which hay steamer

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Cassy

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Can anyone recommend one of these. I have two horses and a pony. Last year I soaked the hay nets but it gets very messy and the nets are mighty weighty when wet. I dont want a home made job but do realise the commercial ones are pretty pricey. So just testing the waters before taking the plunge! Can you have them outside? How much do they cost to run? Which makes are best for performance and reliability?
 
I've had a happy horse hay Steamer and and haygain. The haygain is infinitely better, no coughing at with it and hay smells yum.

They are very expensive yes but if you just have the one horse they do a small bag type thing that isn't too expensive. I steam 3 bales a day in winter so had to get the full bale one but haven't regretted it. We paid in stages too rather than all in one go which helps :)

I have steamer outside but under over hang of stables and the kettle bit is kept inside but is outside when steaming also under over hang. I don't know how much it cost, haygain will tell you how much electric it uses and you can work it out but I've never bothered. I can't say i've noticed a huge increase in electric bill or anything!
 
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Personally, I'd rather lug a heavy, wet net than spend over a grand on a steamer. If you have many horses, perhaps they are worth it, but I can't see the value.
 
How long have you had yours and are there many things to go wrong with them? I need to soak 3 nets a day so expect I would need the bigger one. I too have an overhang to the stables so wouldnt in theory be outside.
 
I've had it about 4 years, the kettle bit is still spot on but the actual steamer bit had had the odd issue however haygain were very quick to replace a faulty part and the newer models are a lot more robust so don't the think they'd have the same issues :)
 
I am off to pick up my Haygain steamer this morning. I was soaking hay but one horse developed a cough and yes the nets get very heavy. I researched soaking and apparently it increases bacteria :(. Anyway the rep over here (Australia) loaned me their demo model for a week (it was the big one) and horses are very happy and have stopped coughing. I am buying the HG600 as the HG2000 is too big. I took my haynets to them and 4 fit in the HG600 comfortably.
 
Was very impressed by our haygain, bought second hand last year, until it stopped working a couple of weeks ago �� Lights come on but it doesn't heat up. Assuming it is the heating element but not sure what to do now.
 
asmp said:
Was very impressed by our haygain, bought second hand last year, until it stopped working a couple of weeks ago �� Lights come on but it doesn't heat up. Assuming it is the heating element but not sure what to do now.
Click to expand...

I believe that haygain do a repair service so worth contacting them for a quote or indeed a price for new kettle unit :)
 
case895 said:
Buy a 240 litre wheelie bin, a hay steamer and make your own.
Click to expand...

Here's one I made earlier.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPHwPgHuRfo

Originally I made a single one, using a 360 litre wheelie bin. I found I needed to line it with insulation to reach the required temperature of 80 degrees C (180 F). Then I was asked to make a second one, and in fact you can get both up to temperature with a single 2300 watt steam generator. It takes a full day to make one, and you need to be quite keen on DIY. Haygains are much more expensive, but they do use a very heavy duty steam generator (these alone cost around £400 compared to £30 or so for an Earlex). Bins are around £90 from Amazon, there's about £20 of copper, the foam is about a tenner. I had offcuts of Equimats for the lid and the base insulation.
 
Cheap, and taken from my experience with expensive Dressage horses at the yard where we did this, this really works:

Buy a metal dustbin.
Place your days hay in it first thing in the morning.
Boil a kettle or two of water.
Pour the first boiled kettle of water over the hay and replace the lid fast.
Repeat with the second boiled kettle full.

This makes sweet steamed hay.
Smells lovely.

(A couple of kettles full of boiled water goes along way using this method).
 
Interesting idea, I am all for "keeping it simple", and if it works for you, fine!

I am sure that this will keep dust down, and the warmth will release the aromas and generally make the hay more palatable. I'm not convinced, though, that it would definitely be enough to kill all the spores in two or three large haynets. It just comes down to the physics. When you are running a 2.3 kW steamer for something between 20 minutes and an hour, you are putting a lot more energy into the steam than there is in a couple of kettles of boiling water. A steamer is working more like a medical autoclave, it will get the whole volume up to high temperature, and maintain it there for some time.

But, as you say your method is quick, simple, and cheap. My only comment as an engineer is that I think it would work better with a plastic bin than a metal one, the metal will conduct the heat from the water away more quickly.



"Cheap, and taken from my experience with expensive Dressage horses at the yard where we did this, this really works:

Buy a metal dustbin.
Place your days hay in it first thing in the morning.
Boil a kettle or two of water.
Pour the first boiled kettle of water over the hay and replace the lid fast.
Repeat with the second boiled kettle full.

This makes sweet steamed hay.
Smells lovely.

(A couple of kettles full of boiled water goes along way using this method)"
 
Buy a large wheelie bin (http://www.britishbins.co.uk/2-wheel-bins/) and a wallpaper steamer from a DIY store. You will also need a metal storage basket, like the ones in a freezer. Add an extension lead and a timer switch. Drill a hole in the bottom side of the wheelie bin of the same diameter as the steamer hose and clamp it into place by attaching the large spreader plate that comes with the steamer. Place the basket upside down in the base of the wheelie bin so that the nets don't interfere with the steam outlet. Use the timer so that you don't boil the steamer dry (you will need to experiment with the timing). Make sure the timer is heavy duty as it can get quite warm. You can then go off and do other jobs without worrying about the water running out.
 
I bought a secondhand Happy Horse hay steamer a few years ago. The kettle unit died after a year so I bought an industrial strength wallpaper stripper and use that instead. Its brilliant and I can do 3/4 a bale in it. The horses love it.
 
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