Budgeting and planning phase for barn building. Considering options for hay storage. Is it cheaper to build up or out? In other words - full/ half loft for hay storage vs adding 8ft to length of building to accommodate a larger feed room for hay storage? Building up means different framing and loft floor vs building out and having a lower profile barn.
It depends on if your going to buy hay weekly. I would go with a loft as you can hold more hay.
We went with a loft for our small barn, especially to maximize space since we donât have a lot of room for sprawling buildings! Also wanted to use the outside shed row areas for stall over-hang/tool storage. Ours is a 1.5 story 22âx36â timber frame, with lots of loft space! We got to visit the company where they have all the models built, so it was really nice to get a feel for how much space you actually get.
(I currently have over 300 bales in the one story main house living room that is now my âfeed room/storage houseâ before it gets torn downâŠhow many people can say theyâve stacked hay to the literal ceiling, wall to wall in a living room? LOL.)
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Itâs less expensive to add a second story than more roof, but convenience is an issue, too. We switched to large round bales as we got older and wanted to use the tractors to do more of the work, so needed ground level storage for that.
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Storing hay in lofts should be the last option, due to dust and molds and fire danger.
If that is all you can do or what you have, you make do.
Building new today or remodeling, try to figure where to store hay other than in lofts.
Also consider that feed and hay may not always be traditional little bales or bigger round ones.
Many here are going to complete feeds now that come in sacks, donât even use any hay any more other than very rarely.
They donât need the hay storage they used to need.
Provide for storage that will fit multiple purpose and any changes in supplies.
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for hay⊠I am with Bluey⊠go out rather than up. If this is a post/beam I personally cannot see any or at least much difference in costs to do either. Up requires climbing or equipment, out is just working from the ground.
Also, going out gives one many more potential uses, pretty had to store a tractor in the second floor of a barn unless it is a bank barn
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I built my barn with a hay loft due to space constraints. Also, building a longer barn would have cost way more money for the gravel and concrete slab. I only have a 3 stall barn, so I donât store a ton of hay and can give it plenty of air to breathe. It really just comes down to personal preference. The hay loft is never full of hay, maybe only about 1/2 full when I stock up winter hay, so that gives me a ton of extra space for storage of other items - I love my hay loft!
Ground floor hay storage gives you SO many more options. Iâd love to buy large bales (700+#s) but itâs not like those can go in a loft. Same with rounds.
Loft storage is also fairly unique to certain areas of the country, and if youâre outside of that area, you may have difficulty finding hay guys who have an elevator for delivery.
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Out - unless you have a severe space problem.
My prefeence is for âoutâ. Thinking that I donât want to be limited to hay deliveries that require an all out affair of planning to have a conveyer and staking help available. Hoping to make this my forever and eventual retirement home - not sure I want to walk steep steps to a loft either - just not sure itâs the most economical way to go. Meeting with builder soon to discuss.
I have 2 lofts on either side over my stalls. I opted to purchase a prebuilt 1 stall outbuilding with a huge tack room. I can fit 80 bales in it, just throw them off my truck. If I used the stall- currently housing my goats- I could easily get 200 in the building.
I had had knee surgery last summer and climbing up and down to a loft was daunting. Plus I donât worry about our resident raccoon 
i use my loft to put up extra equipment and minor storage.
Donât forget the option of having a separate outbuilding for hay/feed storage. Depending on prefab options and the site, it may wind up being cheaper than custom-adding that kind of size to a standard floor plan, or prepping one big, flat construction sites vs two smaller ones. Also further separates the dust/mold issues of large amounts of hay from the immediate vicinity of the horses, not to mention one of the major fire hazards.
This ^^^. I have a 6 stall barn (built by contractor) with tack room and run in shed and have a Klene Pipe outbuilding about 30 feet away that DH and I built. Itâs a 3 sided shed 24 ft wide and 20 ft deep. Weâve divided it up so that on one side is sawdust delivered by a truck and the other side is hay where the hay guy just backs up with the trailer and stacks the bales. It can hold around 170 bales. It cost around $2,500 around 15 years ago.
