I did grow up using the metal ones.


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Here's the offending area I speak of - I did remove all the shovels and put them in a different area, put the pitchforks in the hay storage area, and hung up the large broom. I still have three manure forks and a straw broom. I'd like to hang them up so they're not on the floor (makes it impossible to sweep that corner), but I can't figure out how to hang three manure forks and a broom in such a small area. There really isn't anywhere else in the barn I can hang them and still keep them within reach. Thoughts?

My barn is a little filthy at the moment... should have at least swept before taking this pic.


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

Not really any other walls to use. My aisles are wide and there are stalls on both sides. I don't want to put manure forks in the tack room. They also have to be out of reach of Rusty-the-clown who likes to play handyman with anything he can reach (I caught him swinging a hammer the other day - no word of a lie).

First pic shows ribbon wall, a rod to hold blankets (there are more in the tack room), and shovel corner. Second is the open concept run-in shared stall with my two pink noses photobombing.


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

Hi AA

Hmmm. Well, I have several canoes stored in my garage on a pair of simple frames that are hung from the rafters. (They are very light solo boats.) The frame is just 2X4s bolted together like so: |_______|, with the upper ends bolted to the rafters, the width wide enough for the canoes, and the whole schmoo suspended as high as I could put it and still reach the end of the boats to slide them out and lift them down.
Perhaps you could cob something like this to hold your implements. Because of what I am storing, I didn't feel the need for a "bottom", but you might want to include a sheet of light plywood to reduce the chance of a pitchfork falling out and landing on your head.
Another thing you could build would be an array of 1 1/2 or 2 inch PVC tubing mounted into a base of plywood such that they stood upright and would accept the handle of your tools and hold them vertical. You might include casters so you could relocate the tool-stand for cleaning or whatever. I envision a box-like structure, with a solid bottom, open sides, and a top with holes cut in it to accept the PVC. Use an appropriate-sized hole-saw. Get some PVC caps and screw them to the bottom to locate and hold the tubing. Slide a length of tubing down thru the hole and fit it into the corresponding cap; you probably wouldn't even need to glue it. This would still take up floor space, but at least the tools would have a degree of organization. Make it heavy enough that the whole thing didn't tip over easily; just add weight to the bottom with some steel plate or whatever you have available of a similar nature; Vinyl floor tiles? Asphalt shingles? "ReadyMix" Cement? You get the idea.


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

george the mule said:


> Hi AA
> 
> Hmmm. Well, I have several canoes stored in my garage on a pair of simple frames that are hung from the rafters. (They are very light solo boats.) The frame is just 2X4s bolted together like so: |_______|, with the upper ends bolted to the rafters, the width wide enough for the canoes, and the whole schmoo suspended as high as I could put it and still reach the end of the boats to slide them out and lift them down.
> Perhaps you could cob something like this to hold your implements. Because of what I am storing, I didn't feel the need for a "bottom", but you might want to include a sheet of light plywood to reduce the chance of a pitchfork falling out and landing on your head.
> Another thing you could build would be an array of 1 1/2 or 2 inch PVC tubing mounted into a base of plywood such that they stood upright and would accept the handle of your tools and hold them vertical. You might include casters so you could relocate the tool-stand for cleaning or whatever. I envision a box-like structure, with a solid bottom, open sides, and a top with holes cut in it to accept the PVC. Use an appropriate-sized hole-saw. Get some PVC caps and screw them to the bottom to locate and hold the tubing. Slide a length of tubing down thru the hole and fit it into the corresponding cap; you probably wouldn't even need to glue it. This would still take up floor space, but at least the tools would have a degree of organization. Make it heavy enough that the whole thing didn't tip over easily; just add weight to the bottom with some steel plate or whatever you have available of a similar nature; Vinyl floor tiles? Asphalt shingles? "ReadyMix" Cement? You get the idea.


The first idea won't work (though it's a good one) because the ceilings in the lower level of the barn are very high and I'm... not  

But I'm loving your idea # 2. Especially since I have PVC piping lying around, bought to use for jumping, but then set aside after one shattered into a million pieces when a hoof landed on it. I could cut up some sections, mount them on that wall, and stick them in upside down. I am envisioning something fairly easy to make that would keep the implements off the floor. Great idea! I'll take a stab at it and let you know how it goes! Thanks Steve!


