Those of you with shelters, or willing to give advice - Dissapointing update

MrA

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Feb 8, 2012
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I have many questions.

Do shelters keep the ground beneath them dry or will I need mats in there?

Do they heat up loads in summer?

I'm considering a metal shelter as I'm concerned a little about arson round here with a wooden one. It's open ended and insulated to help with the heat. Weirdly our insulated metal container stays far cooler than the wooden stables, both in full sun. If it was too hot I could connect a sun shade between the shelter and the nearby trees.

This is the location I've picked for it 103771

I plan on removing some fencing to the right of my water trough's so I can access the other field during winter without the gateway getting too boggy.
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Anyway those are my plans. Any input welcome!
 
I would use the Mud Control mats inside it, as the water if any will drain through. I have found that with the field shelters that i did not either put in concrete, or rubber mats, they just churned and became deep with mud. The rubber mats sank and sagged and i lifted them and replaced them with the mud control mats. They have kept the inside really dry in winter even when they are walking through mud to get there.The concrete, which renders the field shelter immovable, worked well, but the stoned yard after two years was deep in mud.

I had a metal barn, the only thing i would say against it is you have to ensure the interior is lined otherwise they kick the metal and can go through it, it makes a hell of a noise in the wind rattles like mad. some of the newer style ones are probably better than the expensive one i put up and was never happy with. Spent a fortune lining it with marine ply as the panels buckle easily. There is a local company to us that showed at Border Union Show, you might find them on the catalogue, but for a small one they were over £5K. the panels on this sort of thing are what we had in the green barn see below, they all had to be lined with marine ply as they were too flimsy for horses.

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Where i was at my old yard they had a field shelter and had the heavy duty rubber mats down in it. They werent a complete fit so it was bare earth on some bits. The most important bit to mat i would say is in and out of the doorway. Mud does get dragged in off the feet. Occasionally the mats were cleaned off and any horse poop needs removing for sure. As to whether the horse uses it. I think it depends on the horse. The only way to really know will be to hang your hay net in there to encourage use.
 
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Yep i agree if metal you really need to line with 8 x 4 ply sheets. Metal will buckle if the horse uses for rubbing. Tin can also be very sharp on the edges and can slice a horse easily.
Not used the mud control mats but i would go with them inside from whats been said above. I think you would have better drainage than with the rubber mats.
 
I don't put anything in my shelters and have not had them get wet or muddy, but location is critical, if there is the slightest dip towards the shelter the run off from heavy rain will go inside and if the wind blows in the door often, that will drive rain in. Hanks hut has been up for 3 years and I have only seen the inside wet once, after a monsoon type downpour that had caused flash flooding everywhere.
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My recent hay shed build I think I got the location wrong, even with it all closed in the ground is damp inside even though the walls and roof are totally dry inside, so it may be relocated shortly. A few feet can make all the difference.

My big barn is corrugated tin, it stay's nicely cooler than outside but it is open both ends so there is really good airflow though it, but it rarely becomes a wind tunnel in winter and gives a warm place to stand. Do check with metal that goes all the way to the floor, if they can stand outside and it gets muddy it needs protecting, my friends horse sliced half his hoof off because he sunk into the mud and as he pulled his foot out it caught on the tin.
 
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My shelter is at the bottom of my sloping, sandy field. It's a well built Redmires wooden one with a threshold bar, which seems to keep the mud mostly outside.

I have a couple of ordinary stable mats on one side, and it remains dry and flat there even in the very worst weather. The other side was Ziggy's bed when he was box resting and he weed in the middle the whole time, so I don't put a mat over it now as (1) it would stink still and (2) they still wee there! That side gets a little muddy in the worst of the winter weather, just by the door, but it's never bad.

I would say the most important thing for my shelter, which faces south, is that it has a generous overhang. This keeps the floor relatively dry unless the wind is really strong.

I never used to put bedding in there, but baby Charlie loves to sleep in a straw bed so now the un-matted side has barley straw down. He has straw in his mane every morning.
 
