So, I’m getting this pony. Dad doesn’t think it’s necessary to put hay all the way up in the loft when it’s just a pony and we’ll probably only need 30 bales, so I’m taking some pallets home.
How do you stack hay on pallets? Is it three cut side down and two flat and so on?
Should I put a tarp under them? They’ll be in the bottom of the barn, which is a dirt floor with a couple inches of clean 1" gravel on top.
How many bales do you normally put on a pallet?
Put a layer of plastic or tarp under the pallets. That will keep the dampness from the ground damaging the lower layers. Stack bottom level on the side so the hay is “pointing up”, at least that is what I have been reading. 
Stack securely but not too tightly, so there is some air flow. You can cover the hay but don’t enclose it. Good hay well stacked, secured from rain/wet, with good air circulation will be good for a year or more.
FYI - my hay man figures 100 bales per horse each year.
I don’t think this pony even weighs 250lbs, he’s not going to need 100 bales :lol:
My fella has at least 50 sitting on a rack waiting for me, that are extra, so if I need more later in the season I can go get more.
I just want to estimate how many to bring home for the first round if I have three pallets.
Pallets come in slightly different sizes but you should be able to fit all 30 bales, probably more, on three pallets without stacking too high. I stack five high and that fits 25 bales per two pallets I believe.
If the hay has been cured for long enough (which it should be at this point in the year unless it’s a very late cutting), it doesn’t really matter whether you stack strings up or sideways. There was another thread on hay stacking very recently that can give you some more ideas.
I buy my hay stacked on a pallet. It’s 21 bales to the pallet. I’ve never really looked at the stacking pattern, but it comes wrapped in plastic. Plastic on, very stable; plastic off, very unstable.
So if you want to stack on pallets you’ll have to address stability if you want to do more than, maybe, a short dozen.
This is a very nice way to deal with hay as you don’t have to be constantly schlepping individual bales until you actually need to feed it. Moving hay by forks beats the old fashioned way all day long!!! 
G.
[QUOTE=Libby2563;8336811]
Pallets come in slightly different sizes but you should be able to fit all 30 bales, probably more, on three pallets without stacking too high. I stack five high and that fits 25 bales per two pallets I believe.
If the hay has been cured for long enough (which it should be at this point in the year unless it’s a very late cutting), it doesn’t really matter whether you stack strings up or sideways. There was another thread on hay stacking very recently that can give you some more ideas.[/QUOTE]
I’m good with normal stacking. I was thinking strings sideways so that I could get a layer of three bales instead of just 2x2.
They were put up well and kept inside, I’m not worried about them being damp on their own. Will pick up a tarp to lay down.
[QUOTE=Guilherme;8336823]
So if you want to stack on pallets you’ll have to address stability if you want to do more than, maybe, a short dozen.[/QUOTE]
I’m thinking three on their side, two flat, three on their side, two flat, so that would give me ten per pallet.
Not going to need to move the pallets, so as long as they’ll sit there on their own we’re good. I’ll just pull one down at a time.
You don’t say size of bales or pallets…
Our bales are typically 105-110 lbs, and we can fit two per level per pallet. I stack them 5 high, so that’s the 30 you are thinking if you get the same size.
They’ll be small grass squares, so I’m guessing probably 35lbs. Standard rectangular pallets I think, boss is going to take them over to my house sometime today.
If I can’t get enough on them it’s not the end of the world, farmer will be leaving that rack where it is all winter as it’s extra, but it’s nice to have it all in at once 
Put down dropcloth plastic (not a tarp) first. Tarps are not waterproof and actually hold water in their weave.
Lay your pallets out. Keep them at least 6-12" away from a wall. If you worry about hay touching the ground, stack 2 levels of pallets. Be sure the long slats on top face towards you, not crosswise (you can’t slide bales across sideways slats, only along the length of them).
Put your bales down strings up. Water cannot ‘wick up’ if there are no long stalks sticking down to the ground, which there would be if you put them on edge.
The stack will also be more stable and tilt less.