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

AA, you're most welcome.
Yeah, I've seen PVC pipe/tubing shatter like that, and the remnants are sharp-edged and pointy, too 
You might get away with using the "Schedule 80" stuff; it's pretty tough, but probably best to stick with wooden jump rails unless you can find something cheap that will bend under load instead of breaking. You might be able to use the paper "core" from rolls of carpet or the like if you can find some for free or very cheap. They won't last long, but are not likely to cause injury when they fail, in any event.
Have fun with your new project!


----------



## avjudge (Feb 1, 2011)

No pictures because I'm not yet organized!



horselovinguy said:


> All those hay strings make great loops for hanging things that otherwise don't have a drilled hole in the handle...drill a hole in the handle and hang what must be hung at shoulder height....


I was going to mention drilling holes in wood handles, and putting line through to form a loop, but HLG beat me to it. I have done this for long-handled implements, then alternated, one item handle down, next item handle up, etc. to get more in the same space. I've done this in previous houses for yard/garden implements.

Or you can put a bunch of hooks closely spaced, and by hanging from the loops in the handles (one implement per hook) you can overlap the business end, and if you pull one off its hook the others can just swing out or aside to let it by, then swing back into place.



Acadianartist said:


> But I'm loving your idea # 2. Especially since I have PVC piping lying around, bought to use for jumping, but then set aside after one shattered into a million pieces when a hoof landed on it. I could cut up some sections, mount them on that wall, and stick them in upside down. I am envisioning something fairly easy to make that would keep the implements off the floor. Great idea! I'll take a stab at it and let you know how it goes! Thanks Steve!


I've seen commercial products for this purpose - for example, 

https://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Long-Handle-Tool-Storage-FG709218MICHR/dp/B00009K76I
https://www.amazon.com/Stalwart-Rolling-Garden-Tools-Storage/dp/B01HJON6Y6
https://www.amazon.com/FixtureDisplays-Handle-Organizer-Storage-10018-FBA/dp/B07XCK1XW4

You could definitely DIY something along these lines.

(I currently have some of my tools - mostly yard rakes so they sit around for 11 months of the year - in a 30 gallon trash can, but this is not optimal as they lie diagonally and flop to one side - they can pull it over.)


----------



## JCnGrace (Apr 28, 2013)

What about something like this hung either on the door or on the wall above your blankets.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WDGXXK...jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

JCnGrace said:


> What about something like this hung either on the door or on the wall above your blankets.
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WDGXXK...jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==


I don't really want to put anything on the door since it gets opened frequently and it would drive me crazy. I thought of the wall above the blankets but a) they would be high up and I'm very short and would have to reach over the wooden bench to get them, and b) this is the "ribbon wall" for my daughter and she's working her way across from left to right so she'll eventually have it filled with ribbons (yes, I'm a proud mamma, but judging from this year's results, she's going to fill it in a year or two). I do like those devices though, and may put one in the tack room for less frequently used implements. Thanks!


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

avjudge said:


> No pictures because I'm not yet organized!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Those storage units are so cool! Thanks! These will help me plan my new tool storage area.


----------



## Dustbunny (Oct 22, 2012)

horselovinguy said:


> 10 -penny nails...
> We all have walls...nail about 12" - 18" above your head so when you walk your skull is beneath the tines...
> Hang with tines up, handle down...takes up less space and you can stagger utensils so you can hang more in less space...
> With a long handle as each piece has you can hang higher, lower, higher...
> All those hay strings make great loops for hanging things that otherwise don't have a drilled hole in the handle...drill a hole in the handle and hang what must be hung at shoulder height...


I have my own secret stash of nails, in a cabinet where SOME PERSON cannot see them! 
Also multi-hook coat hangers work too. Top hook for forks and lower hook for ropes, etc.


----------



## PoptartShop (Jul 25, 2010)

At my barn, we have an empty stall that's never in use, so we just put the pitchforks, shovels, brooms, etc. & the wheelbarrow in there. Easy as pie. :lol:


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

PoptartShop said:


> At my barn, we have an empty stall that's never in use, so we just put the pitchforks, shovels, brooms, etc. & the wheelbarrow in there. Easy as pie. :lol:


There's no such thing as an empty stall, just a stall that hasn't met its resident yet... :lol:

I once had an empty stall...


