What make parlour

Manorpark man

Hi lads following on From my previous post I think it’s likely I’m going with a new parlour now I’m asking what make?

Like the look of gascoinge and delaval have heard iffy stories about dairymaster and Pearson but am open to correction good and bad reviews all welcome thanks

Grueller

Manorpark man wrote: »

Hi lads following on From my previous post I think it’s likely I’m going with a new parlour now I’m asking what make?

Like the look of gascoinge and delaval have heard iffy stories about dairymaster and Pearson but am open to correction good and bad reviews all welcome thanks

Figure out who has the best back up service in your area and work from there is what I did. To be fair I was avoiding dairymaster anyhow as I just think their parlours are very light in construction.

Millionaire only not

Manorpark man wrote: »

Hi lads following on From my previous post I think it’s likely I’m going with a new parlour now I’m asking what make?

Like the look of gascoinge and delaval have heard iffy stories about dairymaster and Pearson but am open to correction good and bad reviews all welcome thanks

What had u heard about Pearson as I was thinking about going with them later this year !

GrasstoMilk

Millionaire only not wrote: »

What had u heard about Pearson as I was thinking about going with them later this year !

Have one here.. no major issues and any we have are sorted promptly, but ours is just a basic swing over lowline wash with auto wash..no removers, meters or fty.
I'd be quite happy to reccomend them to any one. Theres a good share of there parlours in the south east of the country now and a good dealer network built up

visatorro

backup is most important, they all give little bits of bother. talk to farmers aswell, dont mind salespeople

Manorpark man

What about full wood? Haven’t heard much about them either.... they’ve good tanks anyway

Millionaire only not

Manorpark man wrote: »

What about full wood? Haven’t heard much about them either.... they’ve good tanks anyway

Think they’ve abounded the Irish market last I heard No interest and poor network of technicians

_Brian

I worked installing and servicing machines for a time.

See who provides the best service in your area. I’m biased and would say Alfa have the best long lasting equipment in the market, if maintained it really does last well.

davidk1394

Looking at all the makes mentioned above at the moment.

Pearsons are the cheapest by a long shot but no back up around me

De Laval are the dearest for a mid spec parlor but I've a service man beside me, there's a lot of them around and I know them indide and out.

Fullwood have a top spec parlor at good money and theres a service man 30 minutes away and I know someone putting in a new one at the moment.

Dairy Master have a top spec parlor at good money, a new parlor is 3 minutes away and the service man is 30 minutes away. They draw up plans and provide a single isolation box included in the price

GEA have a new parlor near me. I milked in it a good few times and a service man is 1 hour away. No word from them about a price.

Gascoine is another option. There's a service person man near by but no parlors near me.

mycro2013

It would be hard to look past a delaval. The key point which is often overlooked is the cost of servicing and replacement parts for the relevant manufacturer's parlour.

Price a service, common wear parts and replacement pumps. The difference between manufacturers will surprise you.

Millionaire only not

Looked at last year’s ploughing, for me Pearson’s had the nicest cluster and I also liked gea very well finished! They have robotic rotary 2.5 million for 50 unit if that was any interest

Grueller

I actually thought Gascoignes lightweight cluster was my favourite.

Panch18

Personally i think Dairymasters cluster is the nicest to handle - but then i'm using it 300 days of very year for the last 15 years

We have dairymaster here - get on fine wit it. It breaks down an odd time, usually a sunday or bank holiday, - but i think they all do. So having good back up is probably the most important thing i would say

Bazzer007

The new Delaval Evanza light weight cartridge clusters look like a nice job. Rougly around €400 a unit but liners meant to last longer and easy to twist on and off. Thinking off upgrading the parlour as well but have no experiecne of Perasons, Fullwood or GEA.

Mooooo

Panch18 wrote: »

Personally i think Dairymasters cluster is the nicest to handle - but then i'm using it 300 days of very year for the last 15 years

We have dairymaster here - get on fine wit it. It breaks down an odd time, usually a sunday or bank holiday, - but i think they all do. So having good back up is probably the most important thing i would say

Haven't seen many others but a lot of clusters seem a way wider than the dairymaster ones. Would seem a pia for heifers the start of the year easy for them to catch with a kick

davidk1394

Mooooo wrote: »

Haven't seen many others but a lot of clusters seem a way wider than the dairymaster ones. Would seem a pia for heifers the start of the year easy for them to catch with a kick

Yrah the delaval clusters are a pain with new heifers or an awkward cow. One lift of the leg and their on the ground. The claw piece of a dairymaster is smaller and harder to kick off.

Panch18

Mooooo wrote: »

Haven't seen many others but a lot of clusters seem a way wider than the dairymaster ones. Would seem a pia for heifers the start of the year easy for them to catch with a kick

That would be exactly my thinking as well

I find the dairymaster nice and compact and easy to handle, and doesn’t get Int he way like you say

Tonynewholland

I’ve a fullwood. Well built machine very little maintenance. Very well priced I thought.

