# Pros and Cons of Barn Setups



## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

We might be building a barn somewhere down the road, I (since I'm just that kind of "must prepare everything way beforehand) would like to hear about some things that have and have not worked out well for your barns/stables.

All I have decided on already is that we would like a semi-large (about a 30 stall) horse stable with plenty of paddocks and places to ride.

Some things that I have found to not work so well:
1.) Sand footing inside the barn= DUST, DUST, DUSTTT! (several horses came down with bad coughs and breathing problems, and some even needed to have medicine)
2.) Hay and feed stored above the stalls (fire hazard!)
3.) Riding areas bumped up against pastures (horses being worked wouldn't listen, or they would act up out of excitement - hormones - LOL)
4.) Pastures located in valleys (terrible conditions for the horses to live in, especially when it rained. Their feet would slide right under from them. Terrible drainage too resulted in horses being kept in for extended periods of time.)
5.) Only one arena/place to ride! (Boarders fought over who could ride that day. Granted, this was a western and english barn, so nobody could ride together. Dressage, jumpers, barrel racers, and mounted shooters could not all work together in the same place.)

What are your guys' ideas on pros and cons of stable arrangements?
What do you think of aisle barns? Multiple barns separate from another?

What's your favorite barn design and why? I saw the neatest log cabin barn ever! It makes me dream to live out in the woods. :'D


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## aforred (May 12, 2010)

In my dream setup, I would have a couple stalls built well away from where other horses live and work for quarantine.

Insulated automatic waterers

Aisles made of that really nice rubberized brick.

Feed doors on stalls.

Separate feed room.

Separate shed for storing hay and bedding, to minimize fire hazard.

Sprinkler system for indoor arena.

Vet room with stocks and a concrete floor with drain.

Washrack with warm water

Well designed waste management system.

Machine shed for tractors, skidsteers, mowers, etc.

Some stalls with solid dividers, some with grill/bar dividers.

Safety latches on stall doors. I hate the design of mine, because a 4" square sticks out from the wall.

Covered round pen.

PVC fencing for paddocks and pastures.

Tie rings close to arenas. 

Shelters inthe pastures/paddocks
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## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

aforred said:


> In my dream setup, I would have a couple stalls built well away from where other horses live and work for quarantine.
> 
> Insulated automatic waterers
> 
> ...


I really like your ideas! That rubber brick aisle flooring does sound like a dream. I'll get that as soon as I win the lottery. (;

I can sympathise with the warm water for wash racks ordeal. Ugh. Having a horse that detests baths, plus the fact that the water is always freezing cold, doesn't end well. lol!

I've always been leery about automatic waterers. I've heard mixed reviews about the inexpensive ones flooding and the quality ones being a pain in the wallet. It sure would make those winter days less frigid on the hands, though!


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## aforred (May 12, 2010)

Yeah, that's my partial post-lottery setup, LOL.

Stall size, I think I would go for 12 x 12. I currently have 10x12, but I don't have any very large horses.

My cousin has the high end waterers, and they are awesome. He lives outside Boulder, CO, and they always work. He also has the vet room, which I never would have thought of otherwise.
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## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

I would have a few stalls 12x12 feet for ponies but mostly 12x14 stalls and a few 14x16 stalls for large horses and mares and foals. 

I would only have automatic waterers if they have a consumption monitor that will tell you how much the horse is drinking. Otherwise, have (covered) faucets inside each stall above the bucket or hoses right outside every 2 or 3 stalls.

I would have dutch doors leading outside to long runs. And also have at least 1/3 of the shared stall walls have bars/mesh so the horses can see each other but also have an area where horses can eat without an aggressive neighbor lunging at them. And of course a gap (window) in the bars/mesh looking into the aisle.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I was in a very efficient round barn years ago. The round pen was in the center surrounded by plank rails and posts. Behind that was a narrow cement aisle all the way around the pen. This was for feeding and watering the wedge shaped stalls that fanned out around the pen, reducing labor time. The stalls were roomy enough to allow a horse to lie down. Behind the stalls was another cement aisle about 8' wide to expedite cleaning and horses being moved in and out. One aisle led into the pen. Adjoining the barn was a shed like addition for the tack, wash rack and feed room. Each also had a door to the outside.


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## Ashsunnyeventer (Aug 17, 2012)

At my barn we have little calcium pieces in our indoor to help with moisture/dust control. We have only watered that arena twice in 7 years. I also don't like when the stalls are built around the riding arena. It makes it hard to focus. I would have a seperate tack room with lockers minus the locks for each horse. This leaves a ot of room for storage of saddles/bridles/brushes etc...


