Say what?
If you are so troubled reading my comments, feel free to ignore them.
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Yeah, I’m not sure if I’d ever present my employer with ideas… Certainly like to consider alternative ways to get it done, and if they ask I do share my ideas which they’ve been great about considering.
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She learned about the side-dumping trailer option here by asking for information and suggestions. Just because a person has worked at horse farms for years, and her owner has owned barns for years doesn’t mean either of them has knowledge of all manure handling equipment options.
I appreciated having my employees take the initiative to come up with ways to increase my productivity. Having a “this is the way we have always done things” employer must suck.
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I’m old, cynical and pretty damn good at a barb when the mood strikes me, and if this is such a thing, it’s a swing and a miss. But guess what? It’s a not an entirely useless exchange of ideas even if it is, so maybe it’s ok? I mean unless you are the employer, why do you actually care?
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OK here is thinking outside of the box:
Solution 1 - Rig up a conveyer belt on the ramp to transport muck tubs up the ramp where they can be dumped at the landing on the top. Like a hay elevator but transporting muck tubs. You wouldn’t need an engineer to build this -just somebody that is “handy”. Not me - I am not “handy” building stuff. You would muck into muck tubs on a wagon/ dump cart and drive the muck tubs to the base of the ramp. I have some “dump” carts and they are somewhat unwieldy and harder to dump than a muck tub. You could use an ATV to drive the wagon and just drive it through the barn so no carrying tubs.
Solution 2 - put heavy duty screw eyes or a bar at the top of the ramp. Drive the wagon to the base of the ramp and run a cable from the handle of the wagon, through the bar at the top of the ramp back down to the ATV. Pull the ATV back from the ramp and that pulls the wagon up the ramp.( We used this method with my tractor to load my manure spreader onto a trailer to take it to get fixed). You do have to go slow and steady the wagon on the way up. It might be slow but faster and easier than pulling a cart up.
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I haven’t thoroughly gone thru all of the posts, but Angela, it sounds like you need to either work with the property owner to come up with a better plan, or move. I don’t see how the procedure you describe could possibly be sustainable long-term. Honestly, it sounds dangerous.
We keep four Equines, and while I can handle the poop-scoopin’ routine with a regular Rubbermaid muck cart, it is a lot more work than doing it with my “Muckmobile”. I have an old Cushman “Truckster” with a hydraulic dump bed. I’m not necessarily recommending one of these, but something similar would be a mandatory accessory in my book.
We just make a large pile behind the barn that is maintained with a compact tractor, and when it gets to be enough for a truckload (about 15yds for the guy we use), we pay to have it hauled off. I have tried spreading, and it doesn’t work well in our semi-arid climate.
My “Cushman” on the job. The bed capacity is good for four animals/two days. Thirty of the monsters is a lotta horse sh*t. Holy cow :-P.
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Hi, new member. Let me introduce you to the COTHism “Where’s the Fruitbat?” Because honestly, where’s the fruitbat with this comment? And with jonesing for a downvote option when you haven’t been part of the community more than a few weeks? Maybe go back and re-read your own words a few times before posting.
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This is the classic example of the capital/ labor curve - Economics 101. As long as labor is cheap and you are paying barn help $5 an hour with no benefits or working students $0 to do grunt labor there is no incentive to invest money into capital improvements like a gator to carry manure, a pulley system to carry manure up a ramp to the dumpster or excavation costs to put the manure receptacle below the dumping platform. But when you are paying $15 an hour with benefits it is better to explore work saving expenditures that cuts your labor costs and employee turnover. Just saying “Well we have always done it this way and people just don’t want to work” isn’t going to help this problem.
Maybe the BO doesn’t want to do anything. You can’t fix that sometimes if you are an employee. But an employee that recognizes a problem (lots of those) and then proposes solutions to a problem (less of those employes) can be a good thing even if all it does is stimulate dialog. So don’t flog the OP - at least she is thinking about making the job better even if the BO doesn’t want to make any improvements. You never know unless you ask.
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I am not certain it is possible to attention grab about manure but am positive you can not passively or aggressively attention grab about manure. Newbie, consider this your down vote to your alter.