Iâm with those that say build âoutâ as throughout the years, some of the barns that Iâve been in with lofts seemed more âconfiningâ or dark. That said, they were almost always the older ones. Good luck!
Do consider that building outâeither a larger footprint or a second building for hayâmay cost more upfront but will provide cost savings in the future. Hay that can be purchase in large bales and unloaded quickly with a skidsteer, for example, might be far less expensive than small bales that must be hand stacked and delivered with an elevator. If hay guys around you donât provide the elevator, then youâll have toâanother expense. And another piece of equipment that likes to break.
Looking at only the building price might be a ârobbing Peter to pay Paulâ situation. Build a barn thatâs going to work for you long term.
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Ideas like those and living in the barn somewhere, along or above, are some anyone caring for horses would love.
The reality, with what we know today, we should be more proactive.
We should build with techniques and materials that wonât be as apt to cause fires or add to the fuel load in fires.
Even if only one barn a year goes up in flames, today that is on the ones that built it where it can.
Not worth the risk, I say, no matter how small.
Better leave those so heartfelt ideas of a perfect barn to dreams.
Lets seriously consider build so fires wonât happen, wonât kill if they do.
Have human dwellings and supply barns separate, so a fire if it happens wonât consume but one at the time.
After being in two barn fires, both lucky they were found out in time to put them out with little damage, not a whole structure involved yet, I am going to do my part for not having any more.
One of those fires, if a passerby had not seen the smoke and flames and alarmed, probably would have killed at least 150+ horses and a dozen stable help people living above the stables.
Plus nearby houses and their inhabitants.
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[I]â Upper-level hay storage with a solid floor, such as in a bank barn, is preferable to stall-level storage because heat, smoke, and flame move upward. Should a fire begin on the upper level, upward movement of the fire and its products may allow a few more minutes for evacuation of horses from the lower level.
If hay is stored at stall-level, the area must be completely separated from the stalls and enclosed in a room with two-hour fire-resistant roofing and wall materials. This isnât a practical solution to begin with unless you are purchasing and storing hay for only a few animals and you purchase hay frequently. In reality, though, no one wants to be lugging hay bales a distance of 100 feet from one building to another on a daily basis, so many people keep a day or twoâs supply of hay near the stalls or enclosures in their barn. Thatâs not ideal, but it is kind of practical when you consider the labor involved in caring for animals on a day-to-day basis.
If youâre in the fortunate situation of building a separate hay barn, your first consideration must be the location of the hay barn in relation to other structures. If you have the space, a 100-foot separation is ideal. This provides protection for other buildings from wind conditions and heat radiation in the event of a fire. With a 20 mph wind, sparks can be carried some distance, such as what happens in wildfires where the flames jump fire lines. â [/I]
^^^ from:
The OP does not indicate where they are located.
In a cold climate loft storage adds a high level of insulation, meaning the barn stays warmer. But it also impedes air exchange meaning not only is heat retained but so is any buildup of ammonia from urine and feces. If adequate cross ventilation is achieved this issue will be diminished. A powered ventilation system will also work but is expensive to install and operate. Feeding is easier if âchutesâ are built into the plan and hay can be dropped directly from the loft into the mangers.
In warm climates you have the same effect, but thatâs not something you want.
Insurance companies can be âtestyâ with storage of large scale amounts of hay in a barn. My initial questionnaire
on fire coverage asked about hay storage and specifically asked if more than a 7 day supply was kept in the barn. My ânoâ answer saved me money, according to my agent.
On balance, Iâd keep the major hay supply building separate from the barn.
G.
So now Iâm considering building a separate shedrow barn type of structure to house hay, shavings and tractor. Thinking of getting my contractor to quote out just building the main supports and roof to allow us to finish out the walls and siding.
My last barn purchased a separate ready-built wooden shed for their hay. Probably too small for most barns (she had 5 horses max) but it wasnât much trouble hauling it in the large wheelbarrow. When they had an empty stall, a few bales were stored in there.