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## smrobs (Jul 30, 2008)

I'm not really picky about my barn and I really like the setup I have. But, of course, it is a personal barn just for me and most of my horses are kept in pastures. I like a barn with an open side away from the prevailing winds because you still get the air movement and it doesn't get stuffy. I don't have a need or a desire for stalls, I've got too much other stuff to do than spend hours every day cleaning stalls. So, all my penned horses are kept in pipe runs that measure 10x30. I just use the tractor to scrape them out when they start to get too dirty and then use the bucket to haul in fresh dirt from the pasture if needed. I don't have an arena and really don't need one.




InsaneDino said:


> 3.) Riding areas bumped up against pastures (horses being worked wouldn't listen, or they would act up out of excitement - hormones - LOL)


It's amazing how different peoples' ideas and reasonings can be just based on their needs/desires. My main schooling area is right along the fence to my big pasture which currently houses 6 horses and a mini burro and I wouldn't have it any other way. 

I consider it a wonderful training opportunity to teach the horse I'm riding to maintain their concentration in spite of whatever else the surrounding horses might be doing. If they get used to calmly loping circles while horses are bucking and running 20-30 feet away from them, then they aren't going to freak out and run off trying to keep up with other horses the first time they get ridden at an arena with other horses and riders. Usually, my horses are some of the few that actually stay on their own circle and don't try to speed up or drift around to keep up with other horses that are passing them.

BUT, I train horses and hardly anybody rides at my house except for me and my family. If I were thinking of doing a boarding or lesson barn, then I might see things differently.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

smrobs said:


> It's amazing how different peoples' ideas and reasonings can be just based on their needs/desires. My main schooling area is right along the fence to my big pasture which currently houses 6 horses and a mini burro and I wouldn't have it any other way.
> 
> I consider it a wonderful training opportunity to teach the horse I'm riding to maintain their concentration in spite of whatever else the surrounding horses might be doing. If they get used to calmly loping circles while horses are bucking and running 20-30 feet away from them, then they aren't going to freak out and run off trying to keep up with other horses the first time they get ridden at an arena with other horses and riders. Usually, my horses are some of the few that actually stay on their own circle and don't try to speed up or drift around to keep up with other horses that are passing them.
> 
> BUT, I train horses and hardly anybody rides at my house except for me and my family. If I were thinking of doing a boarding or lesson barn, then I might see things differently.


Exactly what I was thinking. At my current bar there is an outdoor and indoor arena. One side of the indoor arena is a partial wall and 10ft seperating it from the outdoor arena. During the summer they practice calf roping in the outdoor arena while people are riding in both arenas. During winter time practice moves indoors and haven't yet seen a horse troubled by it all.

Something to add to your list. Manure pile as far from your barn as possible, helps keep flies down in the barn. So many barns put the pile right outside for ease of dumping.


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## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

A round barn is a pretty unique idea. I just don't know how well that would work for a large boarding stable. The barn would be a HUGE circle.

What other shapes of barns do people like? Why?



Darrin said:


> Exactly what I was thinking. At my current bar there is an outdoor and indoor arena. One side of the indoor arena is a partial wall and 10ft seperating it from the outdoor arena. During the summer they practice calf roping in the outdoor arena while people are riding in both arenas. During winter time practice moves indoors and haven't yet seen a horse troubled by it all.
> 
> Something to add to your list. Manure pile as far from your barn as possible, helps keep flies down in the barn. So many barns put the pile right outside for ease of dumping.


I agree with the manure pile problem. It sure makes dumping barrels easier, but I can definitely see a difference between the number of flies in the stalls closer to the manure pile and the ones farthest away. My horse is stalled on the opposite side, where the light is also brighter, and flies are less of a problem for her than the horses on the other side.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Like the early igloos that allowed the winds to blow around rather than exert forces against a flat wall, the round barns are ideal in windy areas for the same reasons, out on the prairies. I've seen many an older flat sided barn leaning down wind.


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## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

Saddlebag said:


> Like the early igloos that allowed the winds to blow around rather than exert forces against a flat wall, the round barns are ideal in windy areas for the same reasons, out on the prairies. I've seen many an older flat sided barn leaning down wind.


I can understand that for a windy area. What about the pros and cons of bank barns, aisle barns, separate barns (having only a few stalls in each), etc?


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## ponyboy (Jul 24, 2008)

My preferred set up is hard to do in a cold climate and with a large number of horses unfortunately. Individual 10'x30' pens with the first 12' under cover. Pipe rail fencing and pea gravel footing of course. I think this is the best compromise between stall and pasture board: The horses have room to exercise and socialize, but individual feeding is easy and you only need to worry about how well each horse gets along with their two next door neighbors. (Although they would also get turnout of course). Plus, no stall mucking! 

