Barn Design and Care

Initial Planning and Barn Design

Even before you start thinking how to care and properly maintain your newly purchased barn it’s important to consider the location / placement, barn pad design and stalls ventilation.  When everything is properly done, you and your animals will enjoy years of trouble free barn use.

BARN PAD and LOCATION

The first step in preventing siding rot, mold growth and longevity of your barn is to pick the right location for your barn and to properly design the pad.  When selecting location for your barn, try to avoid uneven, low or wet ground areas whenever possible.  If level and dry spot is not an option, you might need to build up your barn pad with more stone and create a good drainage to avoid water accumulation under the pad.  Since stalls do not have floor, soil moisture will enter your barn and under certain conditions and temperature will accumulate on cold surfaces such as roofing plywood, etc. and will eventually cause mold to grow.  For this reason, it’s best to avoid any low or wet ground locations.  Please consult with professional on how to properly prepare the pad for your barn.

RECOMENDATIONS:

  • Avoid any low or wet ground locations
  • Make your stone pad larger by at least 12″-24″ on each side
  • Make sure your pad is level and well compacted
  • Make sure water drains away from your pad

BARN VENTILATION

In order to protect your animal’s health and to prevent mold or mildew growth, it is very important to keep your stalls dry and well ventilated.  Good airflow inside of barn will help in moving stale and moist air out and will help in preventing mold growth.

RECOMENDATIONS:

  • Install Gable Vents to create air movement
  • Leave barn doors and windows open during the day whenever possible
  • Install exhaust fans
  • Clean your stalls regularly

BARN MAINTENANCE

In addition to properly designing barn pad and creating good ventilation in your barn, we also recommend to stain siding, avoid any vegetation growth next to your barn and apply preventive mold control at least once a year.

RECOMENDATIONS:

  • Keep any vegetation and dirt away from siding
  • Stain or paint siding
  • Apply mold control** to prevent future mold growth

**We recommend Vital Oxide Disinfectant or “Concrobium Mold Control”.