Living with Your Horses

The case for building a horse barn with living quarters.

If living with your horses brings to mind Mary, Joseph and a manger, it’s time to stretch your imagination. Today, a horse barn with living quarters can be a comfortable and economical solution for housing horses and their humans.

Building is Best
Begin by considering your three options. Find an existing property for sale (scarce in most places), convert an existing barn (face strict residential building codes and cost overruns) or build your own structure, often the most economical choice. Here’s the case for pursuing the latter, from Todd Fisher, a Lester Buildings dealer based in Iowa.

“Building a new structure offers the most customization. Not only is every horse owner different, but horse breeds can have different needs, too.” Todd and his employer, K-Van Construction Company, have built several combo buildings, including those with stables, arenas and living quarters.

Getting a structure that suits your lifestyle is essential, adds Bob Johnson, an experienced Lester dealer in Illinois, who operates Bob Johnson Construction. “In 2011, we built a customized barn with living quarters for a veterinarian who wanted to keep a watchful eye on foaling mares via a huge picture window in the living room.” Recently, Bob has been fulfilling a more common request:  horse barns with an 800-1,000 sq. ft. apartment for housing a hired hand.

An Insider’s Advice on Design
Todd and Bob offer this advice to people on the fence about building:

Don’t skimp on design/build –  A professional, collaborative design process will ensure you stay in your budget; a correctly built structure will reduce maintenance costs down the road. In other words, don’t skimp when choosing a design-build company.

Build out, rather than up – Todd advocates building longer and wider to avoid stairs in the living quarters, especially if you plan on living the horse lifestyle into your golden years.

Never compromise ventilation – Avoid building a second story on top of horse stalls. Roof ridge vents over stalls are essential for moving air, odor, dust and dirt up and outside. If you live in a part of the country where it’s customary to have hay storage over the stalls, make sure you have proper roof heights and venting. Also, carefully consider placement of windows, doors and other ventilation options.

Fire prevention – In most cases – and if feasible -- play it safe by housing feed, hay, bedding and power equipment in a separate building not attached to the main structure. Also incorporate fire walls between the barn and living quarters. These design elements will likely reduce your insurance premiums.

Distinct spaces – No matter how much you love your horses (and vice versa), maintain distinct separation between horse and human living spaces. This is especially true if you have a riding arena (more dust, dirt, noise, etc.).

Know your local codes -- Local building codes, zoning laws and permit requirements vary by county. Working closely with your Lester dealer upfront can go a long way to prevent unwanted costs and delays down the road.

To see a complete library of horse barns with living quarters in your area, visit lesterbuildings.com.

Avoid Stuffy Stables with Proper Ventilation

Just like humans, horses need fresh, clean air to breathe. Yet inadequate ventilation is the most common mistake made in construction and management of modern horse stables.

That’s according to Eileen Fabian Wheeler, Ph.D., a professor of agricultural and biological engineering at Penn State. Although it’s been a decade since first published, her article, “Horse Stable Ventilation”* is still relevant today. Many barn builders, including Lester Buildings, practice her basic principles. Al Miller, a Lester sales manager and horse owner, is a fan.

“Most horses are standing 15 hours a day in a stall. If your barn isn’t providing enough fresh air and you’re not removing heat in summer and moisture in winter, your horses are much more susceptible to health problems,” he explains. Al has helped numerous Lester clients build horse barns, from simple stables to elaborate riding arenas.

Ventilation Factors to Consider

First, hire a designer/builder who knows barn ventilation basics, which are different than residential or commercial needs. Per Dr. Wheeler, ventilation should:

• Bring fresh air into the building through planned inlets
• Thoroughly mix outside and inside air; remove heat, moisture, pathogens; lower temperature, humidity and contamination levels
• Exhaust moist, contaminated air (and odors) from the building. 

Other considerations will include the building site and landscaping (for example, drainage), size and design of building, number of horses, and weather. In Al’s experience, with the right design, it’s possible to vent naturally, rather than mechanically.

“Lester uses a vented ridge cap and overhang system that suits most barns really well. I’ll also often suggest dutch doors and a grilled stall bottom to help move air around horses’ feet.” He adds that a very large horse complex -- or an owner who prefers a completely insulated barn -- will probably need power ventilation. He cautions to not lose sight of what’s best for the horse or horses. “Some people put their own comfort above what a horse needs. But they’re two very different things.”

The Goal

Aim for a comfortably (by horse standards) dry stable with no condensation. And hire a builder who is committed to preventing a stuffy stable with good ventilation. To learn more about Lester Buildings and see a library of equestrian buildings in your area, visit lesterbuildings.com.