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How is yours holding up? I’m considering getting something with a hydraulic dump bed so I don’t have to manually lift my dump cart any longer. I found one for sale that is a 2000 model and they are asking $2500 for it (private party). I’m wary about buying something so old. Any thoughts?
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Hi Pico
Mine wasn’t working when I brought it home, and I spent a fair bit of time getting it sorted out. Parts are hard to find, and tend to be expensive. (edit) Mine is a 1985 model.
That said, it is a Stone Axe; it has a very basic air-cooled 2-cylinder engine, the rest of the machine is mechanically simple, and it is easy to work on. It starts every morning, and gets the job done. The Hi/Lo gearing is very useful, and it will turn 180 degrees in it’s own length. I was concerned about the stability of the 3-wheel configuration on off-camber situations, but it hasn’t been a problem. It doesn’t do well in slimy mud; the front end “pushes”. Maybe a more aggressive tire on the front would help, but I doubt it.
If you are willing and able to work on something like this it is a pretty cool old machine. If you will have to pay someone to service it for you, “Run Away, Run Away” . . .
I will comment that (I think) the 2000 vintage Cushmans use a water-cooled 3-cylinder Suzuki engine, with an electronic fuel injection. This is a far, far more complex engine, particularly as concerns the electronics, and it doesn’t appear to be very well documented. Always something to consider if you plan to DIY.
If you aren’t into DIY, you are probably gonna be far happier in the long run with a newer Gator, or Mule, or even an electric golf cart retrofitted with a dump bed, as at least you will be able to find somebody to work on it for you.
Hope this helps.
Thanks, @George_T_Mule! I am most definitely not DIY when it comes to engines, so it sounds like it’s probably not the best for me. Unfortunately, we bought a CanAm side by side when we bought our place just a couple of years ago (my counterpart wanted something more “fun” than a Gator), so it’s hard to think about spending another $15k at this point.
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Yeah; there isn’t much Fun-Factor to a Gator, but they will work for you. A Gator was on my short-list when I was in the market for a Muckmobile. I’m a geek, and pretty much DIY everything from my car to my phone. I shop with that in mind.
You might task your SO with mucking the stalls for a while; the CanAm will probably find a new home in favor of something with a bit more utility in short order . . . 
Watch your local Craigslist; something will turn up.
Just FWIW, a compact tractor with a loader bucket will serve as well if you don’t have 30 horses to pick up after, and the tractor will also prove useful in many situations where the Gator (or the CanAm) will not. $$$$$, alas. My Ford 1620 tractor was another project vehicle, but it has been a workhorse since I got it going.
WOW. If you can’t separate someone’s Current Events behavior from their questions elsewhere then maybe don’t respond. Especially if you got previously banned and are back as an alter.
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There’s a difference between not being able to fit a tractor down a barn aisle and not wanting your employees to drive your tractor down the barn aisle. Or having the hassle of having one blocking the aisle when there are horses in and out, etc.
Some employers are interested in new ideas. Others aren’t
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That’s the BOs job to figure out how to do things efficiently.
The way OP describes this is like cutting your lawn with a pair of scissors. Yes it gets done, but in the dumbest way possible.
The BM can run it any way they like. If the employee wants they can always make a suggestion to increase efficiency. If the advice isn’t taken they can either deal with it or work somewhere else.
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Yes! So much THIS. I think this concept in general is one of the reasons owning my own horse property is so appealing. The idea of automating and simplyfing horse-keeping would be such an enjoyable challenge.
But alas … not for at least another 10 years or so when the kids are in college and we can contemplate moving to a less expensive area!
Late to the party (thread) but ummmm this got weird fast. How can such an innocuous question become a supposed issue? So strange. If I want to ask a question about pimples on my horse’s arse why the need to question the motivation on a discussion forum? Key word DISCUSSION forum. Beyond all that silly extraneous BS clogging the thread ……
@Angela_Freda I use my riding lawn mower to pull a large John Deere dump cart similar to one shown early in this thread. Muck right into the cart. It’s very maneuverable and easy to back.
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I have a 1500 lb Gorilla dump cart. I pull it behind my golf cart and dump. Love it!!
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