~13’ x ~170’ barn aisle, asphalt, flat and free of obstructions except for a few rubber mats. Currently blown with a gas-powered leaf blower daily…
Pros: Does a great job getting the nooks and crannies, fairly quick process (clean stalls, rake aisle, sprinkle water down aisle, blow aisle), very clean floor every day.
Cons: Can’t come in/out while blowing (not a huge deal, but worth mentioning), does terrible things to the air quality for a while (water buckets are scrubbed daily - long after blowing, so dust in water is not a concern), dust and debris settles everywhere but the floor.
So, looking into purchasing some kind of massive vacuum that is about 2.5’ at the lip to use instead, thinking:
Pros: Doesn’t stir up dust (though this depends on what type of machine you get - as I understand, a litter collector WILL pass dust through), hose attachment for cobwebs, doesn’t cut off barn access while it’s taking place
I’ve tried searching the forums, I’ve tried calling Elgee’s horsey references (couldn’t reach anyone that could really talk to me about the machine out of the two that picked up). The concern is that the vacuum won’t suck up as much as the blower gets, so I am looking on feedback regarding barn aisle vacuums - would prefer gas powered, would consider electric, definitely no battery powered. General experiences, comparisons, etc. Anything, really! Would be much appreciated.
You could consider the smaller version of the Greystone manure vac, would serve double duty, use it in the barn and in the pasture. I have the large one, while I haven’t tried it in the barn it has an incredibly strong gas motor and lots of suction, it has a 10’ hose but I think they make longer ones. The only downside would be the hose and attachment/handle is heavy and you would need to tow into the barn with something like a lawn tractor so don’t know how easy that would be for smaller places or for cob webs.
Decades ago we had one for our barn, a commercial warehouse sweeper, that worked fine.
We used it several times a day, a broom in between to keep things neat.
It looked just like this one, but was bigger and with a wider mouth, 2 1/2’ or 3’.
It was electric, which was nice:
You could also probably use an Electrogroom horse grooming vacuum; they have incredible suction power. If doing this, I would suggest getting a special short hose and a wide nozzle attachment for the purpose. I expect the manufacturer or a vacuum cleaner sales/repair shop could accomodate the request.
[QUOTE=js;7242580]
You could consider the smaller version of the Greystone manure vac, would serve double duty, use it in the barn and in the pasture. I have the large one, while I haven’t tried it in the barn it has an incredibly strong gas motor and lots of suction, it has a 10’ hose but I think they make longer ones. The only downside would be the hose and attachment/handle is heavy and you would need to tow into the barn with something like a lawn tractor so don’t know how easy that would be for smaller places or for cob webs.[/QUOTE]
Hmm. I doubt it would ever get towed into a pasture for it’s “intended use”… we only have a few pastures that are less than multiple acres (most are 5-30) and we’ve never cleaned manure out of them (that I know of) - it has just never been a problem. I think this is a little too clunky of a machine, and you would have to use the hose for the whole aisle if I understand the function of this correctly, no? Thank you for the suggestion!
Oooh, elaborate please! BO’s husband is capable of this kind of dark magic.
[QUOTE=Bluey;7242691]There are all kinds that work with your regular mower:
Decades ago we had one for our barn, a commercial warehouse sweeper, that worked fine.
We used it several times a day, a broom in between to keep things neat.
It looked just like this one, but was bigger and with a wider mouth, 2 1/2’ or 3’.
It was electric, which was nice:
I keep coming back to a sweeper, but a key player in the decision making process doesn’t think that’s what we need… I’ll do more research on those. I really wish I could go to a local dealer for Elgee or BG, that make both litter vacuums, sweepers, etc, and actually see them in use. Not sure if this is possible, but we’re trying to work that angle.
Problem with a mower attachment is that we have two mowers. One is a 5 or 6 foot zero turn mower that would be much too large to maneuver around the barn aisle, and the other is a 15’ JD tractor mower attachment… which is even bigger than the aisle, itself!
I would also personally LOVE an Electrogroom to just use on my horse! That is a very interesting suggestion. I wonder if specially configured, it would do the job…
I think there are a few reasons…
Easy to clog a 2.5" opening & hose, especially because we use straw bedding, and sometimes after raking, there are still some stray pieces in the aisle
The largest nozzle attachment is 14" vs what we’re looking for (2-3’)
18’ cord + 170’ aisle = either changing outlets mid-vac, or rolling up extension cords daily (hence why we wanted gas powered)
I wish there were just a giant, gas powered shop vac with a 2-3’ nozzle/lip!
Thank you everyone for your input! Very much appreciated.
[QUOTE=Bluey;7243330]
I was not talking sweepers, but true large vacuums, like this one today in our local Craiglist, but ours was electric and larger:
Yep - that is exactly what we have been looking at purchasing. The concern is will BO be satisfied with the amount of dust/fine debris that this sucker …sucks up… compared to the blower? Since they are designed to be litter vacuums (crumpled cups, paper, wrappers, etc.) to capture larger debris, it was explained to me by one dealer that they have porous bags that don’t trap dust, and if you put a “tighter” bag on it, the motor would likely shut down due to the placement of the impeller.
I really don’t even know what I just said. Just parroting what I was told, hence… the continued search via anecdotal evidence.
Did you find, or do you recall if the ones you had experience with picked up anything in it’s path, or was it more likely to catch larger debris and leave dust behind? Or stir up dust? Oy.
The one we had picked up everything, shavings, manure and hay pieces, grain, arena footing and it didn’t choke down at all.
It didn’t blow any dust around, all went in the bag, that got very heavy if you don’t empty it before it is getting full.
It was heavy for 4’11" me to push, made for 6’ people, I think, the handles were about nose high on me.
We had a gas powered Billy Goat vac at a farm where I worked, loved it!! Sucked up everything, not too hard to maneuver and though a pull start, never had a problem with that either. A little noisy, but not as loud as a blower and much faster.
I worked there for 5 years and used that vac everyday year round and don’t ever remember having a maintenance issue with it. Highly recommend!
Checking in to see what you decided on. I have a Billy Goat Vacuum now and while I really love it, having the bag to empty has become a deal-breaker for me. I get dust all over me and it screws with my allergies. I’m looking for something similar to the Billy Goat, but with a hard plastic (not fabric) hopper for the debris/dust. Thanks!!
Have you looked into the bigger shop vacs, that are used in building sites and in carpentry shops, etc.?
Most any larger shop vac should clean aisles also.
Thanks for the suggestion, but I am looking for a 1 piece unit that has a wide sweeping area. I have the Billy Goat now, but emptying the bag still wrecks havoc on my allergies. Need something with a hard, non fabric hopper to collect the debris.
They also sell those with their own air supply in that same web site, but those are rather expensive.
Painters use those disposable coveralls, I expect they would not be too expensive, if that is also a concern.
Have you talked to the company about your problem?
They may have other types of bags that may work for you.
That bag should not be putting the dust it picks up back into where you are cleaning?
I would think there is something wrong with that.
If your problem is only when emptying, that I don’t know how you can manage, other than good filter masks.
