The Rural Voice, 1980-11, Page 39THE YOUNG FARMER
Natural ventilation
in a hog barn
summer
Vent doors
7 winter air flow
6' slats
BY DEBBIE RANNEY
Bob DeBrabandere, 22, of R.R. 6, St.
Marys (near Woodham) has invented a
new hog finishing barn which relies on
natural ventilation rather than fans.
Although he and his father Jules run
250 acres in a farm partnership, Bob
looks after the pigs himself except at
shipping time when his father helps.
Bob has about 60 sows and the capacity
to fatten all their progeny. He built his
pre -fabricated style farrowing barn two
years ago.
In that farrowing barn he uses a system
of exhaust fans in the wall. The new
finishing barn has no fans, only doors and
louvres that open and close automatical-
ly.
The size of the new barn is 36' x 90',
with seven doors approximately 4' x 8' on
each side. The entire length of the ridge
of the barn opens with one door on each
side. Trusses are on three foot centres,
with doors opening manually between
every third one. He also sprayed the top
and ridge areas of the barn with
insulation and put roofing steel on them.
With this barn, Bob says, you can have a
warm, naturally ventilated barn, both
summer and winter and still have enough
air to keep the pigs comfortable.
An explanation of the project, which he
sent in to the Innovators Incentive
program sponsored federally and
provincially by the Ministry of
Agriculture and
detailed picture of
SIDE DO'
In winter, the
closed and the ce
adjusted, dependi
temperature and h
rose from the sle•
area and passed c
outside air would
side air inlets and 1
manuring area.
The cold outside air would drop rapidly
and again rise as it moved toward the
sleeping and eating area and was warmed
by the pigs, all the while mixing and
agitating through the barn. This heated
air would then rise and pass out through
the centre outlet.
The least comfortable area of the pen in
this case is at the back, since it would be
the coldest. This would be the most likely
area for the hogs to manure.
LEAST COMFORTABLE
For the proposed summer or warm
weather ventilation air flow --depending
on the inside room temperature. the
adjustable side doors would be pro-
portionately open or closed. The centre
outlet would remain wide open to
encourage maximum air change. The
least comfortable area in this instance
would be the back of the pen since it
would be the farthest from the now open
side doors, again encouraging clean
pens. The side doors would swing up to
protect the pigs from direct sunlight.
THE
barn would be Tight, feeding, manure
pumps and a servo motor to open and
close the doors.
He has 325 hogs in the finishing barn,
which has capacity of 375.
Apparently this system (the only
known one of its kind in Canada), should
result in an S800. a year saving in hydro
costs. Since Bob is also a farm mechanic,
setting up such a system was probably
easier for him than it would be for most
farmers.
On the 250 acres that Bob and his
father operate together, they grow white
beans, wheat, sweet corn and grain corn.
His brother does the combining for them
while Bob dries and stores grain and corn
in a grain dryer on his property.
Bob has only had pigs in the new barn
since early June. so he hasn't yet had a
chance to see how well the invention
works in winter but he's pleased with the
summer results. He started the building
in April.
RURAL VOICE/NOVEMBER 1980 PG. 33