Woodchip Turnout has become swamp like?

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poiuytrewq

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I absolutely rely on my woodchip Turnout area and it's been a complete godsend the past 3 years.
This year however it's turned into a deep manky swamp which I'm not keen on using really.
Obviously this needs rectifiying before next winter.
The differences this year are....
1. The snow, this is the first year we have had significant snow on it but the fields are not that much different to previous years so not sure it's that.
2. We replaced the old chip at the very end of last winter, I say replaced but topped up really. There was still a layer of old but it had dissapeared a bit what with poo picking and chickens etc!
We replaced it with fresh chip that a tree surgeon gave us as opposed to the old stuff which was dry and dark coloured straight off. Not sure if this would make a difference.
3. It was dug up in summer due to the drainage pipe underneath collapsing and causing water to back up on the yard.
Digging it up of course meant the layers got mixed up. Being soil (I think/guess!) followed by a fairly thick layer of chunky road planings then finer ones. Lastly the woodchip.
Is this our issue?
I'm wondering (but keen to avoid!) if we need to dig up and redo the whole lot :'(
 
I think your problem is what you used to top up, I guess it was chopped up fresh wood that would contain sap and resin rather than wood that had been weathered and dried out. Also when I had wood chip I found as the years went by the top ups lasted less time as there was more broken down material under it which retained the wet and it can also block the drainage.
 
poiuytrewq said:
Would sand on top instead of woodchip be worth considering? (Or not worth the risk of colic?)
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Genuine question, in my ignorance, what elevates the risk of colic? (I ask because I am on a mud control mission that may involve wood chippings, sand or any combination of substances that are not mud)
 
Horses who graze on sandy soil or have hay in sand paddocks sometimes ingest the sand which builds up in the stomach and causes colic. Soaked Psyllium husks can be fed which binds with the sand and is then pooed out as normal.
 
The only way to sort out composted woodchip is to remove it and start again. If you try to improve it you will be throwing good money after bad IME.

I had sand as a winter turnout for many years. I did make sure that we kept any stray grass that grew pulled so they were not tempted to eat it, we sprayed a lot, harrowed and hand picked. I also made sure they always had hay from a tub or net, so they did not have to pick around on the floor. I would clear up any dropped hay every single day, so it stayed clear.
 
oldie48 said:
I think your problem is what you used to top up, I guess it was chopped up fresh wood that would contain sap and resin rather than wood that had been weathered and dried out. Also when I had wood chip I found as the years went by the top ups lasted less time as there was more broken down material under it which retained the wet and it can also block the drainage.
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Makes sense. I questioned it at the time. It was free and therefore O/H jumped at it ;)
It was a pita as I also use the paddock through summer for ponies to have time off grass but they loved eating this stuff so I couldn't use it til it was better weathered.
Ok so I think I'm Spring I need to bite the bullet and scrape the whole depth of chip, old and new off (cringe)

I do like the idea of sand, hay from tubs is a good idea
 
HappyHollyDays said:
Horses who graze on sandy soil or have hay in sand paddocks sometimes ingest the sand which builds up in the stomach and causes colic. Soaked Psyllium husks can be fed which binds with the sand and is then pooed out as normal.
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Excellent, thanks for that. It has stirred something in my distant memory about it, I guess because our horses are out on heavy clay we never have to worry about it, hence the mud control mission I am currently embarking on!
 
you mention a drainage pipe so presumably it is a drained area. The wood chip at the bottom has simply disintegrated and is no longer letting the water through to the drain. I expect it is almost soil like. I had the same several years ago and the only solution is replace the lot. To keep it working well I would have had to replace it frequently. I gave up but would probably have considered a different surface in view of the work digging it all out and the cost of replacing. If you decide on sand to prevent problems you could put a rubber 6 x 4 mat under each hay tub.
 
Like the rubber mat idea. Tbh they don't currently clean up the floor below nets anyway so probably not really a problem.

How dusty would this become in summer?
 
Darbs said:
Excellent, thanks for that. It has stirred something in my distant memory about it, I guess because our horses are out on heavy clay we never have to worry about it, hence the mud control mission I am currently embarking on!
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The only thing I found that helped on heavy clay was to dig out the gateways and use lots of stone. I suspect if you use woodchip you will rapidly have the mess I now have ;)
 
I have had enough of our wood chip area as well for the very same reason . It had been replaced many times in the last 24 years we have had it but this spring we are going to clear the whole area and concrete it. Can't stand the wet another year.
 
poiuytrewq said:
The only thing I found that helped on heavy clay was to dig out the gateways and use lots of stone. I suspect if you use woodchip you will rapidly have the mess I now have ;)
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Yes, agreed, that is the route I think I am aiming for. There is woodchip in other areas and it has got gradually more boggy, it definitely degrades over time. Plus our new pony is a gannet, and I reckon he would eat everything we put down, even well dried weathered woodchip. He may even have a go at limestone aggregate!
 
We have 6mm fine stone on our turnout OP and I like it so far. Was persuaded against woodchip at the time on here and by friends...

Fiona
 
I read so much about woodchip going yuck but literally (til just a fortnight back!) always disagreed as ours stayed perfect.

I'll look into costs for other things.
Incidentally, I often see school surface free to collector. Would something like old rubber topping be ok I wonder?

Darbs, I know that one ;) mine will have a nibble on anything!
 
Mine has done exactly the same this year, more swimming pool than a dry, mud free turnout area.

When I first laid it I looked at using Flexiride on top of my stone layer as it won’t rot compared to natural products..I may look into this again for next winter, I’d rather spend a little more for a surface that’ll last years compared to one that needs continuous topping up and maintenance.
 
I have put large areas road sub-base in gateways and wacked it in - it works well but I am never sure how the planners would be if they found out.
 
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