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I had a Redmire Shelter on skids when we lived in England - it was okay being honest it moved from one end of the field to the other a few times until it bedded in. I don't think you'd have that problem @Ale where you are south I shouldn't imagine you'd get the same battering with the winds (could be wrong though).
I used the mats they recommended but they were crap and really after a while rose up and cracked. It became dreadful in the winter months and I despaired of keeping it in a reasonable state. I had their grass mats too which eventually sank and had to tow those out with the quad bike they were so embedded and heavy. Not a good experience on the whole. I'd not waste money on one again - I think some of the unknown brands of shelters would be just as good. Don't get me wrong, not trying to put you off or anything, but in harsh conditions I didn't have a good experience. The floor just became a mud bath in the end. I was glad to move to the new stable block we had built.
I guess the other thing is, you've got one horse who is probably unlikely to hooly and mess it up the same as two idiotic ones!!!
 
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Thanks for all the replies everyone. Right this is the style I'm looking at but open ended both ends so like a tunnel.

It says lined with fleece to help insulate. Wondering how safe you think this is? 103779
 
They are completely steel framed. I can always use my mats inside. Plan was to also put my hay feeder inside at one end so he can standin the shelter and eat if he wants in winter. Thanks for all the replies nice to hear of all your experiences
 
So sadly after two accounts of someone coming onto the land in less than a week I've decided I just can't risk buying an expensive shelter to have it damaged.

So back to the drawing board to provide something natural or low cost...
 
So sadly after two accounts of someone coming onto the land in less than a week I've decided I just can't risk buying an expensive shelter to have it damaged.

So back to the drawing board to provide something natural or low cost...

that’s a shame and so wrong that they’ve made you change your plans:mad:
 
get some free pallets, use them to form the walls and and roofs, line and roof with tarp. we made some big bays out of pallets to recycle muck and they would work well for small pony and donkey shelters and if you put in supporting posts you could do them double height
 
They are completely steel framed. I can always use my mats inside. Plan was to also put my hay feeder inside at one end so he can standin the shelter and eat if he wants in winter. Thanks for all the replies nice to hear of all your experiences
sorry to hear you are abandoning this, they look good but you would want to see them in the flesh, not sure about the lining, more suitable for sheep?ie. lambing.
 
I have a natural shelter using what's already available. You can get creative.
Did the trespassers cause damage? It's down to the land owner to deal with it.
 
Oh that's a shame, Ale. For the record, I personally know the lady who owns Equi-hut, so I can vouch for the quality of them.
 
I still haven't resolved this, I'm off this week so wanted to get it sorted. I just can't see a solution. There is nothing natural I can use, all the hedges trees etc are in the wrong place and outside the fence line. Moving the fence lines is out of the picture as would block access and make the field less secure. Also the trees are still not really in the right position so wouldn't give much shelter.

Anything made from wood is an arson risk. A stable less than 2 minutes away had their shelter burnt to the ground last year and we had our hay set fire to at the old yard. Anything metal I still worry about it being defaced.

I might just have to abandon the idea. I can't find a solution that would really work and I can't spend £1000+ on something that might get damaged and Ale may not even use.

If anyone else has any bright ideas or anything I've missed feel free to share!
 
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I don't put anything in my shelters and have not had them get wet or muddy, but location is critical, if there is the slightest dip towards the shelter the run off from heavy rain will go inside and if the wind blows in the door often, that will drive rain in. Hanks hut has been up for 3 years and I have only seen the inside wet once, after a monsoon type downpour that had caused flash flooding everywhere.
View attachment 103775

My recent hay shed build I think I got the location wrong, even with it all closed in the ground is damp inside even though the walls and roof are totally dry inside, so it may be relocated shortly. A few feet can make all the difference.

My big barn is corrugated tin, it stay's nicely cooler than outside but it is open both ends so there is really good airflow though it, but it rarely becomes a wind tunnel in winter and gives a warm place to stand. Do check with metal that goes all the way to the floor, if they can stand outside and it gets muddy it needs protecting, my friends horse sliced half his hoof off because he sunk into the mud and as he pulled his foot out it caught on the tin.
Are those supporting posts knocked into the ground or freestanding please?
 
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