Pigsty ventilation device
Every experienced pig farmer knows how important it is to provide piglets with satisfying living conditions. Proper care involves providing pets with proper nutrition, cleanliness, comfort, and access to water. All these actions in the complex contribute to the preservation of the health of the pigs. But many people forget how important it is to organize the ventilation of the pigsty. Without this detail, the conditions for keeping animals will not meet sanitary standards.
Pigsty ventilation
Why ventilation is needed
Some farmers believe that high-quality airspace cleaning is not necessary for their livestock, and therefore they neglect this detail. Meanwhile, a lot depends on the maintenance of animals: health, quality of life, ability to reproduce. Experienced pig breeders note several factors that are positively influenced by the installed ventilation in the pigsty:
- piglets gain weight faster;
- the fertility of livestock improves;
- there is an opportunity to save on electricity in the barn, since often the ventilation system works with heating and cooling;
- the health of both adults and cubs improves.
In addition to cleaning the room, ventilation also removes excess moisture. As a rule, in a place where animals are kept, there is often an increased amount of water, the removal of which can be taken over by ventilation.
Types of ventilation
Today there are several types of ventilation systems for pigsties that you can do yourself. Among the most common are:
- in the form of a "lid";
- transverse type;
- longitudinal;
- made in the form of a tunnel;
- diffuse roof.
The roof type works without human intervention. The principle of operation here is simple: it depends on the wind speed. This type of ventilation can be considered the most economical, because it provides air flow through the valves located in the walls of the pig farm. Another valve is located on the roof, and this system does not require additional ventilation of the pigsty.
With the transverse type, natural ventilation is also used, but the fans still play an auxiliary role, despite the fact that supply air is also present. In such a system for ventilation of gilts, a special controller is necessarily used, which allows you to regulate the rate of movement of the fans.
If we are talking about the longitudinal type, then it is based on the fact that the supply valves are installed outside the barn or pig farm. Due to this arrangement, the air mass circulates throughout the room. We can speak about the quality of this type of ventilation in the pig farm only if there is sufficient force and there is also a piston installation. In addition, it is better to choose reversible fans, which can influence the direction of the air in the pig house.
Ventilation in the pigsty can also be achieved through the tunnel-type cleaning of the room. For this purpose, special blinds are installed, which are located on the opposite side of the ventilation. With this design, the air begins to move as if it were in a tunnel. The fans are also in operation, especially if there is not enough air flow to ensure the microclimate parameters.
For ventilation in the pigsty with the help of a diffuse roof system, special side windows are used. As a rule, they are adjustable, so their position can be set by hand. At the same time, exhaust ventilation units also come into operation. The whole system allows you to achieve an excellent microclimate in the pigsty.
How to prepare for ventilation mount
Whichever option is chosen, it is important to remember that ventilation in a pigsty with your own hands is the first step to success. Only after calculations and the correct drawing will it be possible to independently build an air purification system necessary for the livestock of pigs. Having drawn a diagram, it is important to analyze all the nuances in order to understand what type of ventilation for piglets is most suitable in a particular case. To do this, you need to consider the following factors:
- what amount of air masses comes from outside, regardless of additional ventilation devices;
- what is the location of the pigsty (in a hilly area or in a lowland);
- exactly how the air circulates during the warm and cold seasons (this moment is important, since in the spring-summer period the air flow often becomes stronger than in the cold);
- the size of the pigsty.
Taking into account all these points, you can start such painstaking work as installing ventilation for pigs.
Natural ventilation mount yourself
In order to equip a barn with an air purification device, large investments will not be required. The natural form of air circulation has its own characteristics that you need to know in order for ventilation in the pigsty with your own hands to be effective. First of all, you need to choose pipes. Preference should be given to round ones. You can also use a hollow brick, which will also help in the work.
First, you need to make an inflow channel, laying it at a distance of 30-50 cm from the ground. Further, a protective grill is attached to the street and a separate valve is installed that regulates the flow of air in the cold season. The hood, on the other hand, is installed closer to the ceiling on the opposite side of the pigsty. This will help make air circulation available throughout the room. It is advisable to insulate the outer pipe so that air jams do not form in it.
Installation of forced ventilation
Unlike conventional ventilation, a fan is required to install such an air injection system. If you place it in the supply duct, then you get supply ventilation, and if we are talking about installing it in an exhaust hood, then exhaust ventilation. Usually this option is more expensive than natural ventilation, but it is worth it. Thanks to this system, the pigsty will not depend on weather conditions or air temperature. All that is required is regular use of electricity, which must be installed in the barn.
For those who have little idea of how to equip ventilation in a pigsty, a step-by-step instruction is offered, which tells how to properly make an air purifier with your own hands using an exhaust method. This requires:
- make a round hole in the wall of the pigsty;
- insert the hood from the outside, making sure that the dimensions match the hole;
- tighten the pipe clamp tightly;
- wrap the resulting product with economic tape;
- install the pipe to the hood and fix it;
- can be foamed to make the effect better;
- then it is necessary to build the pipes into the fan and fix it with an oil seal: it is advisable to make several holes in it so that there is where to drain the condensate and eliminate a short circuit;
- connect wires;
- check if the ventilation for the pigsty is working: if everything is done correctly, you will hear the air flow;
- for convenience, you can equip ventilation with an outlet and a special timer that will turn on and off the air supply on time.
The supply air purification option is done in approximately the same way, only in this case the fan is installed in the supply channel. It remains only to choose the type of switch: one that will activate the air injection and illuminate the room, or two, each of which will be designed to perform a separate function.
Do-it-yourself ventilation installation for a pigsty is now complete. For a greater visual effect, you can also watch a video that talks about creating a ventilation system for keeping animals.