----------



## its lbs not miles (Sep 1, 2011)

Acadianartist said:


> Yes, I want to see them. Ok, not just them, I want to see how you organize your manure forks, shovels, etc. in your barn. Particularly if you don't have a lot of space. I used to have mine all hung up neatly along a wall, then I finished a third stall and lost that wall, now they're just kind of piled up in a corner, and it's driving me crazy. I need ideas to organize them, but I am very limited in terms of space. I don't want to put them in the tack room because they'll never get put away, realistically.
> 
> Go.


I am SO BAD for doing this (but I just can't resist) LOL.

My "manure forks" and them at their storage location (they store themselves) LOL
They work great by the way. Manure is broken down and gone in about 3 days from start to finish.


----------



## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

I don't think I actually have a picture, but my trailer IS my barn. I use a smaller size of the usual manure fork. I store it on a standard rake/shovel metal holder, that I had hubby install on the rear tack wall in my trailer which is also where I keep my water caddy, feed, buckets, etc. During the week, I usually just set it inside the trailer so it's easy to grab, but then it's easy to snap it into it's place when we travel. (I see lots of rodeo folks who attach the fork to the OUTSIDE of their trailer but that just always seemed odd to me...)



When I have a real barn someday, I imagine I'll also want some sort of wheelbarrow handy to actually scoop the manure into, so I will probably just keep the manure fork in it and/or have it hung on the wall next to it. Because yes, you want it handy!!


----------



## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

Me, I like to be thorough. :Angel:


----------



## Acadianartist (Apr 21, 2015)

My goodness @SueC, you are a meticulous horse owner! I just hope you wash it before meals...


----------



## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

Dear @Acadianartist, of course we have dedicated cutlery for eating. 

But it's an easy assumption to make, especially if you know that the German word for "horse manure" translates to "horse apples" - which given rise to many culinary jokes.

By the way, I access HF through a desktop / laptop only, and I'm not sure what it looks like on smaller devices, but this thread has a disconcerting way of coming up in the "Recent Discussions" column on the right-hand side (on my display) as *"Show me your manure..."* - and that's where I first saw it, so was sort of :shock: until I read the proper title...


----------



## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Sue...now that is :rofl::rofl: to me...


The "fork" you showed...
That is my "pattern"...Arbor Rose we eat our daily meals with. 
Very nice flatware...




I prefer







and of course I have a







for my horsey chores.

10 tine, straight body steel pitchfork and handle works best for me and my back ...








In all honesty, there is very little that Future Fork or copy of can't do...:smile:

:runninghorse2:...


----------



## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

Imagine eating spaghetti with those ones in your photos though! ;-)


----------



## george the mule (Dec 7, 2014)

SueC said:


> Imagine eating spaghetti with those ones in your photos though! ;-)


Necesita una boca muy grande.
I was hoping you weren't promoting coprophagy, Sue, but _I_ wasn't gonna say anything. Each to his own; after all, you guys serve Vegemite ;-)


----------



## SueC (Feb 22, 2014)

I love alternative-language sayings, @george the mule .  So in reply to the Spanish, but not in Spanish: _Is trua sin!_  (hint: Gaelic) ...because spaghetti are so _belíssimo_!

Yes, well, Vegemite. I don't ingest the stuff myself, but will serve it if requested - none of the household ever requests it, but visitors might. Possibly Vegemite is more palatable if you have pica... Fun fact: When The Stranglers toured Australia, they claimed _Golden Brown_ was about Vegemite! :Angel:






Fun fact two: That song came up on random iPod play for me a few months ago just as I was emptying the contents of our compost toilet cartridge into the hot compost, and mixing it around. It was very apt, and now I try to find that song every time I perform this task (every month or so).  It's a good mucking-out song, no matter what the species you are mucking out. And, it's so beautifully structured musically!

Anyone else here got any good mucking-out songs?


----------



## AndyTheCornbread (Feb 3, 2019)

I use a wide flat bladed aluminum snow shovel to shovel out my trailer, for everything else manure related I use a tractor.


----------



## Fuddyduddy1952 (Jun 26, 2019)

AndyTheCornbread said:


> I use a wide flat bladed aluminum snow shovel to shovel out my trailer, for everything else manure related I use a tractor.


We have manure forks but the snow shovel works best. That, wheelbarrow, 10-15 minutes for stall. Fork is ok for clean straw, no urine.

Sent from my SM-S320VL using Tapatalk


----------

