<font color="blue">Other things about stalls, from my 1 years of experience - covering exposed wood edges with metal trim. We went cheap and used the metal edging made for sheet-rock corners.. Anyone had experience with that?
</font color> Tried it with poor success. Horses chewed it up like it was paper!!! Replaced area's that needed protecting with 1 1/2 inch angle iron. Little overkill probably but you only have to do it once.
>>We have an inch or two of crush run gravel over the dirt, topped by an inch of stone dust, all covered with rubber mats.
There’s your problem right there. You need to remove all that topsoil (especially if swampy) and replace with gravel. Do this and make sure you floor is at about 6†above grade and you should have no problem. We had to strip over a foot of topsoil off or site. It wasn’t too bad as far as cost goes, topsoil is worth a lot more than bankrun gravel in our area.
>>I've only found one place that will cut rubber mats to order; everywhere else we found standard sizes, with 4' x 6' the most popular. I recommend that you make the stall sizes fit a multiple of the mat size, instead of having to cut your mats to fit (if you use them). 12' x 12' would be a good size.
Circular saw works. Not extremely well, but it works. You’ll never cut wood with that blade again, so use a cheapy.
>>Other things about stalls, from my 1 years of experience - covering exposed wood edges with metal trim. We went cheap and used the metal edging made for sheet-rock corners.. Anyone had experience with that?
They sell heavy gauge galvanized corner protector that are pre-drilled for screws. I’ll try to find them and post a link later. We bought these and they’ve worked perfectly.
>>As for the aisle.. smooth is better.. especially for sweeping! I can't believe all the dust and hair we are sweeping up in the last few days with the mud outside and winter coats shedding.
Not too smooth or it will be slippery when wet. Something a little less than a broom finish would suffice. I’ve found that sprinkling/misting the concrete ailseway with the hose after watering cuts down on the dust about 99%.
>>And I would make it as wide as you can, as long as you can stand in the middle (holding a horse) and can reach to either side to grab a cross tie.
We went with 10’ and have been happy with that. It’s almost too wide, but if I had to do it again I probably wouldn’t go smaller.
>>Other stuff.. would be great to have an electrical outlet by every stall for things like box fans and heated water buckets..
Yes. We did that for the fans and use them all summer. Of course it added significantly to our electrical bill.
Just my $.02.
I would very highly recommend not doing a smooth finish if you are going to have horses. Not only is it slick for people but it's extremely slick for horses, esp. if they shoes on.
As long as you keep plenty of sawdust in your stalls you won't need drainage. The reason people need drainage is because they don't properly fill their stalls with enough sawdust, etc. You need 4-6" of sawdust. Stalls should be picked out twice a day. Not only is it a bad idea from the drainage aspect but it's also dangerous to keep horses in confined areas with the ammonia and other smells that come from not using enough sawdust to keep from draining urine under the mats.
I also agree with Gerard. Don't use the drywall corners. They won't hold up if you get a cribber or wood chewer in. They will tear it up. I know one horse that got his tongue severed in half and another that they had to sew his lower lip back on from cuts from drywall edges. You need the thick stuff that they can't tear up.
>>The reason people need drainage is because they don't properly fill their stalls with enough sawdust, etc. You need 4-6" of sawdust. Stalls should be picked out twice a day.
I agree 100% with this. Maybe clean once a day if your horse is out most of the day.
just an fyi ... the flyer I got last nite from Tractor Supply shows they're having a doorbuster sale on Sat morning for the stall mats .... $30 ... cheapest I've seen them (here) yet.
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pete
it's a shame that common sense isn't
My neck of the woods, everyone I talk to says dirt floor. Definately not concrete. So, that is what we are going to go with.
Ken H.
I finally found the link for the corner edge protectors. I think we got the 1.5" or 2" wide protectors, I'll check later.
Post Edge - Models 1-96, 3-96 & 4-96
Pre-drilled, post edging prevents horses from chewing edges of posts in stall interior. Size: 3/4", 1 1/4" & 2" x 96" long - includes fasteners. Shipping Wt.: 2-6 lbs
Edge Protector
I've never owned a true cribber but for foals I've cut strips of the clear plastic carpet runner and glued them to problem areas. Glue the smooth side and leave the little spikey gripper things sticking outward. Cheap, temporary solution. I've even wrapped my wheelbarrow handles with the stuff in response to one mischievous colt, he'd wait till I had it about full with manure then sneak over, grab a handle, and flip it.
It looks like we have the 1.5" edge protectors. Here's a picture.
Hi, I'm new here but have had horss for about 20 years. I've never had the opportunity to build my dream barn, the barn was always there when I moved in. I have had one with rough concrete with mats over it, it was ok but you really have to make sure the mats fit otherwise the shaving get under the mats and they move around. One place had asphalt with mats and shaving, that seemd a little softer on the legs. My place now has dirt floors and sawdust, I get the sawdust from a mill, it's pretty cheap, just make sure it's pine and not walnut as the walnut is toxic. I have to relevel the dirt floors a couple times a year. the footing is gravel with dirt on top. I use stone dust to fill in the holes from pawing. One solution I found is don't let the horses in the barn, lol. they have a shed in the turnout, it has a dirt floor. Luckily whoever put the shed in has it in a good spot for drainage. They also have trees out there for shelter. I only use the stalls for feeding them and if they need to be confined for any reason which is almost never. If the weather is very bad I will put them in for a few hours. so for my use the dirt floor and sawdust works well. I have a rough concrete aisle, grooming area and wash stall.
linda
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