Hay bale sizes

[Sossigpoker]

Hi
Wondering if I could have some advice on large bale vs small bale of hay and how economical they are.
The yard im at has large bales, owner estimates what you use and then bills you.
(I've been paying £60 per month and apparently it's going up again. )
I'm using about 11-13 kg of hay per day and I wonder if it would be more or less economical if I sourced my own , small bales.
Does anyone know how much a small bale of hay weighs?

Any ideas and suggestions welcome!

 

[AmyMay]

Seems expensive. How can they estimate. Most yards that I know of charge a flat rate.

 

[PurBee]

How much small bales weigh varies considerably. My own homemade weigh a healthy, chunky 20kg. I’ve never ever bought from outside a 20kg bale. The average good sized ones are around 15kg - ones i sourced this year were a paltry 10-12kg.

The looser the farmer bales them, the more money he makes, as theyre sold ‘per bale’ rather than ‘per kilo’ , so they make every effort to set the baler as loose as possible creating light fluffy bales.

So if youre using 11-13 kg per day, with my current light bales that would cost you 3.50 per day…so 60 quid a month youre currently paying is a bargain!

It costs me from 210-300 per month in just hay for 2 horses - 20kg per day - when buying it in in small bales of hay or haylage, various sources + delivery/fuel.

Even if your yard owner put it up to 100, thank your lucky stars….its there, at your barn, you havent had to ring around, go and check various sources possible hours away, load and fetch it all and unload it. Truly, sourcing hay, storing, dealing with crap quality etc is the only reason id ever get out of horses. Its a headache beyond belief and if youve got a good source sitting right there at your yard, youve got a goldmine and dont realise! I’d pay anything! ?

 

[Shoei]

It depends on the make of baler and how well they are packed to be honest. We make our own and sell surplus but our bales are about 24kg each. If we were making to sell they wouldn't be as heavy.

Bear in mind when looking at hay prices, alot of fuel goes into making hay, which has gone up. So has fertiliser which has just gone up again so hay will be becoming more expensive. I probably won't sell any surplus incase it isn't financially viable to make hay next year due to increase costs.

 

[Peglo]

I think you can get anywhere from 10-15 square bales in a round one. Round ones are usually cheaper but obviously harder to handle and store. As for weight of bales it’s hard to say. We bale our own hay and the weight of bale between our two fields is really different. Same farmer bales it but new grass in one field so guess that’s what makes them heavier.

 

[Sossigpoker]

How much small bales weigh varies considerably. My own homemade weigh a healthy, chunky 20kg. I’ve never ever bought from outside a 20kg bale. The average good sized ones are around 15kg - ones i sourced this year were a paltry 10-12kg.

The looser the farmer bales them, the more money he makes, as theyre sold ‘per bale’ rather than ‘per kilo’ , so they make every effort to set the baler as loose as possible creating light fluffy bales.

So if youre using 11-13 kg per day, with my current light bales that would cost you 3.50 per day…so 60 quid a month youre currently paying is a bargain!

It costs me from 210-300 per month in just hay for 2 horses - 20kg per day - when buying it in in small bales of hay or haylage, various sources + delivery/fuel.

Even if your yard owner put it up to 100, thank your lucky stars….its there, at your barn, you havent had to ring around, go and check various sources possible hours away, load and fetch it all and unload it. Truly, sourcing hay, storing, dealing with crap quality etc is the only reason id ever get out of horses. Its a headache beyond belief and if youve got a good source sitting right there at your yard, youve got a goldmine and dont realise! I’d pay anything! ?

I was thinking that I'd be using almost a bale a day with small bales but just wanted to check my thinking with someone else .
Just in case I was mistaken!

It's just that I'm kind of over a barrel as I understand that a big square bale is anything from 45-60 quid and there is no way Im using over a bale of those per month !
Especially as I weigh my nets for my cob !

 

[angel7]

Ask to buy 1 big bale at the yard and have it put aside for you. I bet you will only be using 1 month...

 

[Sossigpoker]

Ask to buy 1 big bale at the yard and have it put aside for you. I bet you will only be using 1 month...

