Hay bale comparison

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poiuytrewq

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I'm about to run out of hay but by the state of my fields am still going to be needing it a while yet.
I have the option of large round bales, small regular ones or a 6 string rectangle.
All decent hay so its down to price.
Would anyone know roughly how many small standard bales to the other two?
Obviously will differ on weight etc but a rough estimate would be good.
 
Might be better to go by weight, round bales come in a range of sizes as do small bales so really hard to judge. Can the supplier give you an idea of how much each of the options weighs?
 
Round bales can be very variable in weight. roughly 200kg for decent bales

Small bales come in two sizes 12"x18" and 14"x18" decent 3 ft bales weighing in at 20kg and 25kg respectively

There are a number of big square bales

120 x90 x2.5M weigh 500kg

120x70x2.5 weigh 400kg

80x70 x2.5 weigh 250 kg

80x90 x2.5 weigh 330kg

90x60x2.5 weigh 250 kg
Weights of big square bales are far more consistent than round bales. Check the klength of the bale ,it makes a biig difference .
Always check that your horse will eat what you intend to buy .Regardless of how good it looks to you.
 
Theres often a bit more wastage with round bales as they are sometimes not brought in straightaway so get some weathering on the outside which doesnt get eaten readily.

Judging by my sheeps approach our round bales are only about 8 small bales worth.

So it does depend on the round baler, they come in lots of slightly different sizes depending on the baler make and model.

Rectangles tend to be more easy to assess once you know the dimensions, they are generlaly baled quite tightly. May be easier to store too.
 
Mm, not that easy then! I know only too well about buying lovely looking hay that they refuse to touch (now taste it myself ;)) apparently nitrogen gives a bitter taste I'm good at sussing what they won't eat (god knows what suppliers may think of me!). Ok thanks gives me a vague idea anyway! Appreciated
 
My two horses eat about 1 and three quarters of an average small bale a day, we have large haylage bales in winter that are more like wrapped hay, and a bale lasts me between eight and ten days..
 
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