Looking for ideas on ways to hang wet winter blankets in the barn so they will dry

[Linda]

Last winter, I tried spreading our wet blankets on the hay stack (wet side out) so they could dry, But it didnt really work. I dont think there was enough air circulation around the blankets. We do get cold weather, but we also have a lot of reasonable weather temps in the 50s and 60s so Im hoping to be more successful this year.

This year, Im thinking about hanging them up - sort of like you might hang laundry out on a line in the summer. . I have a wall inside the barn that could accommodate them so Im thinking if I get them stretched out enough along the wall, there might be more air circulating… thoughts?

What do you all do? If you hang them what do you use to hang them with ? As you know, wet soggy blankets are heavy and unwieldy so whatever I use to hang them up has to be really strong.

[Donkaloosa]

We used to throw them across a fence. Might want to try hanging something like a chain to use as a “clothesline” for blanket drying.

[trubandloki]

If I can not hang them outside I simply use one of these tack hooks over the wall and hang the blanket from that. Simply buckle the front buckles and toss over the hook.

[Kimstar]

If the ceiling of the barn is not too high to reach, you could try using 1" cup hooks screwed into it (preferably into a solid beam) at approximately 3’ intervals - the distance between the rear-most leg strap dees of most blankets - and hang them by the dees. I’ve done this in my basement (in the furnace room) with exposed beams that are a maximum of 7’ off the floor. I make sure the blankets are fully spread out and they will dry overnight - but it IS a heated area. (If the blankets don;t have leg strap dees, I use the front buckle and strap.)

Easy and cheap!

[Nancy1]

http://www.doversaddlery.com/swinging-rug-rack-3-arms/p/X1-27065/

these work great.

[whitney159]

I saw on some thrifty person’s blog, that she bought the big metal shelf supports for hanging shelves on walls and used those for hanging her blankets. I priced the heavy ones out at Lowe’s and they were like $9 a piece and were something like 13 or 14 inches long, which “should” be long enough to hang a blanket from the chest area if you buckle it, much like on the swinging blanket rack from Dover.

[poltroon]

I have one of these:

https://www.smartpakequine.com/swingair-blanket-dryer-4218p

It’s pretty easy to install and it swings a full 180 degrees, so you can put it up in a place that you only want to use for special occasions of wet blankets, then fold it out to the wall when there is no blanket or the blanket is dry.

[Scarlet_Gilia]

Easy-Up Swing Out Blanket Bar

[bdj]

I have this thing: http://www.sstack.com/Stable-Blanket-bars/Easy-Up-Mini-Swing-Arm-Rack/
Works well, just need a step stool or ladder to get the blankets to hang high enough that they don’t drag on the ground.

[myrna]

I leave the blankets on the horses and they dry from the inside out.That is as long as they are dry underneath.

[S1969]

A friend made hooks from old horse shoes – a full shoe for the wall mount, and a half a shoe made into a hook. They are mounted about 6 feet high (maybe a little higher) and spaced about 15" apart – entirely for drying wet blankets so they don’t drag on the floor or keep each other wet.

The downside is that they could be a little pointy and maybe…possibly…tear a blanket. So, you could use something a little blunter than a horse shoe.

I hate the bars on the stall doors…too narrow, too low, and then drag on the ground and get sawdust and dirt all over them…IF they even dry. Ick.

ETA: mine are mounted above my collapsible saddle racks that are used when we tack up. Since I don’t have an indoor, I don’t ride that much in “blanket weather”…and could double up the space. They are mounted so high they won’t interfere with other things during other seasons…if that is a possibility. My other option was to put on one each stall door - again, mounted high so they didn’t drag on the floor. This was better for us, but that’s a viable option too.

[msj]

[QUOTE=poltroon;7781946]
I have one of these:

https://www.smartpakequine.com/swingair-blanket-dryer-4218p

It’s pretty easy to install and it swings a full 180 degrees, so you can put it up in a place that you only want to use for special occasions of wet blankets, then fold it out to the wall when there is no blanket or the blanket is dry.[/QUOTE]

I have 2 of these right over the base board heater in my tack room and they are fantastic. Used them without a problem for all 24 yrs I’ve been here. They are up high enough that I have to use a small 2-step ladder to hang them.

Sometimes if I just have one blanket to dry I’ll hang it on the tack cleaning hook which is in the same area, but lower and easier to reach.

[Huntin_Pony]

Identical concept to the “swing-arm” dryers shown above, I take a short piece of 2x4 and mount it to the wall with a strong hinge. Scrap lumber, hinges and screws are economical and work just fine. Hang blankets by chest buckles or withers depending on height/lengths of blankets.

And when circumstances permit, I leave them on the horses as long as I can, using body heat to dry them.

[Linda]

Excellent ideas!
I think I’ll order a couple of the swing arm dryers to start with and see if that works. Appreciate the help!

[HungarianHippo]

I have a few of these, and drape the blankets lengthwise along the top bar–wet side out, with a fan aimed at them. You can increase air circulation by putting some wire hangers on the rack, under the blanket, so they spread it out a bit

[Hippolyta]

We have the swinging arms, but since there are only a few horses in the barn these days, the best thing to do is open them up & lay them over the big tractor

[SPF10]

Another vote for the swing arm, or if it is too cold and all I would have is popsicles in the morning, I spread them out on the floor in the lightly heated tack room and turn on the dehumidifier and they are dry by morning.

[fredsaid2]

I put a 2x4 high up across the opening of my barn doors (12’ span). I use one of the cheap 5 arm tack hangers designed to slip over a 2x4 and hang blankets up on it. I can tuck them to one side so they’re not in the way bringing horses in and out and can still open and close the doors.

[Vesper_Sparrow]

At Rolex a couple of years ago, someone was selling a heated blanket dryer, similar to towel dryers. Very pricey needless to say.

[SonnysMom]

@Huntin' Pony;7782059

Identical concept to the “swing-arm” dryers shown above, I take a short piece of 2x4 and mount it to the wall with a strong hinge. Scrap lumber, hinges and screws are economical and work just fine. Hang blankets by chest buckles or withers depending on height/lengths of blankets.

Barn I am at has this in the “small barn”. There are only stalls on one side of the aisle and the 2x4s on the other. The swing flat against the wall when not in use.
One really nice barn I was at had a big closet that was slightly heated and they had metal plumbing/conduit pipe that stuck out from wall and we would hang the chest of the blanket from the pipe. The blankets would dry overnight. The closet was designed strickly for blanket drying and used for blanket storage in the summer.