Building a barn

I’ll go out there and take a decent picture right now for you. Of the hay barn, with one side of the run in shed with the big stall/paddock at one end. It’s the same on the other side too. Horses have just moved from this side, to the other side (far side). Be warned… there will be mud (it’s very temporary here LOL). It’s VERY simple.

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OK here are three pics (I hope). A coverall arena, with summer paddocks. The hay barn, from the approach, round bales stored inside. Tractor marks from this morning. The hay barn, from the side. Showing the large stall (20 X 20) which currently houses two mares, one of which can not eat our lovely alfalfa/grass hay, must have straight grass hay only. The second horse is there for “company” only. Everyone else has moved onto the opposite side of this building recently. They get a round bale, taken out with the tractor, and unrolled on the ground. This building is 100 feet long, and 30 feet wide in the center, with the sheds on each side. Both sides are the same, with the big stall with paddock on each side as well as the run in shed. The two mares share the stall. On the other side, I have an injured horse in the stall/paddock, and the herd in the shed. Herd is mostly retirees, and those that I still ride in spring/summer/fall months. Winter is -30C often, and I don’t ride. Horses turned out. Any other questions I can answer for you? This structure was built in 2008, local barn builder. I can’t remember what it cost, other than too dam much (but ain’t that always the way it goes). It would cost more now, no doubt. But it’s about as simple as you can get for horses and hay storage IMO. The center part is high enough for our big tractor to get round bales stacked 3 high in the center.

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I bought my place in 2020. Also in NE. It already had a very basic 6 stall (5 stalls plus a combined grain/tack room) barn with hay loft. Floor of barn (asphalt) and basically everything else was in disrepair. Short summary of what I did and what I liked/would do differently:

Fencing. I have the Wind River Fence (4 rail in black) for most of my fencing. I inherited a small section of 4 rail wood fencing and I completed that paddock in wood. As between the Wind River and wood, I’d do the Wind River a million times over. Horse friendly. My cribber cribs on it and it doesn’t do much to it. No need to paint. No maintenance. No need to concrete in posts. Cons: expensive. The horses think it’s fun to pop the caps off the fence posts. Not many installers in the area so people that installed did an okay job, but there are some things I’d do differently in terms of install.

Also think about gate latches. I have chains, which are a PITA. I hope to install some of those one handed latches.

Barn. I converted 3 of the stalls into 2 larger ones. Put in euro fronts. Installed dutch doors and created run outs. 4 years later I realize I’d prefer to have horses living in a run in shed. Only true need for stalls, IMO, is for feeding (they each have very different grain diets) and layups. Also, storage space is at a premium for me. In the winter, I am overrun with blankets and no great place to put them.

Wind. It’s very windy where I am. Can’t use pelleted bedding because it blows everywhere. Even the shavings do. In the winter it blows from one direction for the most part, so the horse on that side ends up with her dutch door shut whenever it’s really really windy, which makes her angry (spoiled!).

Flooring. I used SoftStall rubber tile flooring. It’s amazing. Highly recommend.

Lighting - others have addressed. Get lots. I left in the original jelly jar lights and put in very low light LED bulbs (200 lumens or similar) which I use as a night light because one of my horse’s separation anxiety is triggered when it’s too dark and she can’t see her bestie. Love the big LED lights for general usage.

Electric. Put in outlets for fans in each stall.

Insulate your tack and grain rooms.

Paddocks. To create a dry lot, I scraped down, put down geotextile fabric, then installed what was supposed to be 3/8 minus on top. Used lighthoof in places where I knew water was an issue. The gravel isn’t exactly what I wanted and I’m amending, but in general it’s fabulous.

More storage. I wish I had a place to store my tractor, side-by-side, and zero turn inside, along with the other equipment I’ve accumulated.

Water. Put in frost free hydrants wherever you think you may want them. All of mine are outside. I wrap with pipe insulation, secure with gorilla tape, and in the winter I used the insulated bags designed for outdoor faucets to keep from freezing. No problem so far.

Have a good plan for a manure pile. Try to compost if you can.

That’s it off the top of my head. :slight_smile:

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I boarded in a concrete block barn in NE. You will need to be extra careful to provide ventilation as it always tended to be damp.

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