Challenges to building works in 2021 and 2022 didn’t prevent some top-class units being built on farms around the country.
Difficulties in sourcing materials and the inflation on price created headaches, but the farms featured were all pleased to have persevered and completed their projects.
Here, we look back at some readers' favourites from the Irish Farmers Journal.
Slatted sheep shed for 200-ewe flock
Slatted sheep shed for 200-ewe flock in Co Mayo.
Back in April, we visited a recently completed four-bay double slatted sheep shed for an expanded 200-ewe flock.
The shed was kitted with MIK plastic sheep slats over a 1.8m-deep tank, with a central 4.8m feed passage.
Adjustable feed barriers and walk-through troughs provided excellent feed space while preventing lambs escaping pens when used for summer routine care.
The sloping nature of the site meant that some of the tank remained overground.
You can look back on the article clicking here.
Donegal grain store offering flexibility
Peter Lynch's grain store in Co Donegal.
Operating a tillage and beef enterprise alongside his contracting business, Peter Lynch was utilising cattle lie-backs as temporary storage.
After purchasing a grain drier, he took the leap and built a 60ft x 110ft grain store that rises to 28ft at the eaves.
The store has allowed him to maximise his usage of the drier, with Peter adjusting the bays to match a round roof cattle shed to allow for a lean-to to be constructed in the future.
The grain store can be viewed here.
Tullamore Farm slatted/dry shed
The Tullamore Farm slatted shed with a straw lie-back.
In July, we hosted 2,500 farmers to our beef and sheep open day on Tullamore Farm after a three-year hiatus due to COVID.
On display on the day was our new four-bay slatted shed with a large lie-back area.
We had previously been renting a shed to winter our weanling heifers in, so the decision was made to expand the accommodation on the Tullamore Farm home yard.
The shed was completed to TAMS specification and will be used to house weanlings and cows post-calving, as well as our young bulls.
The design of the shed and the costs associated can be viewed here.
Clare suckler shed with tiled calving area
Denis Cahalane's slatted shed with a tiled calving area.
In September, Co Clare suckler farmer Denis Cahalane’s shed featured in our buildings section, where the attention to detail and high specification with the shed appealed to readers.
A stand-out feature in the shed was the tiled walls of the purpose-built calving area complete with a heated water source and calving gate.
Denis’s high-spec suckler shed can be viewed here.
Longford cubicle shed at less than €1,500/cow
Eugene Fitzgerald's 70-cow cubicle shed.
With the rate of inflation, Longford dairy farmer Eugene Fitzgerald managed to cut costs on his new cubicle shed through utilising the floor of an existing silage slab after it became redundant.
This allowed Eugene to build a 70-cubicle shed for €103,440, excluding VAT, including two new scrapers.
The new shed has allowed Eugene to keep all stock in the home yard, a major benefit now that labour is becoming increasingly difficult to source.
Eugene’s cubicle shed can be viewed here.
Challenges to building works in 2021 and 2022 didn’t prevent some top-class units being built on farms around the country.
Difficulties in sourcing materials and the inflation on price created headaches, but the farms featured were all pleased to have persevered and completed their projects.
Here, we look back at some readers' favourites from the Irish Farmers Journal.
Slatted sheep shed for 200-ewe flock
Slatted sheep shed for 200-ewe flock in Co Mayo.
Back in April, we visited a recently completed four-bay double slatted sheep shed for an expanded 200-ewe flock.
The shed was kitted with MIK plastic sheep slats over a 1.8m-deep tank, with a central 4.8m feed passage.
Adjustable feed barriers and walk-through troughs provided excellent feed space while preventing lambs escaping pens when used for summer routine care.
The sloping nature of the site meant that some of the tank remained overground.
You can look back on the article clicking here.
Donegal grain store offering flexibility
Peter Lynch's grain store in Co Donegal.
Operating a tillage and beef enterprise alongside his contracting business, Peter Lynch was utilising cattle lie-backs as temporary storage.
After purchasing a grain drier, he took the leap and built a 60ft x 110ft grain store that rises to 28ft at the eaves.
The store has allowed him to maximise his usage of the drier, with Peter adjusting the bays to match a round roof cattle shed to allow for a lean-to to be constructed in the future.
The grain store can be viewed here.
Tullamore Farm slatted/dry shed
The Tullamore Farm slatted shed with a straw lie-back.
In July, we hosted 2,500 farmers to our beef and sheep open day on Tullamore Farm after a three-year hiatus due to COVID.
On display on the day was our new four-bay slatted shed with a large lie-back area.
We had previously been renting a shed to winter our weanling heifers in, so the decision was made to expand the accommodation on the Tullamore Farm home yard.
The shed was completed to TAMS specification and will be used to house weanlings and cows post-calving, as well as our young bulls.
The design of the shed and the costs associated can be viewed here.
Clare suckler shed with tiled calving area
Denis Cahalane's slatted shed with a tiled calving area.
In September, Co Clare suckler farmer Denis Cahalane’s shed featured in our buildings section, where the attention to detail and high specification with the shed appealed to readers.
A stand-out feature in the shed was the tiled walls of the purpose-built calving area complete with a heated water source and calving gate.
Denis’s high-spec suckler shed can be viewed here.
Longford cubicle shed at less than €1,500/cow
Eugene Fitzgerald's 70-cow cubicle shed.
With the rate of inflation, Longford dairy farmer Eugene Fitzgerald managed to cut costs on his new cubicle shed through utilising the floor of an existing silage slab after it became redundant.
This allowed Eugene to build a 70-cubicle shed for €103,440, excluding VAT, including two new scrapers.
The new shed has allowed Eugene to keep all stock in the home yard, a major benefit now that labour is becoming increasingly difficult to source.
Eugene’s cubicle shed can be viewed here.
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