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Discussion on Stall Skins product any good?
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 - 8:55 pm:
Hi All,
Would anyone have any experience with the Stall Skins product you use to line your stall floor? They are supposed to allow urine to drain thru to the porous surface you put underneath and save on bedding costs. Do they really work -- does anyone know?
Kat
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Thursday, Nov 20, 2008 - 10:29 pm:
I have a friend that used the Stall Skins over packed sand/clay footing. She liked them a lot. I've only used mats over our concrete so don't have any first hand knowledge.
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Friday, Nov 21, 2008 - 7:39 am:
Thanks Sara, I worry when things sound too good to be true!
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Member:
erika
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Posted on Friday, Nov 21, 2008 - 9:57 pm:
Ooh, I would love to hear if anyone has experience with those.
I also use rubber mats over concrete. I have a trough that is filled with gravel that runs underneath to a septic field , but the urine still stays on top of the rubber.I guess the seams between the mats gunk up and keep it from draining through.
I wonder if it gets smelly with the stall skins when the under layer accepts the urine?
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Member:
erika
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Posted on Friday, Nov 21, 2008 - 9:59 pm:
BTW, KatR, I am in NJ too. What part are you in?
I am in Sussex County, township of Stillwater.
Erika
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Friday, Nov 21, 2008 - 11:21 pm:
I think the good thing about the stall skins, according to my friend, is that they can be undone from the walls, picked up pretty easily and allow for the dirt underneat to be refreshed. At least I know my friend does that about once a year. Of course, I do the same with my mats but they are heavy and I need to recruit some muscle power to pull them out of the stalls. Then I throughly clean the cement and let it dry before replacing the mats. I also do this once a year. My friend can remove the stall skins herself.
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Member:
cheryl
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 7:35 am:
Sara - you can move the rubber mats by yourself - grab a hay hook - lift up one end of the rubber mat - stick the hay hook into the mat on the underneath side and just walk away with it. I discovered this after spending most of a day trying to put mats in two stalls.
Cheryl
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Member:
ajudson1
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 8:52 am:
I have a woven nylon like covering on my stall floors. It comes off of the big rollers at the paper mill where my husband works, so it's pretty cheap if he can get it.
It's interesting stuff. You can see through and it also drains. And it's very tough; I've had it on the stall floors since we put the barn up, which has to be around 5 years now. I have 3/4" gravel under the mats, with sand under that. I had just the sand at first, but it came up through the mat.
My only complaint is it don't take long to get it all crappy and then it don't drain. I would think that would happen with any type of flooring that is porous.
This stuff is thin but extremely heavy. I have to attach vice grips to it to move it. I take it up once a year, use a pressure washer on it, and level the gravel in the stalls.
I don't use bedding except for what hay they lay on if locked in. 2 of the stalls are open 24/7, and they don't get too bad with urine build up ever, just manure, so there is some drainage; just very slow to drain.
I guess there are pros and cons to all types of flooring, free or very expensive types!
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Member:
dres
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 10:21 am:
I use reg. mats on top of compacted dirt... my bedding is the wood pellets and some shavings.. i use very little of both and only on the pee spots... i more or less have potty trained my stalled horses.. * the gelding will wait till i take him out to pee, he will pee before i bring him in and when i take him out.. and only once in the middle of the night on his 'pee' spot.. *
I move them with clamps if need be.... hardly ever tho..
On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with spots.
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 6:38 pm:
Ann, I'm sending you a couple of my horses to potty train!
Cheryl, I'll try your method next time I need to move mats, but I have a feeling you might have either lighter mats or are stronger than I am.
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Member:
savage
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 8:48 pm:
when I moved mine I folded them in half and grabbed it with a hand on each side of the "arch" and pulled backwards, still on the heavy side but much easier to deal with.
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Member:
cheryl
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 9:21 pm:
 Nope -- they were the regular 4X8 regular stall mats - heavy dudes - the hay hook just provides a really good handle making it much easier to move them.