I asked and the answer was no ....
I suspect you're right.

 

[angel7]

Are you allowed to buy outside hay?
If you have transport you could still buy 1 a month elsewhere.

 

[Sossigpoker]

Are you allowed to buy outside hay?
If you have transport you could still buy 1 a month elsewhere.

I'd have to keep it at home and wouldn't be able to get a large bale into my garage so would be limited to small bales if I did that.

 

[paddy555]

taking the size of one small bale with another then you may be using just over half a bale a day so say 4 bales pw at £5 per bale x 4 weeks = £80 so what you are paying at £60 is not so far out.

you also don't have the final para of post no. 3. above.
I buy my hay in bulk from one good supplier so I get through the winter OK with plenty to spare. Individuals buying for one horse are not so lucky. If there is a hay shortage in Mar they are the ones to suffer. Prices are sky high and often none to be had. They are going into spring, onto spring grass, worrying about colic and laminitis but have nothing but grass to feed. Hay would solve all their problems

If your yard can supply good quality hay throughout the winter be grateful.
Don't forget if you store hay in your garage you are liable to get some "pets" as well.

 

[jules9203]

I don't know where you are based but small bale hay here is £6 - £6.50 per bale delivered. I pay £40 for large bale hay (approx 10 bales) During the winter my 8 liveries use 2.5 large bales a week. In the summer 1 bale per week. Hay is included in my livery. However if I had the space (which I don't) I would definitely go down the route of supplying your own.

 

[Lipglosspukka]

I paid £3 a bale this year and wouldn't expect my horse to eat more than half a bale a night.

So yes, to me it seems expensive.

 

[PurBee]

I was thinking that I'd be using almost a bale a day with small bales but just wanted to check my thinking with someone else .
Just in case I was mistaken!

It's just that I'm kind of over a barrel as I understand that a big square bale is anything from 45-60 quid and there is no way Im using over a bale of those per month !
Especially as I weigh my nets for my cob !

Theres 2 types of large squares commonly in use - could be other but generally the 2 larger squares are 200kg and 350kg roughly. Its the 200kg ones that are more common and the average haymaker tends to make, than the 350kg ones.

So if youre using 10-13kg per day x 30 days = 300kg-390kg you need per month - so would be using 1.5-2 of large square 200kg bales. Even at 45 quid a bale, youre getting a good deal.
Factor in that the hay has had to be machined around, loaded, unloaded, etc to get it to the yard, the costs of those aspects of having hay on site ready for use - seriously at 60 per month youre only paying at worst 20p per kilo for minimum 300 kilo’s use - delivered / on site ready for use - thats an absolute bargain! I have never ever been able to get hay here for that little per kilo - except hay thats mouldy and shoite and given away that i wouldnt use anyway!
I wet myself if i can get hay on my yard for less than 50p per kilo these days, my forage bill is thousands annually for 2 horses - truly, youre bill is very reasonable.…worship the ground your YO walks on, even if they hike the price! ?

 

[Shoei]

I paid £3 a bale this year and wouldn't expect my horse to eat more than half a bale a night.

So yes, to me it seems expensive.

That's a great rate! It costs me about that much to make

 

[Sossigpoker]

Theres 2 types of large squares commonly in use - could be other but generally the 2 larger squares are 200kg and 350kg roughly. Its the 200kg ones that are more common and the average haymaker tends to make, than the 350kg ones.

So if youre using 10-13kg per day x 30 days = 300kg-390kg you need per month - so would be using 1.5-2 of large square 200kg bales. Even at 45 quid a bale, youre getting a good deal.
Factor in that the hay has had to be machined around, loaded, unloaded, etc to get it to the yard, the costs of those aspects of having hay on site ready for use - seriously at 60 per month youre only paying at worst 20p per kilo for minimum 300 kilo’s use - delivered / on site ready for use - thats an absolute bargain! I have never ever been able to get hay here for that little per kilo - except hay thats mouldy and shoite and given away that i wouldnt use anyway!
I wet myself if i can get hay on my yard for less than 50p per kilo these days, my forage bill is thousands annually for 2 horses - truly, youre bill is very reasonable.…worship the ground your YO walks on, even if they hike the price! ?

