Barn fire last night.....

[frankenchick]

What a wake-up call!

So glad your chickens and turkeys are alright!

 

[jjthink]

Wow - this hay thing is a worry.
I usually use straw but a friend picked up 3 bales of hay by mistake one day, thinking it was straw and I leave them baled, just as draft blocks in the outbuilding where the chickens reside when they're not outside. Am I understanding correctly from these posts that these things might be fire hazards just sitting there minding their own business (or not!)? They seemed dry to me but who knows?
Thanks for any insights.
JJ

 

[SpottedCrow]

So glad that all the birdies are okay.
And that you were able to save the barn. I haven't heard the spontaneous combustion about hay, but I have heard stories about corn and grain silos.

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
I am real glad the original poster and his animals are ok! And my sympathies for what you've lost.

Hay fires are a common way to lose a barn, but the usual scenario involves hay put up too 'green' (wet) or stored too tightly stacked (or too poorly ventilated) while curing. Newly baled hay will heat up for something like 4-6 weeks after baling as it cures, and if stacked in a big solid mass w/too little ventilation to the inner bales it can catch fire from its own heat.

I have a LOT of trouble believing that could be the case here, though, as it's been so long since baling (and in cool weather to boot).

A big stack of fairly freshly baled hay that gets wet from (e.g.) a roof leak can heat up pretty bad, too -- I have not heard a case of it starting a fire but it very well might in thw wrong circumstances.

If someone has just a few bales of hay, though, this is not something to worry about - I've never heard of anything less than a, 8' pile or so, minimum, heating up too badly even if pretty wet.

Unfortunately, the thing that's even more common than hot hay as a cause of barn fires is electrical issues, which includes heat lamps, heat tapes, extension cords, overloaded circuits, and faulty or damaged wiring.

Which are things to worry about even for the small backyarder.

Pat