Your grain or other livestock feed is crucial to keeping your animals healthy during the winter — unfortunately, the animals in your herd aren’t the only ones who want a taste. Rodents and vermin like to turn your animal feed into a free buffet whenever they get the chance. Plus, the wintertime water and resulting mold can play a part in ruining the livestock feed you’re storing as well.
If you want to fight back against mold and pests, you need to check out these 4 livestock feed storage ideas. Some are DIY work-arounds you can try out — and others are long-term investments. Learn 4 ways to keep your feed and grains safe!
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Grain Storage Ideas & Solutions
If you leave your feed in the plastic bags it comes in, rodents will chew right through them before you can say Mickey Mouse. Not only do vermin like to eat your feed, but they also pollute it with their feces. In fact, wasted and ruined feed is one of the biggest and most-preventable ways that farmers lose money.
Grain storage is your investment to prevent that loss. Your ideal livestock feed storage solution needs to be stronger than vermin, protected from the rain, and easy to transport and use.
Learn more about how vermin and mold destroy cattle feed.
Some large farms employ multiple 30-ton or 50-ton stationary grain bins. While that massive equipment works for them, it’s not right for most farmers since it is too large, too expensive, and not mobile. Let’s take a look at some innovative grain storage solutions instead that can be storage in a mini barn or something similar.
1. Plastic Trashcans
A quick and cheap homemade feed storage bin, the thicker plastic of these trashcans will stand up slightly better to rodent teeth than thin plastic bags – but not nearly as well as metal. In addition, the lids won’t fit tightly enough to deter rodents, and they aren’t water-tight either. However, the wheels on this impromptu livestock feed storage bin make transport easier, even when it is full. Another plus to using this option is it’s extremely affordable – you can buy a plastic trash can in almost any hardware store for $20 or less.
2. Old Chest Freezers
Not exactly something you can go out and buy nowadays, but old chest freezers can make decent livestock feed storage bins in a pinch. The tight sealing lid ensures that your feed stays intact when the lid is closed, and the thick and insulated metal sides will best any determined rodent. However, old chest freezers are extremely hard to find as they haven’t been a popular style for decades. Plus, full or empty, they are tough to move from place-to-place – it’s not exactly like refrigerators come standard with D-rings.
3. 55 Gallon Metal Drums
These metal containers serve as the go-to to secure storage for a variety of industries. Since the sides are made entirely of metal, these drums are effective at repelling hungry rodents. In addition, since they are often used for transporting toxic manufacturing or auto waste, you can trust that the lids attach securely. For some farmers this is a cheap (around $100) and effective livestock feed storage idea to try right away. The only real drawbacks to using a 55 gallon drum as your livestock feeder are that it’s a challenge to move, and that scooping grain from the bottom can be difficult. That’s because these drums are meant to hold oil and coolant from auto shops, not serve as farm equipment.
4. Farmco Portable Grain Bins
Trust the equipment designed for one thing: safely storing livestock feed. Farmco grain bins (like our 5 ton grain bin) are the most secure and easiest to use out of any of these livestock feed storage ideas – and the comparison isn’t even close. Our grain bins are designed to hold a large amount of bulk feed for as long as you need without contamination. In addition, using our grain bins make your job on the farm easier. Whether you are creep feeding calves on pasture or raising a flock of chickens, a portable grain bin (we offer small grain sizes) will keep your feed protected while also keeping it easily accessible.
What You Need to Know…
- Farmco grain bins are built with thick, rust-free steel that easily repels vermin.
- The shape and elevated bin are nearly impossible for rodents to climb.
- The tight sealing lid makes loading easy, but prevents moisture from infiltrating to cause mold.
- The grain bin design makes pouring the right amount of feed from the bin easy – no more scooping and digging around.
- The wheels and trailer hitch make Farmco grain bins easy to haul around your farm.
Farmco Manufacturing – Building Solutions to Help Farmers
Farmco builds livestock feed storage bins with the same precise manufacturing and experienced engineering we use to build our horse and cattle feeders. No matter what Farmco product you buy, you can feel confident it was constructed to resist rust and stand up to the elements – and vermin. We build all of our products to solve real problems that farmers face every day. Learn more about how the Farmco line can help you save time today. Speaking of livestock feed, if you want to learn more about hay, feel free to read our article on square hay bales.
If you’re finished trying to make do with impromptu livestock feed storage, it’s time to upgrade to a Farmco grain bin. Contact us to get your grain bin quote today.