My equine life
Well-Known Member
Is this ok? We have limited storage space and wondering if this is ok alternately ?
Leaving plastic wrap hay outside?
- Thread starter My equine life
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Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
It should be fine I have stored mine outside just make sure there are no holes if there are use duct tape to seal it up.
milliepops
Wears headscarf aggressively
This
Mine stays outside until its needed and provided no wildlife (or the horrid children from next door ?) have been at it, there's no issue.
My equine life
Well-Known Member
brilliant thank you so much!
Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
My equine life
Well-Known Member
hoping the rats won't go after them. would hate to waste so much hay.The pheasants and next doors peacocks like sitting on mine
milliepops
Wears headscarf aggressively
I would think rats would be unlikely. Birds do seem to be the main issue here but not too often. Or my flipping retired horse who likes to entertain herself now and then ?
My equine life
Well-Known Member
hahaha few! will take a risk then and have them kept outside. knowing my lot they won't last long anyway ahahahah!
PurBee
Well-Known Member
If it wrapped hay or haylage you can store outside with no issues, but make sure its not in a place that gets direct sun shining on the stock. If it gets warm during the day via sunshine shining on it, Wrapped hay condensates at nighttime cooler temperatures, and haylage ferments further causing it to become ‘vinegary’ smelling and beyond the point of tasty fermentation.
If you struggle to find a non sunny north corner shaded by a building to store the stock, use a white tarp to cover the lot, which will help reflect sunshine. A dark tarpaulin will absorb heat and transfer it to the bales underneath: not good.
haylage and cats claws puncturing tiny holes are a nighmare combo resulting in mould forming in the bales, so if youve got any clawed animals that love to climb on stacks, use a tarp.
If you struggle to find a non sunny north corner shaded by a building to store the stock, use a white tarp to cover the lot, which will help reflect sunshine. A dark tarpaulin will absorb heat and transfer it to the bales underneath: not good.
haylage and cats claws puncturing tiny holes are a nighmare combo resulting in mould forming in the bales, so if youve got any clawed animals that love to climb on stacks, use a tarp.
My equine life
Well-Known Member
would a bright blue tarp do? I can stack the majority next to the stable so it is in the shade for most of the day I should think.
milliepops
Wears headscarf aggressively
Mine gets full sun on it. I have a mixture of wrapped hay and fairly dry haylage. I can't say it's ever been a problem. I have 2 stacks in the field and another off site (OH makes it so its dotted all over the place according to whether it's for the field horses or to be taken off site )
I am informed by the expert here that if it goes vinegary then it wasnt made well
I am informed by the expert here that if it goes vinegary then it wasnt made well
ycbm
Einstein would be proud of my Insanity...
My hay was stored outdoors in full sunshine for up to six months with no issues at all.
My haylage is stored for up to eighteen months in the same place with no issues.
The only vinegar haylage I have ever had was badly made.
.
My haylage is stored for up to eighteen months in the same place with no issues.
The only vinegar haylage I have ever had was badly made.
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PurBee
Well-Known Member
Maybe its a climatic element at play then between your experiences and my own. It’s 80% humidity where i am for most of the year, and experience large temp curve between daytime temp and night for most of the year, thus ’dew point’ reached and condensation within any ‘bagged’ dry product resulting in mould.
All haylage bags ive used have printed on them advice not to store in direct sunlight.
Haylage should be, depending on type of grass being fermented, baled at 40-60% moisture for ideal fermentation to take place. Heat speeds this process up, and continues the fermentation beyond ideal if it was baled ‘too wet’...causing it to go vinegary.
Some suppliers ive dealt with produce very wet haylage, big baled at 70+ moisture levels, then when it gets to ideal sweet smelling state, its repackaged into 20kg bales and continues fermenting due to moisture still being present.
There’s more profit selling water weight than dry matter weight ?
Some suppliers swing the other way, they intend to make hay and it rains so bale and sell it as ‘haylage’ at 30% moisture without it fermenting thoroughly due to lack of moisture.
All haylage bags ive used have printed on them advice not to store in direct sunlight.
Haylage should be, depending on type of grass being fermented, baled at 40-60% moisture for ideal fermentation to take place. Heat speeds this process up, and continues the fermentation beyond ideal if it was baled ‘too wet’...causing it to go vinegary.
Some suppliers ive dealt with produce very wet haylage, big baled at 70+ moisture levels, then when it gets to ideal sweet smelling state, its repackaged into 20kg bales and continues fermenting due to moisture still being present.
There’s more profit selling water weight than dry matter weight ?
Some suppliers swing the other way, they intend to make hay and it rains so bale and sell it as ‘haylage’ at 30% moisture without it fermenting thoroughly due to lack of moisture.
Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
I store mine next to my garage so the horses can't get to them but the birds love them, the peacocks are worse they just love to peck at everything and they have an obsession with coming into my garden and fields at the moment, they are starting to be a real pain as they also try to get on our cars! I would get a large tarp it should protect them enough from the wildlife mainly birds lol! I don't think rats would bother chewing the plastic.
My equine life
Well-Known Member
we do have a few birds of prey that fly above our field. they may cause trouble!
Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
We have red kite mainly but they don't come to near the house so mine are pretty safe from them.
Will yours have to go in the field?
My equine life
Well-Known Member
Yes They will. Next to the stables but still in the field.
Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
I would cover them with something else and tape them off from the horses if you can as they bite them
milliepops
Wears headscarf aggressively
yeah definitely. Mine are all behind one or 2 electric fences because one of mine thinks she ought to be on an all you can eat buffetI would cover them with something else and tape them off from the horses if you can as they bite them
Pinkvboots
Well-Known Member
yeah definitely. Mine are all behind one or 2 electric fences because one of mine thinks she ought to be on an all you can eat buffet
I know my 2 would be at them
So naughty aren't they
ycbm
Einstein would be proud of my Insanity...
I'm sorry purbee but this makes no sense. Big haylage producers cannot store their product out of direct sunlight, they have acres of the stuff. And the top layer at the very back can sit there unsold for more than a year.
I have never seen a wrapper that says store away from direct sunlight. I had thirty bales delivered to a site in direct sunlight in September and not a word was said about it. But then, I would have ignored it. I've been stacking haylage there for twenty five years and never had a bale go off yet.
I have never seen haylage sold at more than 40% moisture and all the big producers here make it at 30 or 20.
You sound like you have some very dodgy haylage production practices near you. I have three very big, quality producers near me and all their stock is 30% moisture or less and stored in direct sunlight.
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My equine life
Well-Known Member
Ok will make sure to keep my girls out of nibbling reach !!