But if you really want a stall barn, I would do a central square with wings radiating out from it. Two wings for stalls, one for the arena and one for the entrance, tack room etc. Then you could put your muck pile between the arena and one of the wings and maybe the hay barn at the edge of two others.


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## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

ponyboy said:


> My preferred set up is hard to do in a cold climate and with a large number of horses unfortunately. Individual 10'x30' pens with the first 12' under cover. Pipe rail fencing and pea gravel footing of course. I think this is the best compromise between stall and pasture board: The horses have room to exercise and socialize, but individual feeding is easy and you only need to worry about how well each horse gets along with their two next door neighbors. (Although they would also get turnout of course). Plus, no stall mucking!
> 
> But if you really want a stall barn, I would do a central square with wings radiating out from it. Two wings for stalls, one for the arena and one for the entrance, tack room etc. Then you could put your muck pile between the arena and one of the wings and maybe the hay barn at the edge of two others.


I would love to do something like your idea with the individual pens for each horse. Sadly, that's not something reasonable for a larger barn.

I am thinking about two shapes: A round one (as mentioned previously) and a "U" shaped one. Does anybody have experience with either shapes?


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## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

smrobs said:


> It's amazing how different peoples' ideas and reasonings can be just based on their needs/desires. My main schooling area is right along the fence to my big pasture which currently houses 6 horses and a mini burro and I wouldn't have it any other way.


I agree. However, I would want either an area where I could put the pasture horses in away from the arena, or, even better, another isolated arena. Then, if you had a horse who got distracted easily and didnt have much (if any) training under saddle (or on the ground) you could work with it and teach it basic controls and then introduce other distractions. 



ponyboy said:


> no stall mucking!


Do you not muck your stalls? 

OP: I like the sound of a U shaped barn, or, like what ponyboy said with the little aisles going off. One of my dream barns is a u/horseshoe shape with a fountain or miny garden in the middle. Another cool idea is stalls with rounded off courners, like hexagonal stalls. A lot of space in stalls gets wasted in the typical 90% angles.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

Should toss this in, open to air stalls. What my parents did was put solid walls between stalls but used tube gaits front and back. Their horses really appear to be much more comfortable then they were with enclosed stalls. If weather gets really nasty they drop a tarp down on the back side. This also has the advantage of allowing him to open both ends and drive the tractor through to scrape/relevel stalls. Also has a 16 foot wide aisle to make it easier to maneuver the tractor and can easily drive his pickup and trailer right through it.


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## ponyboy (Jul 24, 2008)

InsaneDino said:


> I am thinking about two shapes: A round one (as mentioned previously) and a "U" shaped one. Does anybody have experience with either shapes?


Well, a round barn will save you time and labor but it will cost more money to build. Circles are always more expensive to build.


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## InsaneDino (Aug 3, 2012)

ponyboy said:


> Well, a round barn will save you time and labor but it will cost more money to build. Circles are always more expensive to build.


That's what I was thinking... I guess that's why there are so many square/rectangle barns.
I wonder if it's just the initial cost of U or round shapes that make the idea so unappealing. Would they be better off in the long run? I could see wind being less trouble for a U barn. The rounded and U shape barns also seem like they would be better for ventilation and for the horses' social nature to be able to see each other.


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## caseymyhorserocks (Apr 5, 2010)

I'm not a big fan of round barns, I like the U shaped ones better. I don't like arenas with a arena directly attached because of the dust, so an arena with a roundpen attached does not sound the most appealing. If you took out the roundpen in the middle and made the barn smaller (bringing the stalls in), there would just be a circle in the middle. I guess you could put in tie rails or a tack room in the middle, but I feel like round barns are more expensive and not as space efficient.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

My barn consists of two stalls with a gate inbetween. Aisles are expensive so I don't have one. Each stall has it's own opening into the pasture. When the middle gate is left open the two horses can share either stall. I usually find them in the larger stall, where the fan is, during bug season.


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## RitzieAnn (Dec 22, 2010)

Everybody is posting about tie rings, stall sizes, isles... I'm thinking "poop". Lol. Between the 2 barns I have boarded at, one had a huge pile which was removed each fall, and the other had a dump truck backed up to a hillside that you put your poop in. It was hauled away weekly. It was amazing. If I had the $ for a big ole truck, I would do that! There are lots of people who will take it (in our area there are lots of farms) its just a matter of getting it there.
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## Bridgertrot (Dec 2, 2011)

One thing I'd think about to is to place pasture gates away from high traffic areas. Where do horses like to stand? The gate. It adds a little more walking distance but it will make the area less worn down and muddy.
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