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  Discussion on Disinfecting Barn after Moldy Hay
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Posted on Friday, Mar 1, 2002 - 6:35 pm:

I recently had to remove from my barn, and dispose of, two tons of molding Orchard Grass Hay. Much of the mold was on the surfaces of the bales... very little was actually inside the bales. My question is about disinfecting the barn due to the mold.
Everything has been vacuumed with a hepa filter, but some mold remains on boards supporting hay storage area. Do I need to disinfect to kill remaining mold? If I don't, will my new hay be 'contaminated' from the barn walls etc? What do I use to kill remaining spores, and in what dilution? This area is INSIDE of my barn, so I must use products the horses can safely breathe. In the meantime, the barn is wide open to 'air out' and horses are in the pasture. But they have no outdoor shelter, and when rains return (forecast for Monday) I will need to bring them into barn. Thanks. Jacki

Posted on Saturday, Mar 2, 2002 - 11:51 am:

Hello Jackie,
Actually the origin of the molds is mainly the hay itself. You only can prevent mold from forming by controlling moisture. If the hay was too wet when put up you need dryer hay. If the place it was stored was too wet you need to prevent it from becoming so. Simply sweeping the dust out should be all the cleaning necessary.
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Mar 2, 2002 - 1:13 pm:

Dr O
Thanks for your response.
Also, thanks for the very good news. I was wondering HOW one would adequately 'disinfect' a barn from any remaining airborne spores etc.
I shall put the new hay in an enclosed room that I can shut against the frequent heavy fog, and moisture from rain. Hopefully that will help out. (I live in SW Washington, so our climate is MOIST!)
Thanks for your reassurance!
Jacki

Posted on Sunday, Mar 3, 2002 - 8:34 am:

Jackie,
I am not familiar with having to deal with hay in such a wet area but, in general, enclosing the hay is a prescription for problems as the air temperature changes more rapidly than the hay can. When the hay or the surface the hay is on, becomes cooler than the air condensation forms.

Adequate ventilation is usually the key to keeping properly bailed hay from molding for two reasons. It prevents a prolonged buildup of air that has 100% humidity in it and when condensation forms it keeps it from settling by evaporating much quicker. If you do close the room up a dehumidifier may be necessary.
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Mar 3, 2002 - 11:36 am:

Dr O,
Thanks for your storage/humidity details. So it sounds as if the open area of the main barn is a better bet than an adjacent closed room. Lots more cross ventilation and air movement in the main barn area. I'll see what I can work out. Jacki

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 6, 2002 - 12:56 am:

Here's what people from wet climates have told me about keeping hay dry. Place a plastic tarp directly on the floor to form a moisture barrier. Then place a layer of pallets on top of the tarp. Stack the hay on top of the pallets allowing some space between adjacent bales. For extra precautions, you could add another tarp over the pallets and another layer of pallets over this second tarp before you stack the hay if you have concrete floors. During wet days, you could also use a large fan to blow air over the hay.

Nancy

Posted on Sunday, Mar 10, 2002 - 3:26 am:

I think I could be described as an expert on this... you might like to check the rainfall between Cork and SW Washington, I bet it's similar.

I'd say don't put space between the bales. Get your hay as dry as you can to start with - that's the key. But if possible stack it all together on your pallets or whatever (actually a hayloft was always the traditional way of doing it, keeping it off the ground and keeping the animals insulated above their stables in winter).

That way if you get some "burning" (microbial activity leading the hay to discolour brown) as the hay dries out further the hay will not rot, it will kind of become half-haylage and still be appetising for the horses. Obviously keep the actual rain out but keep as much ventilation as you can (we hook all the doors and windows of our haylofts open about 6 inches and only close them if there is a very bad gale).

Also every year I stick a few bales out thinking "they won't eat those, they're too manky" but they do with no ill effect. The key thing is to have nice stringy hay that hasn't been overfertilised in the first place. The stemmy, cattle-type stuff they hate, and can be very fussy about. If you can't protect well from the rain go for round bales which sort of "thatch" themselves rather than square bales.

all the best

Imogen

Posted on Sunday, Mar 10, 2002 - 12:06 pm:

Nancy and Imogen,
Thanks for your responses and suggestions. I appreciate hearing how other folks from wet climates manage the endless weather moisture issue.
It seems my worst enemy is the fog.... I think; and to a lesser degree the general humidity from the rain. I can keep all the hay in the barn away from the rain itself. I have noticed on mornings after a long night of fog the hay bales will actually have a 'moist' and more pliable feel to the surface of the hay. So I think the pervasive fog sort of 'rehydrates' it on the surface. Not sure how to handle that except perhaps shutting the barn up tight as possible at night.
Thanks again,
Jacki

Posted on Sunday, Mar 10, 2002 - 3:21 pm:

I really would keep the ventilation around the haystack as open as possible. It doesn't matter if the fog settles as long as it can dry out again as soon as possible.

Good luck, Jacki...

Posted on Monday, Mar 11, 2002 - 2:22 pm:

Thanks Imogen!
Jacki
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