Peat bedding shed design

renandstimpy

HI , I have a shed that is a two bay wide by one bay deep with canopy out front .
I used it till now for housing machinery and fencing stakes .
I've sold a few bits I wasn't using and now going to split it with a telescopic gate (60mm tube ) .
I'm planning on housing a few extra cattle i have this year .
No concrete floor in shed only chippings , so I'm going using peat .

My question is have lads any pictures of how they use peat and what there barrier and under gate setup is like.

I dont want walls etc as I want to be able to clean out with front loader and change back to open shed again if I need too .

Thanks in advance ☺ R&S

bogman_bass

renandstimpy wrote: »

HI , I have a shed that is a two bay wide by one bay deep with canopy out front .
I used it till now for housing machinery and fencing stakes .
I've sold a few bits I wasn't using and now going to split it with a telescopic gate (60mm tube ) .
I'm planning on housing a few extra cattle i have this year .
No concrete floor in shed only chippings , so I'm going using peat .

My question is have lads any pictures of how they use peat and what there barrier and under gate setup is like.

I dont want walls etc as I want to be able to clean out with front loader and change back to open shed again if I need too .

Thanks in advance ☺ R&S

Will you get peat this year?

blue5000

Rain blowing in on peat is a disaster, so shed needs to sheeted down on 3 sides. Diagonal feed barrier hung on the pillars works, but having no concrete floor is a big no no.

renandstimpy

bogman_bass wrote: »

Will you get peat this year?

Think so .. waiting to hear back from a lad .

renandstimpy

blue5000 wrote: »

Rain blowing in on peat is a disaster, so shed needs to sheeted down on 3 sides. Diagonal feed barrier hung on the pillars works, but having no concrete floor is a big no no.

shed is sheeted on 3 sides with canopy out the front over feed area same as any cattle shed .
The shed is split in 2 .. im asking about keeping the peat insitu .. how are other lads doing it as im using a gate to split shed .

148multi

bogman_bass wrote: »

Will you get peat this year?

Well they're definitely not burning it

Base price

renandstimpy wrote: »

shed is sheeted on 3 sides with canopy out the front over feed area same as any cattle shed .
The shed is split in 2 .. im asking about keeping the peat insitu .. how are other lads doing it as im using a gate to split shed .

Your main problem is that you don't have a solid floor i.e. concrete. AFAIK you are required to have a concrete floor in a dry bedded shed. We have a shed (no concrete floor) that we use for storing round bales of straw/hay but we occasionally use some eyes as extra accommodation for calves/cattle. We get away with using it for cattle (DAFM regulations) because it was originally part of the stand off pad (since covered over) and has underground drainage pipes that drain into the slatted unit.
Re keeping the peat in situ - A few lengths of 6"x2" (doubled up if necessary) with rebar pins driven flush into the ground to hold them in place. IMO peat is the pits when used as bedding as it needs regular turning with a digger/loader/buckrake. We tried it once a few years ago and never again.

Just be aware if you get a CC inspection.

Donald Trump

Yes. As Base Price said above you can get stung if they check and the floor is not concreted.

How likely you are to be caught is something I don't know. All the sheds would be concreted here. 20 years ago none of them were except for one that had been grant-aided. Hayshed was left til last but there'd always be a year where you'd have to throw a few animals into an eye or two for a while and you'd be aware that you'd be in trouble if you got an inspection.

Concreted now though so it's not an issue.

DBK1

Base price wrote: »

Your main problem is that you don't have a solid floor i.e. concrete. AFAIK you are required to have a concrete floor in a dry bedded shed. We have a shed (no concrete floor) that we use for storing round bales of straw/hay but we occasionally use some eyes as extra accommodation for calves/cattle. We get away with using it for cattle (DAFM regulations) because it was originally part of the stand off pad (since covered over) and has underground drainage pipes that drain into the slatted unit.
Re keeping the peat in situ - A few lengths of 6"x2" (doubled up if necessary) with rebar pins driven flush into the ground to hold them in place. IMO peat is the pits when used as bedding as it needs regular turning with a digger/loader/buckrake. We tried it once a few years ago and never again.

Just be aware if you get a CC inspection.

A 9”x3” under the gate works the finest. A 6”x3” would be a bit too low.

Base is right, you are required to have a concrete floor but that’s up to yourself if you’re willing to take the risk on getting caught!

