b'FARM&BARNAnd the most inescapable moisture source? The horse. The more horses in 2019 MORTON BUILDINGS INC., ALL RIGHTS RESERVED COURTESY BIG ASS FANSthe barn and the more time they spend in their stalls, the more moisture they emit, which can become significant.This is why its important to refresh the air inside the barn constantly, even after youve curbed other sources of moisture. Bringing Fresh Air In The first thing to remember about air-flow is warm air rises naturally. Take ad-vantage of this by installing air inlets low and air outlets high. You often see inlet vents at the top of walls at the eaves, be-tween the rafters. High outlet vents should generally be at the roofs ridge, where warm air collects. In hot weather you can open windows and barn aisle doors to allow for even more air circulation. If you keep these closed in the winter, still provide enough inlet vents to move air through the barn. The beauty about this kind of natural convective heat transfer is that its so gentle, it doesnt create drafts. My horse barn is a renovated tobacco barn with 6-inch vertical board siding installed with half-inch gaps between. Tobacco barns were originally built in this manner so the heat generated during the curing process could dissipate, while still protecting the tobacco leaves fromInterior ventilation options include fans between stalls, open or no ceilings, grated stall panels, and the weather. Our stalls are not against thehigh-volume, low-speed fans in aisles (above).outside barn walls, so we get excellent air input without drafts. Because we have aObviously, natural ventilation is theMechanical ventilation can be limited number of horses, the small metalleast expensive, with lower upfront costs,user-dependent and controlled by barn ridge cap at the peak of the roof allowsno maintenance costs, and no energypersonnel, or it can include automatic for enough output airflow to keep thecosts, says Schwering. However, it hasand convenience features such as timers, interior temperature comfortable on hotbeen my experience that a combinationsensors, and thermostats. summer days. A better solution, if we hadof both natural and mechanical ventila- Site placement Correct site placement more horses, would be to add ridge ventstion may be helpful in a new barn. Designis critical for natural ventilation. Placing a or cupolas to increase airflow. for the animal, not the people. barn in a low-lying area generally allows Also remember that horses can com- With proper design, you can providestagnant air to accumulate and remain fortably tolerate a wider range of tempera- adequate ventilation without creatingin place, thanks to the lack of prevail-tures than humans can. Very few climatesdrafts. Consider these features whening winds. Ideally, site your barn along in North America require a heated barnplanning your property. a ridge where winds are more vigorous. for animal health. It is almost impos- Power ventilation A well-designedOrient it to allow the prevailing winds, sible to provide adequate ventilation in amechanically ventilated barn can give yougenerally southwest in the summer and heated barn, and it becomes prohibitivelygreater control over the indoor air qualitynorthwest in the winter, to blow through expensive to heat all that air flowing outthan a naturally ventilated barn. Powerthe main aisle. The critical component the ridge ventilation. Fresh, clean air andventilation can take the form of exhaustis finding that sweet spot to ensure no drafts are more important than heat. fans or high-volume, low-speed units inadequate airflow during all seasons. A the main aisle, at barn ends, or betweencombination of low grasses and tall trees Barn Construction Considerations stalls. Individual fans in stalls or aisles areplaced to the northwest of the structure Good barn design and good ventilationoptions, as well, but generally are morecan go a long way toward dampening go hand in hand. Ventilation can be botheffective at stirring up particulates andstrong winter winds. natural (using no mechanical supple- deterring insects from landing than hav- Physical form The steeper the roof ments) and mechanical (i.e., fans).ing a cooling effect. pitch, the faster stale air will exhaust 48November 2019The Horse|TheHorse.comUntitled-9 48 9/26/19 1:23 PM'