Hay Storage

With winter just around the corner many people are scrounging around doing their best to get their winter hay in order. This saves them from having to pay the steep prices that go along with mid-late winter hay price hikes. If you have the space to store your hay it can save a lot of money. When doing this though, safety precautions have to be taken to prevent the risks of fire and spoilage. There are a few measures one can take to ensure that your hay is stored properly.

The easiest way to ensure that your hay does not become a fire risk or become spoiled is to take preventative measures. When you by your hay make sure that it is not damp when it is baled. If the hay has not been dried properly, or has been left on the field too long, you run the risk of it being damp when it is baled. You need to check the centers of the bales for dampness. The other thing that can give you an idea of whether it has been baled damp is if it is unusually heavy. Damp centered bales are often much heavier than non-damp bales. Keep an eye on what the weather has been like the days before you get hay, if it rained a day or 2 before you can be sure that they hay is damp. Also if the mornings are dewy and the bales on the fields have only been baled a few hours into the morning then there hasn't been enough time for the hay to properly dry before baling. This is not an issue if you will be feeding it within a few weeks but long-term storage will be a problem.

The other factor is how tightly the bales are baled. You do not want your bales falling apart but if they are baled to tightly they will hold heat. You need room for the hay to breath so you don't want overly tight bales stored together. They will reheat and become a fire risk. This same problem will also spoil your hay, as it is a great breeding ground for mold.

How you stack your hay will also reduce the risk of hay spoilage or fire. You want to leave room between the bales for air circulation. Bales should be stacked differently in alternating rows. You stack one row with the bales flat and the next row on their ends. Leave about a hands width between each bale so that the air can travel around the bales. This will help reduce the risk of bales heating up.

Storing bales in lofts of barns with animals in it is always a risk. If you do, make sure your loft has good air circulation with vents or cupolas and if necessary install fans to increase the circulation. Never store damp or rained on hay in a loft as it poses a high risk for fire. If you have lights in your loft, never stack the hay high enough that they could heat up the hay and pose a fire risk. Stack the hay as described in the last paragraph and you will minimize your risk.

Another trick is to leave a bit of a bed of dry hay below your bales it will absorb the moisture and prevent your bottom row of bales from rotting. Stack off the ground if you are not storing in a loft. In a building with concrete floors, be sure to store the hay on wooden pallets as the ground holds moisture and will rot the bales

Check your bales of hay often. You want to check for moisture or heat in the bales. Hay fires usually happen within the first 6 weeks of baling, this does not mean that it can't happen in older hay but 6 weeks is the usual time frame. This is because freshly cut hay is not technically “dead”, respiration continues and a small amount of heat is produced in this time. This heat, although a small amount, is the perfect breeding ground for the microorganisms to produce and thus rot the bales. They can, depending on your location and the weather, go through a few heat cycles in the weeks following baling, so close monitoring is important. If bales are rotting dispose of them immediately. They are a fire hazard and the moist bales could rot the rest of your hay.

To check for heat in bales there is an easy trick. Use a metal rod about 3/8 of an inch in diameter and drive it into the center of the bale. Leave the rod in for 10-15 mins. When you pull it out check it with your bare hands.

If the rod is comfortable to touch with your bare hands then the temperature is below 130 degrees Fahrenheit.

If it is uncomfortable to hold than the temperature is between 130 to 160 degrees Fahrenheit. At this point you should move the bales around to give better circulation and monitor the hay frequently.

If the rod is just too hot to hold than the temperature is above 160 degrees Fahrenheit, there is a fire or one is imminent. At that point you should call your fire department immediately.

It is always a good idea to use a few rods at the same time. This gives you a better idea on how your hay is doing, instead of relying on one bale.

The most important this to remember is that if the rod is too hot to hold than a fire is imminent or has already started. DO NOT move the bales. Doing so could spark a fire or explosion. Call the fire department and start hosing of the hay. By moving the bales you could give the bales the needed oxygen to start a full-blown fire or explosion, instead of the smoldering type fire that is probably in progress at that point.

In the event that you find yourself in a full blown hay fire or see or smell smoke the same procedure should be taken, call the fire department, if there are visible flames knock them down then start hosing. BUT remember your life is more important, if there is a risk simply do not put yourself in that position. Just remember NEVER move the bales till the fire risk is gone.

A barn fire is every horse persons worst nightmare, nothing is more devastating. Hay is usually the worst offender. Prevention is the best way to avoid these disasters.

References:

Prather, Timothy G., National Ag. Safety Database. Hay Fires: Prevention and Control (2002). Retrieved July 23 rd , 2005.

Megan Dykeman- 2004 (c)

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