Manorpark man

Grueller wrote: »

I actually thought Gascoignes lightweight cluster was my favourite.

Yeah seen them clusters they’re tidy in fairness, rang delaval dealer for a quote today anyway

Timmaay

Grueller wrote: »

I actually thought Gascoignes lightweight cluster was my favourite.

I get on very well with Gascoigne here. Them lightweight clusters I remember at the time were something like a 2k extra for the 14unit, including the lighter shells, it was one of the only pure luxuries I put on in, and they have most certainly paid for themselves, I have never had one break or any issue with a shell. Only minor complaints about the Gascoigne is the wash cups etc have too many plastic components. Pearsons are getting a very good name for being a good value reliable parlour also.

jd_12345

Have a 12 unit Gascogne with acrs and indicators here with 14 years. Fairly trouble free. Vacuum pump went two years ago but other than that nothing much. Changed the meal mangers for head locking stalls- seriously good job for training heifers to the parlour as previously you might have to put in 15/16 to squeeze them up. The only problem we had was TBC issues with the dumpline and milk disappearing😣 Have that disconnected now and no issues. Service man local and helpful but dear. Air purge and cluster flush would be on the wish list here once finances allow😂
Overall very happy with the parlour

Manorpark man

Timmaay wrote: »

I get on very well with Gascoigne here. Them lightweight clusters I remember at the time were something like a 2k extra for the 14unit, including the lighter shells, it was one of the only pure luxuries I put on in, and they have most certainly paid for themselves, I have never had one break or any issue with a shell. Only minor complaints about the Gascoigne is the wash cups etc have too many plastic components. Pearsons are getting a very good name for being a good value reliable parlour also.

Was talking to a lad today and asked about his Pearson parlour and he reckons the electronic control boxes and a few bits quality wise weren’t great, couldn’t say much overall but good.... kinda have my mind between gascoinge and delaval atm now

farawaygrass

Panch18 wrote: »

Personally i think Dairymasters cluster is the nicest to handle - but then i'm using it 300 days of very year for the last 15 years

We have dairymaster here - get on fine wit it. It breaks down an odd time, usually a sunday or bank holiday, - but i think they all do. So having good back up is probably the most important thing i would say

In that instance do you have to wait for a Service guy to arrive and fix the problem? Could you end up missing a milking?

staples7

An old thread but would greatly appreciate any further feedback on gascoigne? Have only heard good things locally and look like a well built parlour. Priced fairly on par with DM but a bit cheaper than delaval. Looking at clusterflush, basic milk indicator, dumpline buckets and maybe autowash, airgates, cashman air feeders. 16 unit, room for 20.

Timmaay

staples7 wrote: »

An old thread but would greatly appreciate any further feedback on gascoigne? Have only heard good things locally and look like a well built parlour. Priced fairly on par with DM but a bit cheaper than delaval. Looking at clusterflush, basic milk indicator, dumpline buckets and maybe autowash, airgates, cashman air feeders. 16 unit, room for 20.

Why cluster flush out of interest? Ive heard of one lad who spent big money retrofitting one and ditched it very soon afterwards. What about an autowasher, one item I wouldn't be without, its a luxury item as such, but them 5 mins saved twice a day definitely all add up.

visatorro

Timmaay wrote:

Why cluster flush out of interest? Ive heard of one lad who spent big money retrofitting one and ditched it very soon afterwards. What about an autowasher, one item I wouldn't be without, its a luxury item as such, but them 5 mins saved twice a day definitely all add up.

No nothing about auto flush. The auto wash mightnt save that much time. But it's the feeling of just running away from the parlour thats worth the money!

staples7

Timmaay wrote: »

Why cluster flush out of interest? Ive heard of one lad who spent big money retrofitting one and ditched it very soon afterwards. What about an autowasher, one item I wouldn't be without, its a luxury item as such, but them 5 mins saved twice a day definitely all add up.

We dip clusters here in the old parlour so I think cluster flush would be a good idea. A lot of people are happy with it but a ome people say it’s a waste of time and money. It’s one of those things that if it saves you having a problem you won’t even know it.

farisfat

visatorro wrote: »

No nothing about auto flush. The auto wash mightnt save that much time. But it's the feeling of just running away from the parlour thats worth the money!

I know someone that put in auto wash and are having problems with tbc since and alot more detergent being used.

jd_12345

staples7 wrote: »

An old thread but would greatly appreciate any further feedback on gascoigne? Have only heard good things locally and look like a well built parlour. Priced fairly on par with DM but a bit cheaper than delaval. Looking at clusterflush, basic milk indicator, dumpline buckets and maybe autowash, airgates, cashman air feeders. 16 unit, room for 20.

