How to stop Farm hay bale's going damp and smelling odd?

I get large bale's of farm hay for a few quid and we store them in our storage shed which is a metal shed at the moment and i noticed last night that it was quite damp and smelt a bit off than normal :? I have not checked in the light yet for mould spores but was wondering how can you keep such a large bale fresh? would it be better off in a wooden shed?

Hopefully when I get my wooden Piggy shed there will be room to store the hay , but will it still go damp and 'off' ? :?

I'm not sure how to prevent this but if it's smelling damp and off are you sure there's not a leak somewhere or something?

I also have a bale of hay for my guinea pigs which I keep in my garage and that's been there at least 2/3 months now and still smells fine

Buy hay that is greenish in color. The greener the hay, the better, meaning it still has much of its nutritional value. Make sure the hay is properly dry before buying it. If the hay is not properly dry, then the hay will rot and collect mold when you store it. You can look for farms in your area that have a lot of cows and inquire whether they have any hay for sale or even find listings in the newspaper or online

Store your hay in a cool, well-ventilated area. Be sure the area in which you store the hay is dry. Storing hay in a loft is best, but if you do not have access to one, storing hay in a garage, shed, or any other structure is fine, as long as it's well ventilated and dry.

Keep the hay off concrete. Concrete can collect moisture causing the hay to rot or mold. If you need to store your hay in an area that has a concrete floor, put wood down first (pallets work well), ensuring the boards are spaced apart like railroad ties. By keeping the hay raised from the concrete, you ensure that it keeps.

Do not wrap the hay in plastic when you store it. Like concrete, plastic collects moisture, causing the hay to rot or mold.

Purchase hale bales if possible. Storing the hay in the form of hay bales helps preserve the hay longer than if you were to break the bale of hay up and then store it. When it comes time to use your hay, you may find that the outside of the stored bale of hay may have discolored, but the inside is fresh, smells sweet and still has its nutritional value.

Tuckerbunnies wrote: Buy hay that is greenish in color. The greener the hay, the better, meaning it still has much of its nutritional value. Make sure the hay is properly dry before buying it. If the hay is not properly dry, then the hay will rot and collect mold when you store it. You can look for farms in your area that have a lot of cows and inquire whether they have any hay for sale or even find listings in the newspaper or online

Store your hay in a cool, well-ventilated area. Be sure the area in which you store the hay is dry. Storing hay in a loft is best, but if you do not have access to one, storing hay in a garage, shed, or any other structure is fine, as long as it's well ventilated and dry.

Keep the hay off concrete. Concrete can collect moisture causing the hay to rot or mold. If you need to store your hay in an area that has a concrete floor, put wood down first (pallets work well), ensuring the boards are spaced apart like railroad ties. By keeping the hay raised from the concrete, you ensure that it keeps.

Do not wrap the hay in plastic when you store it. Like concrete, plastic collects moisture, causing the hay to rot or mold.

Purchase hale bales if possible. Storing the hay in the form of hay bales helps preserve the hay longer than if you were to break the bale of hay up and then store it. When it comes time to use your hay, you may find that the outside of the stored bale of hay may have discolored, but the inside is fresh, smells sweet and still has its nutritional value.

Thank you Maisie, we get our hay from the farm up the road in the village, they have cattle and things, the hay is great but I have just realised I am storing it wrong. On concrete floor, with tarpulin around it whoops! thank you for helping

This is our hay storage shed ( when it was new) and we had two vent's put in the back for ventilation and the hay stay's lovely and dry inside. You can easily put vent's in a shed.

See the two vents at the back of the shed.

Tuckerbunnies wrote:This is our hay storage shed ( when it was new) and we had two vent's put in the back for ventilation and the hay stay's lovely and dry inside. You can easily put vent's in a shed.

See the two vents at the back of the shed.

shed looks great! in our metal shed, the floor is concrete and the inside gets quite damp and freezes so I think when i get the piggies a shed I will get one pig enough to store our hay too Also the last few times the farmer has dropped off the hay it rained and it was soaked will make sure he delivers it dry next time ! thanks again

I can imagine you would get more condensation in a metal shed than a wooden one too, tending to make the hay damp.

We store ours in a wheelie bin - no problems with it getting damp at all (as long as you tip any water off the lid before opening it) and as we get through a bale in about ten days it's never in there for long.

Could you recommend any thing i could store it in?

You're probably best putting it in the piggies shed when you get it

Sparky wrote:You're probably best putting it in the piggies shed when you get it

I shall do that, just counted my christmas and birthday money combined and have enough for laptop and shed

The buns are going to love having a laptop