I’ve used peat the past two years and I’ll never use straw again for as long as peat is available even if I was getting the straw for nothing. I’ve never turned the peat either and there’s absolutely no need to unless you’ve put in too much in the first place. About 4 or 5 inches deep is plenty and after about 6 weeks clean in out and put in fresh peat. No turning it then and a completely labour free way of bedding compared to rolling out and forking around a bale of straw every second day. Not to mind the safety aspect of being in a shed full of cattle every 2 days.

The cattle are also a lot happier on the peat and clean off the very same as cattle out on grass. If you’re someone that will be selling cattle in the mart during the winter then they will stand out from the rest with how clean they will be.

Donald Trump

DBK1 wrote: »

A 9”x3” under the gate works the finest. A 6”x3” would be a bit too low.

Base is right, you are required to have a concrete floor but that’s up to yourself if you’re willing to take the risk on getting caught!

I’ve used peat the past two years and I’ll never use straw again for as long as peat is available even if I was getting the straw for nothing. I’ve never turned the peat either and there’s absolutely no need to unless you’ve put in too much in the first place. About 4 or 5 inches deep is plenty and after about 6 weeks clean in out and put in fresh peat. No turning it then and a completely labour free way of bedding compared to rolling out and forking around a bale of straw every second day. Not to mind the safety aspect of being in a shed full of cattle every 2 days.

The cattle are also a lot happier on the peat and clean off the very same as cattle out on grass. If you’re someone that will be selling cattle in the mart during the winter then they will stand out from the rest with how clean they will be.

But compare the peat to a fella with a straw chopper/blower so that the rolling out and safety issues of being in the shed aren't present

DBK1

Donald Trump wrote: »

But compare the peat to a fella with a straw chopper/blower so that the rolling out and safety issues of being in the shed aren't present

Yea that would eliminate the safety aspect but not the cost. I was using it in a 2 bay shed. I was using 3 bales of straw a week. Straw is €20 this year so that would be €60 a week. For 6 weeks that’d be €360. I’ve a trailer that holds 7 cubic metres of peat and it cost €13 per cubic metre, €91 for the load. That lasts me 6 weeks. Straw would have to be only €5 a bale to match that.

Base price

DBK1 wrote: »

A 9”x3” under the gate works the finest. A 6”x3” would be a bit too low.

Base is right, you are required to have a concrete floor but that’s up to yourself if you’re willing to take the risk on getting caught!

I’ve used peat the past two years and I’ll never use straw again for as long as peat is available even if I was getting the straw for nothing. I’ve never turned the peat either and there’s absolutely no need to unless you’ve put in too much in the first place. About 4 or 5 inches deep is plenty and after about 6 weeks clean in out and put in fresh peat. No turning it then and a completely labour free way of bedding compared to rolling out and forking around a bale of straw every second day. Not to mind the safety aspect of being in a shed full of cattle every 2 days.

The cattle are also a lot happier on the peat and clean off the very same as cattle out on grass. If you’re someone that will be selling cattle in the mart during the winter then they will stand out from the rest with how clean they will be.

Just wondering how many cattle/what age and how big was the shed.

We've stayed bedding with straw and in my situation there are no safety concerns rolling out a bale. I just lock the cattle out of the shed (in the yard) and the upside is that it keeps me sorta fit
I know of a pedigree beef breeder that bed all their cows on a mix of straw and peat. The mix seems to work well for them but they would skip out the sheds every few weeks.

DBK1

Base price wrote: »

Just wondering how many cattle/what age and how big was the shed.

We've stayed bedding with straw and in my situation there are no safety concerns rolling out a bale. I just lock the cattle out of the shed (in the yard) and the upside is that it keeps me sorta fit
I know of a pedigree beef breeder that bed all their cows on a mix of straw and peat. The mix seems to work well for them but they would skip out the sheds every few weeks.

It’s a 32 foot x 25 foot shed. It’s at the end of a slatted shed so I normally have the gate open to allow the cattle out to 1 bay of slays as well and I’d try and let them do most of their feeding off the slats. I normally keep some of the fattening stock there so there’d be 15 to 20 cattle there at any time and would range from 550kg white heads to 700kg limousines. All heifers.

Donald Trump

DBK1 wrote: »

Yea that would eliminate the safety aspect but not the cost. I was using it in a 2 bay shed. I was using 3 bales of straw a week. Straw is €20 this year so that would be €60 a week. For 6 weeks that’d be €360. I’ve a trailer that holds 7 cubic metres of peat and it cost €13 per cubic metre, €91 for the load. That lasts me 6 weeks. Straw would have to be only €5 a bale to match that.