Fab thanks for doing the maths , I feel loads better now !

 

[jnb]

I buy excellent meadow hay at £4.50 a bale stacked and delivered, in 4 years I have had 2 bad bales which they replaced with 3.
I use 4-5 bales a week in the worst of winter and on average 2 per week all year round - through Winter that's £96 a month on hay, so if your horse is stabled a lot or hay is fed in the field (or there's no turnout!) I'd say you're getting a bargain. Although if horse is turned out all summer then maybe it averages out?
Believe me, unless you have a lovely hay supplier like I do who will deliver and stack and lock the gate behind him, hay deliveries are a pain and it gets everywhere! Storing at home would be very messy and carrying it in your car even more so.

 

[Regandal]

Presumably if they are buying the hay in bulk they are getting it at a good price. One large round bale lasts a month for my horse in the winter, obviously intake varies, he’s a 16hh tb type.
If you have no storage, there’s not a lot you can do unfortunately.

 

[milliepops]

i've always found small bales uneconomical compared to big ones when I've been buying my own. the cost of producing them is greater - more handling etc. I love small bales for ease of filling haynets etc but OH is the one who puts in the grunt work making mine so I don't get to choose! he only does small bales for people who don't have the kit to handle big bales. My horses at the yard are predominantly stabled in winter (short turnout period in the day) and I get thru a big round every 10 days, it would be super expensive to buy in small bales.

 

[chocolategirl]

How much small bales weigh varies considerably. My own homemade weigh a healthy, chunky 20kg. I’ve never ever bought from outside a 20kg bale. The average good sized ones are around 15kg - ones i sourced this year were a paltry 10-12kg.

The looser the farmer bales them, the more money he makes, as theyre sold ‘per bale’ rather than ‘per kilo’ , so they make every effort to set the baler as loose as possible creating light fluffy bales.

So if youre using 11-13 kg per day, with my current light bales that would cost you 3.50 per day…so 60 quid a month youre currently paying is a bargain!

It costs me from 210-300 per month in just hay for 2 horses - 20kg per day - when buying it in in small bales of hay or haylage, various sources + delivery/fuel.

Even if your yard owner put it up to 100, thank your lucky stars….its there, at your barn, you havent had to ring around, go and check various sources possible hours away, load and fetch it all and unload it. Truly, sourcing hay, storing, dealing with crap quality etc is the only reason id ever get out of horses. Its a headache beyond belief and if youve got a good source sitting right there at your yard, youve got a goldmine and dont realise! I’d pay anything! ?

Baling them too loosely makes them very difficult to stack safely so maybe if you’re buying straight from the field, this is the case, but otherwise, I’d be surprised any farmer would be doing this as it makes the stack dangerous to handle. In answer to the OP’s question, it could be that this is your yards only way of making any profit? We make our own hay and sell to our liveries, I don’t allow it to be brought in. If I did, I would be closing my yard as I’d be working ata big loss ?

 

[Polos Mum]

A good weight cob type in normal riding club level work would need 1/2 a small bale in overnight if there was grass in the field and in worst weather when there is no grass closer to 1 bale a day - especially if in all the time.

So to buy separately might be - 20 bales per month in the shoulder months increasing to 30 in peak winter.

The very cheapest small bales would be £3 - 3.50 per bale and around Yorkshire they were up to £6.50 - £7 a bale for total rubbish at the end of this winter.

Your £60 would buy you 17 cheap bales but maybe as few as 9 if they are pricey in your area / in worst of the weather.

I don't think you have too bad a deal at all.

 

[PurBee]

Baling them too loosely makes them very difficult to stack safely so maybe if you’re buying straight from the field, this is the case, but otherwise, I’d be surprised any farmer would be doing this as it makes the stack dangerous to handle. In answer to the OP’s question, it could be that this is your yards only way of making any profit? We make our own hay and sell to our liveries, I don’t allow it to be brought in. If I did, I would be closing my yard as I’d be working ata big loss ?

