Projects for Spring: Get Your Barn Ready for Warmer Months

It seems everywhere you look, spring is teasing equestrians across the nation. As temperatures start to warm up, horse people tend to get stir crazy. Hopefully you were able to stay busy this winter with our 7 creative ways to keep riding, but if not, that sly sunlight and warmth might have you itching to get into the barn. To get your barn or stable in top shape for all the arena time you can handle in a few months, we’ve got some great spring cleaning tips you can start on now.

Maintenance and barn repair

Hopefully the big snow drifts have melted and you’re left with greenery starting to sprout around your horse property. A great start to any stable spring cleaning list is simple repairs and fix-ups that you’ve been needing to do but haven’t had the time to get to. Broken latches, crooked stall doors, cross ties and fence slats that are damaged or warped are fairly easy to take care of without spending too much time or money. Fixing leaky waterers and faucets are a few more good barn projects for the end of winter; not only to keep your water bill and mess down, but to prevent a late freeze from doing further damage to your plumbing or water lines. Don’t forget, most parts of the U.S. still have at least one good cold front to manage before they see the full onset of spring weather.

Barn organization ideas

Who doesn’t love a tidy, well organized tack room or wash rack? Even your feed room and hay storage areas can get a little out of sorts with the cold weather shuffle. If you haven’t checked out our Pinterest board on DIY barn and equestrian hacks, look there for some really great ideas on things you never knew you needed around the barn. While the days are still short and the temps are a bit balmy, mid-spring is the perfect time to organize the polo wraps you’ve been heaping up all summer. Maybe it’s time to install a blanket rack, or get your feed room put together the exact way you want.

Get a jump on gardening and landscaping

While you may not be able to power through a massive landscaping overhaul, spring is still a good time to tidy up your garden beds, plant bulbs, fix up broken planters and plan out your dream stable yard. If you’re anticipating a mud problem when things begin to fully thaw, now is also a good time to assess your mud woes and come up with a solution. Lighthoof panels are a ground stabilizing grid that helps firm up footing and give your animals (and you!) a dry place to stand or drive. Coupled with good drainage, our mud management panels can get your property mud-free forever.

We’ve got a checklist to get your spring cleaning started

We realize every facility, and every equestrian is different. Here’s a stable spring-cleaning checklist to get you started this spring.

• Do a once over on your trailer - repairs, fixes, loose fixtures, floor boards, get it taken care of before show season starts.
• Deep clean your tack - that’s right, throw a tack cleaning party complete with chick flicks and hot cocoa. Get the whole barn involved.
• Scrub those blankets, brushes and grooming supplies - springtime moisture brings on the onset of scratches and rain rot. Don’t pass it around the barn, keep your equipment clean!
• Equipment check up - this goes for fire extinguishers, first aid kits, tractors, automatic waterers and everything in between. When breeding and show season kicks up, you’ll be glad it’s out of the way.
• Cobwebs and dust - it’s inevitable, you’re going to get bugs and cobwebs. You may as well sweep them up while you’re stuck inside.
• Vaccine schedules, sheath cleaning, de-worming and spring check-ups - Make sure your 4 legged family members are ready to hit the ground running.
• Tidy up the tack and feed rooms - move furniture, bins, shelves and stands to ensure you sweep up all the bits of grain that rodents and bugs will feast on all summer. We’ve even got some great tack room organization tips for you to check out!
• Inspect your fence line - winter may not be big for turnout, but better to find a downed rail or post before your horse does.

Now that you’ve got a sizeable list of tasks to accomplish, get to it! We’d much rather see you in the saddle this summer, enjoying your dream barn in the sun!