Imo as good if not better than DM. Get the light clusters anyway! I've been looking at clusterflush and imo you'dd want to be sure its a problem that needs solving. Uses a lot of water and peracetic and if you've small children around the parlour it mightn't be the safest. Need a few spare pairs of socks available too with it
We have the basic indicator and i would recommend it. It's nowhere near perfect but its good to cop those off form cows.
Go for a COMPLETELY SEPARATE DUMPLINE with its own clusters. Had the ordinary one here and had to disconnect it to TBC. You should've seen the white build up on the bends that couldn't be moved.
Just use dump buckets here now.
Airgates I'm not sure are they necessary tbh. Have the right rope setup and it'd be grand but they don't really tend to give bother.
Cashman feeders here and have given no bother tbh. Need callibrating again 15 years after installation but no problems. Way beter job than pig feeders imo. Would love FTY but would find it hard to justify.
Defo go for the extra room.
Don't forget about crush and drafting area even if it means going for a unit or two less.
Imo auto wash is a waste of time. If you put it circulating and then go wash down the parlour you should be finsihed when the circulation is finished. If you encounter TBC issues you'll have to manually input powder detergent anyway so may as well not have it.
As already said, I've a very similar spec parlour and couldn't be happier tbh. Talk to other lads in your area with gascoigne parlours to gauge the backup. Don't ask the parlour man for numbers. Ask a few neighbours do they know anyone with one and approach them. Service man here is very dear but fantastic to get you out of a pickle and is excellent at his job

staples7

Great post & much appreciated!

Agreed good handling area and crush beside parlour is worth the money.

I have spoken to 5/6 lads locally and all good reports. Same situation online & theres a good Gascoigne service man nearby. So we could well end up going with them. The DM sales man is pestering us already and delaval are not really interested in the smallest of of negotiation. At 20k more than than the other 2 its hard to make sense of.

Interesting point about auto wash.

I think we will end up going with just dump buckets too (2k for the 3 buckets, clusters and vacuum line with connection points every 2 cows).

I dont think its possible to get 100% consensis on the parlour extras. Half will say they wouldnt live without something eg full dump line, autowash, cluster flush and the other half will say its a waste of time. So personal preference and your set up comes into it.

We have priced basic GMI indicators about 5k. Next step up ranges from 15-20k. AMI indicators or full ICAR approved with sample point. Long term you could maybe start to justify this but what annoys me then is that the software and installation to store the data is another 10k+. (Inc tag reader I think)

Only other extras I have priced is parlour mats which work out under 1k and teat dip points much the same. Down the road an auto drafter would be the way to go so will build it into plans.

jd_12345 wrote: »

Imo as good if not better than DM. Get the light clusters anyway! I've been looking at clusterflush and imo you'dd want to be sure its a problem that needs solving. Uses a lot of water and peracetic and if you've small children around the parlour it mightn't be the safest. Need a few spare pairs of socks available too with it
We have the basic indicator and i would recommend it. It's nowhere near perfect but its good to cop those off form cows.
Go for a COMPLETELY SEPARATE DUMPLINE with its own clusters. Had the ordinary one here and had to disconnect it to TBC. You should've seen the white build up on the bends that couldn't be moved.
Just use dump buckets here now.
Airgates I'm not sure are they necessary tbh. Have the right rope setup and it'd be grand but they don't really tend to give bother.
Cashman feeders here and have given no bother tbh. Need callibrating again 15 years after installation but no problems. Way beter job than pig feeders imo. Would love FTY but would find it hard to justify.
Defo go for the extra room.
Don't forget about crush and drafting area even if it means going for a unit or two less.
Imo auto wash is a waste of time. If you put it circulating and then go wash down the parlour you should be finsihed when the circulation is finished. If you encounter TBC issues you'll have to manually input powder detergent anyway so may as well not have it.
As already said, I've a very similar spec parlour and couldn't be happier tbh. Talk to other lads in your area with gascoigne parlours to gauge the backup. Don't ask the parlour man for numbers. Ask a few neighbours do they know anyone with one and approach them. Service man here is very dear but fantastic to get you out of a pickle and is excellent at his job

Grueller

staples7 wrote: »

Great post & much appreciated!


I think we will end up going with just dump buckets too (2k for the 3 buckets, clusters and vacuum line with connection points every 2 cows).

I have never seen a dump line like this before. You wouldn't have any links to a video of it? I am pulling vacuum pipes off at the moment and getting sick of cutting an inch off of the end of them when they get too loose. I have 2 dump buckets and had five in the first line this morning that are out of the tank. Pain in the rear changing dump buckets and waiting and watching for them to milk.

Mooooo

Grueller wrote: »

I have never seen a dump line like this before. You wouldn't have any links to a video of it? I am pulling vacuum pipes off at the moment and getting sick of cutting an inch off of the end of them when they get too loose. I have 2 dump buckets and had five in the first line this morning that are out of the tank. Pain in the rear changing dump buckets and waiting and watching for them to milk.