Oh you’d be surprised how farmers can manage to stack light bales, and sure, they can’t stack them high at all, as it becomes a wobbly tower of pisa. The highest stacks ive visited had heavier bales and vice versa: lighter bales, short messy stacks.
I’ve been weighing all bales that i get from multiple suppliers now over the years, and the average bale is 15kg. Im very chuffed if its 18kg, but thats rare for my area. If its damp musty yuk then sure it weighs more. I now have size/weight of perfect squares in my body memory so if pick up a smallish bale and its heavy, i know it’ll be moulding inside and was baled early with a moisture content in the 30’s, that i confirm with my moisture tester, which i take with me now to hay visits! Im a hay sleuth!

The amount of times i’ve had ‘trial bales’ - “see how you get on” -nice, heavy, well made clean hay - from their own personal supply, only to agree to buy 200 of them and i come home with ’sale supply’ bales that are baled loose and moulding. Hence my hay obsession now! ?

Agreed, the cost of making hay is higher than commonly known. I make a bit for myself. Hoping to make my whole ration next year as ive re-seeded. Its not easy work at all.…weather dependent etc. Lots of expensive equipment needed and maintenance of it etc. So really nice, well-made hay is worth paying for. I wouldnt expect a livery yard to sell me their homemade hay at cost - theyre running a business afterall.
Id only question cost if it was alot higher than average market rate and the hay quality was poor. Yet truly the quality of the hay matters so much more than cost.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I pay £30 for large bales of hay for 2 small horses it is lasting around 6 to 7 weeks in winter it lasts 5 to 6 weeks depending on weather, small bales are £4.50 in winter i will easily use 1 bale a day it works out cheaper for big bales, I suppose what price you can get small bales for and how good they are it might work out cheaper.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

You will massively regret storing hay in a garage we did it once never again, it was running alive with mice they chewed everything and it stank

 

[chocolategirl]

Oh you’d be surprised how farmers can manage to stack light bales, and sure, they can’t stack them high at all, as it becomes a wobbly tower of pisa. The highest stacks ive visited had heavier bales and vice versa: lighter bales, short messy stacks.
I’ve been weighing all bales that i get from multiple suppliers now over the years, and the average bale is 15kg. Im very chuffed if its 18kg, but thats rare for my area. If its damp musty yuk then sure it weighs more. I now have size/weight of perfect squares in my body memory so if pick up a smallish bale and its heavy, i know it’ll be moulding inside and was baled early with a moisture content in the 30’s, that i confirm with my moisture tester, which i take with me now to hay visits! Im a hay sleuth!

The amount of times i’ve had ‘trial bales’ - “see how you get on” -nice, heavy, well made clean hay - from their own personal supply, only to agree to buy 200 of them and i come home with ’sale supply’ bales that are baled loose and moulding. Hence my hay obsession now! ?

Agreed, the cost of making hay is higher than commonly known. I make a bit for myself. Hoping to make my whole ration next year as ive re-seeded. Its not easy work at all.…weather dependent etc. Lots of expensive equipment needed and maintenance of it etc. So really nice, well-made hay is worth paying for. I wouldnt expect a livery yard to sell me their homemade hay at cost - theyre running a business afterall.
Id only question cost if it was alot higher than average market rate and the hay quality was poor. Yet truly the quality of the hay matters so much more than cost.

Ours is lovely hay, heavy bales, £4 each delivered to clients storage areas ?

 

[paddy555]

it was running alive with mice

ah, little "pets" could have been worse, larger "pets"

 

[PurBee]

Ours is lovely hay, heavy bales, £4 each delivered to clients storage areas ?

Sounds perfect - i’ll take 1000 -do you deliver to Ireland?! ??

(i actually did enquire haulage of 5 tonnes from uk to ire - 1600 pounds transport costs…i am still tempted to go for it compared to cost of sourcing, transporting then throwing away bad hay locally)

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

ah, little "pets" could have been worse, larger "pets"

I'm glad it was mice I can't deal with rats we do have a JRT but we were still running alive.