Lay those bales across the slats and across however many pallets you think you need: All the same direction if you can. If you can’t, then lay the bales closest to exterior walls or weather ‘ends out’ so just the ends of the bales, not the sides, might get weathered or go bad = a flake, not the whole side of a bale.
Stack as high as you can reasonably go. If you worry, you can rope around a level like a belt and keep it in place so your stack is less likely to collapse if you climb it.
If the stack is not inside, you should stack with the sides slightly overhanging as you go up to protect the lower bales; and get some straw bales and peak the top, then cover with plastic AND a tarp.
Most barns seem to leak, too. Another loose plastic dropcloth over the hay will protect from this, too. Don’t seal hay tightly or you will get mold and mildew, possibly even heating and fire. Hay needs to breathe and continues to dry even in damp winters.
Its wonderful to have a good stack of hay left in spring because you planned right in the fall.
For 35lb bales and standard sized pallets, I stack 3 per layer, up to 5 layers, so one pallet can hold 15 stacked. I stack all cut ends up, and criss cross, three cut end up pointing north and south, then the next layer cut end up pointing east and west. Then the next layer north south again.
If you can get 3 more pallets I would strongly suggest doubling up the pallet layer so the hay is 2x high off the ground/tarp. I have had tremendous success with doubling the pallet layer and don’t lose the base layer to “bottom bale funk”.
I probably can get three more pallets, will try that.
Luckily, with the small amount I need, losing a few won’t be the end of the world. Gosh, I used to go into heart palpitations when I’d find bad bales when I had my hollow-legged TB gelding :lol: This little feller could even live on timothy/alfalfa cubes for awhile if push came to shove.
I mean, look at this little chunk of adorable-ness:
http://i59.tinypic.com/xehll0.jpg
:love-struck:
My hay shed is a gravel floor and I lost a lot of bottom bales just stacked on pallets - even with tarps under the pallets. The best thing I ever did was put plywood on top of the pallets - no more hay falling into the slots and getting mildewy, and easy to sweep up when it’s empty and put new bales down. Mine are nailed down because I have about 12 pallets in all, but if you are just using one pallet, you could just throw down the plywood and start stacking. Way better than tarps or cloths of any kind.
You can get pallets for free at a lot of places of business, no need to cram your hay onto a limited # of pallets.
I dislike tarps and have had really crappy luck with them in pretty much any context using them with hay.
Instead of trying to put a tarp or even a layer of plastic under the pallets, you might sprinkle the area with rock salt. That’s worked best for me in my climate.
[QUOTE=HungarianHippo;8340939]
You can get pallets for free at a lot of places of business, no need to cram your hay onto a limited # of pallets.[/QUOTE]
Oh, my boss would bring more than three, but the area where I want to put it kind of limits the amount I can fit there.
Rock salt right on the ground, eh?
[QUOTE=Mosey_2003;8341233]
Oh, my boss would bring more than three, but the area where I want to put it kind of limits the amount I can fit there.
Rock salt right on the ground, eh?[/QUOTE]
Yeah. It inhibits mold and pulls the moisture away. Now I keep a bag of the stuff on hand all the time. I had bales last year that were placed on straw and rock salt over a raised dirt pad (could not use pallets) that survived. Hay guy is smart.
But, YMMV, and I make no guarantees it will work for you… plastic for me always ends up trapping moisture on the wrong side and then degrading into its own form of uncleanable plastic cooties, like glitter.
What part of the store are we talking about for this rock salt? Or is this something you get at a farm store? I don’t think I’ve ever bought such a thing…
[QUOTE=Mosey_2003;8341509]
What part of the store are we talking about for this rock salt? Or is this something you get at a farm store? I don’t think I’ve ever bought such a thing…[/QUOTE]
It’s the same thing that’s used during winter to melt snow and ice on streets and sidewalks.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Unbranded-50-lb-Rock-Salt-Bag-4664/202523041
[QUOTE=Mosey_2003;8341509]
What part of the store are we talking about for this rock salt? Or is this something you get at a farm store? I don’t think I’ve ever bought such a thing…[/QUOTE]
I get it at Home Depot. At our store it’s up front and meant for use in water softener doodads in blue plastic bags.
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