Can you use drafting to bring the cows to be kept out of tank around and milk them at the end of milking into a barrel or whatever or perhaps keep the fresh calved group separate while they are out of tank? Would save the use of buckets while numbers are there.

staples7

Grueller wrote: »

I have never seen a dump line like this before. You wouldn't have any links to a video of it? I am pulling vacuum pipes off at the moment and getting sick of cutting an inch off of the end of them when they get too loose. I have 2 dump buckets and had five in the first line this morning that are out of the tank. Pain in the rear changing dump buckets and waiting and watching for them to milk.

Cant find a video and ive done a bit of searching. Hopefully picture may explain it:

davidk1394

Grueller wrote: »

I have never seen a dump line like this before. You wouldn't have any links to a video of it? I am pulling vacuum pipes off at the moment and getting sick of cutting an inch off of the end of them when they get too loose. I have 2 dump buckets and had five in the first line this morning that are out of the tank. Pain in the rear changing dump buckets and waiting and watching for them to milk.

This is the system I installed. A vacuum line and 3 dump buckets. The buckets have their own pulsater so no messing with pipes

staples7

davidk1394 wrote: »

This is the system I installed. A vacuum line and 3 dump buckets. The buckets have their own pulsater so no messing with pipes

Same system to the screenshot I attached I think. Pulsators in the buckets. With the exception that your vacuum line runs along the passage rather than up high by milk line. Can you remember what they charged you foe that David?

davidk1394

staples7 wrote: »

Same system to the screenshot I attached I think. Pulsators in the buckets. With the exception that your vacuum line runs along the passage rather than up high by milk line. Can you remember what they charged you foe that David?

Roughly 2k. I think a proper dump line is up over 6k

staples7

davidk1394 wrote: »

Roughly 2k. I think a proper dump line is up over 6k

Yep that’s pretty much it. How are you finding clear sheets? Looks a great place to work in.

davidk1394

staples7 wrote: »

Yep that’s pretty much it. How are you finding clear sheets? Looks a great place to work in.

When the side sheeting is up and everything is running right I'll let you know. So far I am very pleased with it.

jd_12345

Grueller wrote: »

I have never seen a dump line like this before. You wouldn't have any links to a video of it? I am pulling vacuum pipes off at the moment and getting sick of cutting an inch off of the end of them when they get too loose. I have 2 dump buckets and had five in the first line this morning that are out of the tank. Pain in the rear changing dump buckets and waiting and watching for them to milk.

Get yourself a few hose clips for each bucket and adjust with vice grip. You'll get them in the co op. Nothing more sickening than the clusters falling off due to the hose slipping.

A bit of parlour porn for the Gascoigne fans!: https://www.facebook.com/Boumatic-Gascoigne-Melotte-917585411602487/

https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwj6jKXJmdPuAhUC6u0KHSx2C2sYABARGgJkZw&ae=2&ohost=www.google.com&cid=CAESQOD2BygjWxxmjH3jsq-0U91g4n38qDoqqJN-_6lQLybTn5SZkUSaj4R3z0oMVDZVrlaQL_0DPdeN_okcAUWS3L4&sig=AOD64_3khP4x7FXlHAB1Cp_bED-bTt-wzA&ctype=5&q=&ved=2ahUKEwiUuZ3JmdPuAhX-UBUIHdqFB_kQ9aACegUIBRCeAQ&adurl=

Mooooo

davidk1394 wrote: »

When the side sheeting is up and everything is running right I'll let you know. So far I am very pleased with it.

If next week comes as cold as they say it might be no harm to go thru and find all drain points etc to make sure ye can keep it clear. Source a space heater if ye can as well.

staples7

Parlour mats make a grand job of it as well as being good the operator.

Dinzee Conlee

I know nothing of parlours, we had a 6 a side at home when I was small and that’s all I know of them...

But, I watch this sheep farmer lad, and he did a video on a parlour - I was amazed. Are all new parlours like this, with the bar that lifts up?
Thought twas genius...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dgtFHOkBnDA

Nekarsulm

Dinzee Conlee wrote: »

I know nothing of parlours, we had a 6 a side at home when I was small and that’s all I know of them...

But, I watch this sheep farmer lad, and he did a video on a parlour - I was amazed. Are all new parlours like this, with the bar that lifts up?
Thought twas genius...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dgtFHOkBnDA

Probably only a few % of new parlours are "rapid exit" like that.
Went on a farm trip years ago with the Breffni Oriel fresian Club, up to Antrim to the village of Broughshane, and visited a farmer with one of those parlours.
Boumatic, I think it was called.

With both sides lifted after milking, the farmer whizzed up one side and down the other with a little Massey tractor and yard scraper....