Misting systems

[SugarCubes]

I came across this at Lowes: http://www.lowes.com/pd/Orbit-Low-Pressure-24-sq-ft-Residential-Misting-System/1000033065
and was wondering if anyone has tried something similar in their paddocks?

We’re in a heat wave with the heat index 110+ and one of my horses doesn’t tolerate this heat well at all. My stalls open to paddocks and I thought I could maybe hook this onto the gutter above their back doors. Pic of my set up:
http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag393/leahyhm/runs_zpseg8h3lct.jpg

I have a hydrant between the stalls, so I could run a hose from the hydrant up to the mister system. Do you think this would work?

[hosspuller]

That’s a low cost solution if your humidity isn’t cut with a knife high. I would suggest adding a fan to the area. Otherwise, the mister will make a muddy mess.

[SugarCubes]

There are fans blowing towards those back doors, but I didn’t think about the humidity. It’s 75% right now, which is the lowest it’ll be all day. It was over 90% when I fed this morning. Is that going to defeat the purpose?

[csaper58]

Your fans must have sealed outdoor rated motors.

Look below at similar threads, there are others on misting fans/systems. Humidity is discussed in several.

[horsepoor]

We used a raindrip irrigation system like you can water hanging baskets with on the overhang of my barn. The plastic tubing with little hanging misters, run off a garden hose and on a timer so it can be turned on for however long and frequent you want (we would do 10 minutes every hour). I just happened to have enough of the spare parts from putting up one for my actual hanging baskets to do the length of the overhang, so that’s why I used what I did. It worked well and was cheap, but we also don’t typically deal with the humidity like you are describing. It did help keep things cooler and the horses seemed to enjoy it. Haven’t needed anything like that this year, as we’ve missed out on the high temps the rest of the country has been enduring, so I haven’t hooked it back up yet (heck, I haven’t even dragged out the sprinkler for my arena, but it is finally time to do so!).

[hosspuller]

For the cost of one mister … I say go for it. Misters were used in the Olympic Games in Atlanta (City of oppressive humidity) So they do work. Just watch the ground under the mister. If it starts getting soft, direct some air flow that way.

[horsepoor]

Or do as I did and put it on a timer (they are cheap) so it doesn’t run continuously as that might keep the ground from getting too saturated. I am SO glad we don’t deal with that humidity as it would be the death of me!

[knic13]

[QUOTE=hosspuller;8754861]
For the cost of one mister … I say go for it. Misters were used in the Olympic Games in Atlanta (City of oppressive humidity) So they do work. Just watch the ground under the mister. If it starts getting soft, direct some air flow that way.[/QUOTE]

Just because they did it doesn’t mean it was a good idea. Misters lower air temperature through use of energy for the evaporative process. If humidity is alreafy high there is a limit to that process and the mister will in fact increase humidity and therefore the relative heat index and risk for heat stress. This could be somewhat offset with high power fans and great ventilation.

Another option that is more suitable in high humidity would be a sprinkler system, which lowers body temperature as energy is required to evaporate water from the animal. Sprinklers run for short durations to soak the animal periodically. It does have the downside of making a huge mess though.

[SugarCubes]

Well, I went ahead and bought it - it was cheap, what the heck. Easy and fast to install. It’s over their back doors and the mist lands on the mats, so no soft, muddy ground. Went out to feed and the boys were standing half in/half out, directly under the mist looking like they had died and gone to heaven :lol:. $17 well spent!