Cheryl
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Member:
mrose
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Posted on Saturday, Nov 22, 2008 - 11:58 pm:
Cheryl, I think my method of moving them is much easier....just call my husband to help!
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Sunday, Nov 23, 2008 - 8:25 am:
Hi Erika,
I am in Monmouth county in Cream Ridge,right near the Horse Park of NJ, smack in the middle of all the Standardbred breeders. Beautiful area if you are ever down here let me know.
Kat
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Sunday, Nov 23, 2008 - 8:35 am:
Thanks for your input on these. I think I will order them. They told me to dig a 2 x 2 leach pit in the center of each stall and fill with gravel topped with landscape fabric} and sand to help drainage and also to pour diluted disinfectant thru it once in awhile to control smell. Hopefully this may help. I'll give it a try...
If not, perhaps Sara's husband will fly out to help me move them and or Ann can teach Steel not to pee everywhere including up the walls!
Thanks all
Kat
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Member:
rtrotter
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Posted on Sunday, Nov 23, 2008 - 11:40 am:
Hi Kat,
I'm your next door neighbor, I live in New Egypt right next to Stanley and Vernon Dancer's farms.
Nice to meet a neighbor:-)
Rachelle
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Sunday, Nov 23, 2008 - 1:11 pm:
Nice to meet you too Rachelle, I'll honk next time I drive by!
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Member:
erika
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Posted on Sunday, Nov 23, 2008 - 5:26 pm:
Fellow Jersey Girls! There are a lot of us on this site.
Yes, KatR, I've been to the Horse Park, and I have ridden in the Monmouth ride/drive pace a couple of times. Nice footing down there. Not as rocky as up here in the highlands.
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Member:
paul303
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 12:15 am:
Hi, Erika!! Kat and Rachelle, I am in Waterford Works, on the Pine Barrens....Exit 7! Then down 206. Been to the Horse Park many times - meet my niece there when she comes down to show from Canada! As you know, Erika, I hail from N.Jersey ( Bergen County )and found out when I moved to S.Jersey, if you want rocks down here, you have to BUY them! Big Hi! to all you Jersey Girls!!
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Member:
rtrotter
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 9:14 am:
Lee,
I am familiar with Bergen County, I moved to Rivervale when I was 18 and my father and stepmother lived there until th mid 90's.
We Jersey girls should get together for Breakfast some morning.
Rachelle
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Member:
silly
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 9:23 am:
OK, from one Jersey Girl to the others, I'm from Passaic County, close to Meadowland race track. Visit the Horse Park at least 2x a year. Nice to know there are so many of you on this board!
Silvia
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 9:41 am:
Yes breakfast would be fun!
Let's hope NJ can keep what's left of it's open space so there will continue to be places for all of us Jersey girls to horse around!
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Member:
erika
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 10:54 am:
Better make it lunch--you southerners are a good two to three hours from me! I'm in the far NW corner.
Silvia, email me again, I can't figure out which one is your email address. I have a lead on a hunter for you.
Erika
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Member:
silly
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Posted on Monday, Nov 24, 2008 - 11:06 am:
That's super, Erika, thanks!!! zesty418@hotmail.com
Silvia
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008 - 8:26 am:
FYI on this, I did order the Stall Skins and installed them over stone leach pits as instructed and they are AMAZING. If anyone was considering them I wanted to let you know they are worth the money,were easy to install and have drastically reduced the amount of bedding I have to pull out as they advertised.
Just FYI for anyone who might be curious.
Kat
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Member:
muffi
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Posted on Wednesday, Dec 3, 2008 - 6:14 pm:
are they soft? or like the hard rubber matts?
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Member:
kathrynr
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Posted on Thursday, Dec 4, 2008 - 7:50 am:
Muffi the best description is a thick felt like material. They sure have made my life a bit easier! You can see them on their website www.stallskins.com
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