The Rural Voice, 1998-04, Page 56has their own way of doing things,"
he says as different builders each
have developed their own style of
building andcustomers like to shop
around to see all the different styles.
House agrees that the
development of large
companies that offer their
own design and engineering services
has reduced the number of calls he
typically gets in a year. In the early
1990s, he recalls, tours would be
organized to the northern U.S. states
to see the new styles of buildings
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going up there. Now, with all the
different styles and sizes of buildings
available right here in Ontario people
don't have to drive very far to see
several different barns. Dairy barns
haven't become as standardized as
poultry barns but they have become
more similar. Now, House says, he
may get an initial call from a farmer
to talk about what he's thinking
about, but often much of the work
will be done by one of the large
package builders. Still, some smaller
builders continue to serve more
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52 THE RURAL VOICE
localized needs in each community.
Of course while some dairy barns
have become more elaborate, some
have become simpler than ever
before as a small number of
producers turn to fabric -covered and
green -house style barns which can
expand their production at a fraction
of the cost. Others have chosen a sort
of middle ground — a simple pole
structure that's little more than a
shell that can be improved as money
becomes available.
There's a phenomenon in Ontario
that sees our pork producers build
more expensive barns than their
counterparts in Quebec or the
prairies, says Kains. He thinks it
reflects the sense Ontario producers
have that they're in for the long haul.
Initial estimates have been that the
cement, sandwich -wall construction
used in most swine barns today will
last 20-30 years but since the first
such barns were only built about
1980, it's hard to predict for sure, he
says. "There's little question it will
be around much longer." The
mechanical items might have to be
replaced but the basic structure will
remain sound, he says. What is
known is that some steel -clad barns
built in the 1980s have already had to
be renovated.
Those bits and pieces inside the
barns should also last longer than
what was installed in the 1980s,
Kains says, with stainless steel and
plastic replacing black metal, and
wiring now enclosed in protective
conduits.
Ventilation continues to be the
changing trend in both swine and
dairy barns. Harding says dual
ventilation systems are becoming
popular in swine barns instead of the
totally naturally ventilated barns that
have been popular in the past few
years. The fans in the ridge give
better temperature and air control in
those spring and fall months and
even in winter when the curtains
aren't likely to be open, he says.
In dairy, the wall openings for
natural ventilation just keep getting
bigger as producers gain more
confidence in the system. Five years
ago people worried about the winter-
time climate in a naturally ventilated
barn, says Harding but they've
gradually learned that a naturally
ventilated barn can be comfortable