Manure Handling.....any thoughts?

[Builtough]

So I decided I would try my hand at hobby farming this year. Fenced off a pasture and currently have four steers and two goats. This winter I'll be putting them and a few others in the barn. That has me thinking about the best way to handle the manure in spring. In my mind I'll get a quick attach manure fork (not a grapple) and a small manure spreader. Questions I have are:
1. Does anyone have experience with manure forks (do they work that much better than just a bucket) and if so what brand is it?
2. Would you buy a newer small spreader (like Millcreek) or an old small one as there are a lot of them on craigslist.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

 

[Diydave]

You might as well buy a used manure spreader, the new ones never have a warranty (manufacturer never stands behind them...)

 

[Humblebub]

I have been where you are. Had 50 goats and other assorted livestock. Over winter the manure pack gets packed hard. Neighbour had full size tractor with forks and worked hard to lift. Once out it was piled and left to cook for a year. It was spread with an antique manure spreader of some sort the following year. Amazing fertilizer. Could almost hear stuff grow once it hit the ground.

 

[skeets]

My self we used the bucket when I was a kid and like he said dumped it in a pile. well really it was a cement lined pit about 2 courses deep with a ramp on one end. and had several clay pipe drain lines running down the hill for run off when it rained and snowed. Look around on Craig's list or farm auctions, for an old spreader sometimes you can pick them up pretty cheap you wont need anything to big, of see if somebody around you has one and will spread the stuff for you

 

[Kingcreek]

Just use your bucket. Manure forks are for large amounts of fresh stable manure mixed with hay or straw.

 

[Bulldog]

Just remember, manure spreaders don't just sling to the rear. Get yourself a good rain suit.

 

[Builtough]

So on the older manure spreaders: pto or ground drive? Not going to be using this thing much so I'd prefer the simplest/most reliable regardless of speed or ease of use. Is one better than another in that regard?

 

[Bulldog]

A friend of mine has a pto side discharge spreader that works well. He uses it a few times a year cleaning out his free stall barn. It doesn't cover the tractor which is a big plus but another good point is it has a adjustable door on the discharge so the amount coming out can be controlled.

 

[skeets]

Yeah I remember the old guy down the road using his to spread lime as well,, kinda messy but it worked it was ground driven

 

[sheepfarmer]

Well, as an old hobby farmer, the short answer to your question about bucket with or without manure forks, is that it all depends! Depends on how packed, type of bedding, how much maneuvering room for the tractor etc. Forks are necessary if the pack is really hard. Just a bucket is fine to pick up stuff out of the mulch pile for spreading. I tried letting a whole winter's worth pile up in the barn for the sheep, and it was a pain to get out due to shape of shed and slope of ground. There was still a lot of hand shoveling. Never again! Easier to keep up with it with my layout. Other farms works better to let it pile up, but you need really good ventilation if you do.

My advice if you are just setting up your place is work towards having as little manure in the barn as possible, meaning keep all the critters outside as much as possible. Run in sheds on some kind of base to avoid creating a quagmire are wonderful. Same for some kind of feeder, a crushed stone pad or whatever you've got in the way of high ground. Goats need some place to get in out of the weather, especially cold rain, sheep don't, although they enjoy it. Cattle I don't know about. All depends on how much pasture, corrals, barns etc that you've got. Have fun working out a design!

I did ok with a little old ground driven spreader I got used, but it was sure nice when my neighbor came over with his tractor to pullhis big pto driven spreader and I loaded with my tractor. If you don't want to be hooking and unhooking the spreader from your loader tractor all the time, you can pull a ground driven one with your truck if you don't have two tractors.

 

[Tx Jim]

So on the older manure spreaders: pto or ground drive? Not going to be using this thing much so I'd prefer the simplest/most reliable regardless of speed or ease of use. Is one better than another in that regard?

Ground drive will be the simplest to attach to tractor plus you could spread manure with a drive spreader using your pickup if you travel SLLOOWW.