Stable De-odouriser

[apple88]

Hi,

I've just put in some rubber mats and I saw on a post here the other day that you can get de-odourising products, the one I heard was Equifresh.

I was just wondering what people use to keep their stables fresh, and how often do you clean the mats (i.e. remove them and clean) and what you use to keep them sweet.

I am not planning on skimping with the bedding as my girlie likes to lie down and i want her to be comfy!

Thanks

 

[stacey111]

I clean my stable out fully every week but I scrub the mats with jays fluid every month ish! Let them air out then bad back down, I'm not sure if this is right or wrong but it works for me and my stable smells good all of the time!

 

[stacey111]

Bed!

 

[Spyda]

Seal your mats if you can! Unsealed mats, no matter what type or depth of bedding is laid on top, will eventually smell as urine will seep underneath them. I've got a pretty unconventionally sized stable with a concrete floor and have solid rubber mats laid (the standard black heavy 6' x 3' ones) and my husband sealed the gaps between them and against the wall edge with waterproof roof silicon (using a silcon gun). The difference it made was significant! The seal only lasted us a year before it needed re-doing as I've a big (16.3hh) very restless horse who managed to dislodge some of the between-mat seals but it's easy and cheap enough to do annually if you have to.

If you can't (or don't want to) seal your mats, I can highly recommend Green Gloop from Fieldguard to deodorise and disinfect your mats weekly (http://www.fieldguard.com/green_gloop_stable_cleaning_fluid.html). It's not the cheapest product to buy and have delivered but honestly the 2Lt bottle lasts AGES (my bottle lasts 1 or 2 years when used once or twice a week in winter.) It smells lush, really does.

I have used a variety of 'stable powders' in the past, i.e. Stable Zone (http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/StableZone/productinfo/STABLEZONE/), Sirocco Stable Deodorant powder (http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Sirocco-Stable-Deodoriser/productinfo/SIROCCOSD/), Dri-Li (http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Dri-Li-Extra-25kg/productinfo/DRILIPLUS/) and Stableite Distinfectant Powder (http://www.stableite.co.uk/information2.htm) but to be honest they do work out an expensive addition to your horse-care costs. Fine if you don't mind the extra cost, but I try to avoid using them now.

I now use a couple of sacks of wood pellet bedding on top of my mats (moistened down to a soft shred) and lay some straw over the top. The straw catches the poops and is easy to muck out, and the wood pellet bedding absorbs and holds any urine. Once a week I remove any soaked pellet bedding, sweep back the bed and wash the mats with a bucket water with Green Gloop added and sweep clean to dry. This is working well for me and is working out cheaper than before when I was using a daily sprinkling of the powders over my mats.

 

[MerrySherryRider]

I like this one ; http://www.hyperdrug.co.uk/Biofresh/productinfo/BIOFRESH/

I buy one when they are on offer with a free pump dispenser. Make up a diluted solution and it keeps for a week. Then just spray the wet areas and leave the bed up after mucking out. Come back at tea time to a beautifully fresh stable.

 

[ru-fi-do]

Another vote for Fieldguards green gloop here, it' brings my mats up like new and smells lovely and it really does last ageeeees, you only need to use the smallest amount. My last tub lasted me well over a year.

 

[Charlir666]

I use jeyes fluid

 

[Tnavas]

The best deodouriser is ordinary garden lime - sprinkle a good thick layer down before you put the clean rubber mats back.

Also look at how much protein you are feeding your horse - a mature horse in light/medium work only requires 8 - 10% protein daily.