I have been searching for a property suitable for horses, commutable and affordable (yes, the holy grail) for some time. Found a place with a barn that was built in to look like a old bank barn. Complete with 8’ ceilings on the lower level. I plan to house 16-16.2hh horses. Barn would be for feeding grain and occasional terrible weather, not regular confinement. FWIW each stall has a Dutch door to the outside. I’m accustomed to pole/Morton type barns and the ceiling feels REALLY LOW. Doable? It is solidly built stone foundation/post and beam, definitely not a tear down and rebuild exercise.
I believe 8’ is the very minimum recommended height for horses. Hopefully you don’t have a regular rearer.
A “smart” horse only has to hit its head once. Maybe twice. If it is one that does it a third time. It’s one that needs a new home.
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Even a 17+ hand horse will be perfectly fine in a stall with an 8’ ceiling.
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I think low would be fine for occasional use. In my neck of the woods, the issue is the heat. But I don’t keep them in, in the summer. Mine have 10 foot to about 8 foot on the outside edges. No one. including the 17+ beast has ever lifted their head to threaten the roof.
Most of us haul horses around in trailers that are 7’ - 7’6" tall. A few people have 8’ tall trailers… My feeling is that if the horses can handle “low” trailer ceilings while hauling, they can also handle that height for short-term confinement.
ventilation would be my concern, but we have greater issues with heat than anything else.
we have one TB who is I guess 17h ? … she would be OK with an eight foot height once she understood (and her buddy whom she worships will go anywhere there is food)
Yup, this.
I’ve got a bank barn and the ceiling is at about 8 ft. I bought horse whose SOP when annoyed was to rear. I moved her to my place and she tried it, once.
So as long as the lights are protected and out of the way, you should be fine.
I like my bank barn–cool in the summer and warm in the winter. The only negative is that it’s fairly humid/damp, so there’s no storing of leather tack.
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3 of my stalls are 8’ tall. I hate that they are so low. I built a portable open top stall for my larger horse. I would not put her in the lower stall unless I absolutely had to. Anything 15.2 or small it’s not a worry.Once you get above 16 hands, it will depend on the way your horse’s neck sits on his body as to how comfortable you and he/she are.
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Mine are 7’ at the low end… no problems whatsoever. Tallest horse we own is 18hh
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Thank you all for your input. I appreciate it.
Yep I have one that is 7’ too…its a tiny stall, Mare is 16.1 and long and she likes her cozy corner lol
Mine lived in an old cow barn with 7 foot ceilings for a few months. My gelding is 16.2 and he was fine. He bonked his head a couple times here and there, but it didn’t take him long to remember to duck. It was GREAT for the mare who used to pick her head up high to avoid putting the bridle on LOL
Going back for a second look tomorrow. Going to measure to doublecheck. Thanks again!
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The height would be fine for your use and the barn sounds charming!
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Thank you. Second look today it really is super cute. 4 stalls with a tackroom/feedroom combo with built-ins including feed bins, etc and wash stall. The way the barn is sited allows sliding doors on both ends of the aisle as well as the dutch doors so though technically a bank barn without some to the ventilation/dampness of some traditional barn banks. And, the loft is ENORMOUS.
Looking to make an offer this week pending some further due diligence on the house. Husband seems to think the house is more important than the barn 
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I’ve also been shopping and we look at the barn first!
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I rented a farm for a few years with ceilings at 8’ or maybe a little less. It was built for Standardbreds. No problems with any of my horses, even when I had a 16H+ WB in them. If you think about it 16H = 5’4" so an 8’ ceiling still gives them 2’8" of headroom above their withers.
Yes, I tried to “measure” my guys this weekend to see how much headroom they need above the wither for reasonable comfort. Having the Dutch doors will help I think. The overhang of the barn is taller than the ceiling by 18". I’m feeling better about this. Thank you!
I’m pretty sure my barn is only 8’, and the light bulbs hang lower than that. I had a 16.3hh high headed TB here for years without issue and have had bigger horses including a 17.3hh giant Belgian mare and have yet to have a horse hit its head. I did look at renting a nearby barn a few years ago, it was an affordable price, great ring, huge grass pastures, etc but I turned it down due to the 6’6" ceiling height. The woman who owned it used to train horses and said they only hit their heads once, but I felt that low is just asking for trouble!
