# Feed Storage



## Hampy (Jan 6, 2013)

I am doing 3 hogs this spring and I plan on buying feed in bulk this year. I did 2 hogs last year and spent $455 on feed. I figure I can do 3 hogs this year and spend $498 on feed if I buy in bulk.

I plan on going through aprox 2,500 lbs of feed or 1 1/4 ton to feed 3 hogs.

I want to buy 1 ton of feed and then once we run out buy another 1/4 ton to finish them off. My problem is that I need to come up with a solution to storing 2,000 lbs of feed. 

Does anyone have any brilliant ideas on storing this much feed. I want to keep it as cheap as possible.

Thanks!


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## Lazy J (Jan 2, 2008)

How much is the bagging fee at your mill? The mills I work with charge $25 to $35 per ton to bag it in paper bags. For one ton of feed being fed to three pigs that seems like a pretty good deal to me.


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## Hampy (Jan 6, 2013)

The mill I go to uses 100 lb sacks. The prices I listed are as of today... I'm not sure what they will look like in the spring. He told me the charge $25 for mixing and grinding no matter the quantity but otherwise the prices for the grain remains the same.


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## AlaOutlaw (Sep 3, 2006)

Bagged feed at the mill I use is $70 more a ton than bulk feed. We use 55 gallon foodgrade plastic drums to store our feed in. They fill our drums at the mill and we use the tractor loader to move them around the farm. Each drum will hold 250-300 lbs. of feed.


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## bigmudder77 (Jun 9, 2008)

A big old chest freezer will hold a ton or a little more of feed most times you can find them free

Or get online and look for a gravity wagon gonna spend more than buying it in bags but you can turn around and resell it for more money if you needed


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## prairie ogre (Oct 21, 2012)

I buy 1 ton totes of feed and fill old bags ive saved out of the tote. Save 40 feedbags and then cut the bottom out of a bucket and use it as a funnel to fill the old bags. Yes it sucks, your back will hurt when your done, but its cheap. We stand the ags up in a row in a shipping container along one wall, dont kick one over it makes a big mess.


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## bonnie in indiana (May 10, 2002)

Craig's List=chest freezers
or
call a few appliance stores and see if they haul away and have a stockpile.
Many people use freezers for feed storage. Keeps bugs and critters away and keeps feed dry.


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## Fire-Man (Apr 30, 2005)

For those of you that buy in bulk, If I got a big freezer and put a ton of ground hog feed in it---How much time would I have before I would need to use it up. Freezer kept in a dry unheated storage building. Thanks


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## bigmudder77 (Jun 9, 2008)

Figure 650-800lbs of feed per hog and if you get 40-50lb pigs 5-8 months 

So 2000lbs is a ton at 2 pigs 800lbs of feed each your at 1600lbs 3 hogs you should be good and can buy a couple extra bags at the end if needed but around 5-8 months you will have feed in there with 3 we feed our our first 4 with 2500lbs in a chest freezer and the feed was fine for 6 months till they went bye bye

And to answer your question we use ours up with in a month Iguess you could keep it till it molds or starts to smell funny 

But we just buy what we need and can use in a month with the cost of feed why take a risk and waste it


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## Allen W (Aug 2, 2008)

Since pigs eat considerably less when young and more as they get closer to butcher size I would recommend getting a smaller amount of feed at first, and the larger amount of feed later.

I've small back yard type barn that some one had nailed plywood around the inside and put bulk feed in at one time.


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