Interesting. I had thought that the peat was more expensive when straw was a normal price.

Base price

DBK1 wrote: »

It’s a 32 foot x 25 foot shed. It’s at the end of a slatted shed so I normally have the gate open to allow the cattle out to 1 bay of slays as well and I’d try and let them do most of their feeding off the slats. I normally keep some of the fattening stock there so there’d be 15 to 20 cattle there at any time and would range from 550kg white heads to 700kg limousines. All heifers.

Ah, you've a slatted shed which IMO is a completely different scenario - it's sorta like comparing apples with turnips and not really a true representation of OP's question about peat bedding.

DBK1

Base price wrote: »

Ah, you've a slatted shed which IMO is a completely different scenario - it's sorta like comparing apples with turnips and not really a true representation of OP's question about peat bedding.

I’d say you’re well off with the apples and turnips comment, I’m comparing like with like in my own shed between straw and peat. Depending on shed space they don’t always have the luxury of having the bay of slats free so would often be closed in on the peat full time. Depending on weights I wouldn’t be going above 12 to 14 in that case and the peat still works just as well, only you might get a week or 10 days less out of it before cleaning it out. If this was the case when bedding with straw I’d be using an extra bale a week so the ratio of savings is still the same.

To be honest Base your the first person I’ve ever heard of that used peat and went away from it again. Around here anyone that uses it would never go back.

It also has the bonus of freeing up sheds around the yard as you don’t need all the storage for straw.

DBK1

Donald Trump wrote: »

Interesting. I had thought that the peat was more expensive when straw was a normal price.

One of the benefits of living near the bog is plenty of options for peat! It may be more expensive in other parts of the country when haulage has to be added but I’d be fairly confident it will still work out a lot cheaper than straw.

Reggie.

renandstimpy wrote: »

Think so .. waiting to hear back from a lad .

If so then this could be the only year. I think its days are numbered with the greens. Even private lads will be shut down I reckon

sandman30

Base price wrote: »

Your main problem is that you don't have a solid floor i.e. concrete. AFAIK you are required to have a concrete floor in a dry bedded shed. We have a shed (no concrete floor) that we use for storing round bales of straw/hay but we occasionally use some eyes as extra accommodation for calves/cattle. We get away with using it for cattle (DAFM regulations) because it was originally part of the stand off pad (since covered over) and has underground drainage pipes that drain into the slatted unit.
Re keeping the peat in situ - A few lengths of 6"x2" (doubled up if necessary) with rebar pins driven flush into the ground to hold them in place. IMO peat is the pits when used as bedding as it needs regular turning with a digger/loader/buckrake. We tried it once a few years ago and never again.

Just be aware if you get a CC inspection.

I think it depends when the shed was built, whether it needs a concrete floor or not (possibly 2007). That's certainly the case with sheep. We have some sheds built during the 80's that have gravel floors and they are fully compliant, no need to concrete them. Anything new built has to have a concrete floor to be compliant.

renandstimpy

sandman30 wrote: »

I think it depends when the shed was built, whether it needs a concrete floor or not (possibly 2007). That's certainly the case with sheep. We have some sheds built during the 80's that have gravel floors and they are fully compliant, no need to concrete them. Anything new built has to have a concrete floor to be compliant.

Shed built in 2004 .... if the floor was concreted.. which wouldn't be a massive job .. would I not also technically need a tank for urine etc collection .. or how would that work for compliance ? .

Say my name

Donald Trump wrote: »

Interesting. I had thought that the peat was more expensive when straw was a normal price.

I've a neighbour who was all straw bedding switched to peat for the last three years. I'd be in an area that's bordering on the home of straw and the lowest price in the country.
Their land and grass have never looked as good. This area is low in phosphorus. With peat being high in phosphorus it looks to be covering the land aspect to the convenience of it being delivered to them, to the convenience of bedding the stock on it.
There's different grades of bedding peat too.
It was highly valued in the past as land fertilizer mixed with animal dung.

sandman30

renandstimpy wrote: »

Shed built in 2004 .... if the floor was concreted.. which wouldn't be a massive job .. would I not also technically need a tank for urine etc collection .. or how would that work for compliance ? .

My understanding of the rules is that if there is no seepage out of the shed, there is no problem. Inspectors can also be fussy about straw/dung dragged outside the shed