Published: August 27, 2008 10:51 am            

Pit pumping and ventilation — they need to go together

Originally published in the August 22, 2008, print edition.

Pumping manure. This very task can be fatal to pigs and humans alike if not done properly.

It’s also the topic of “Emergency Ventilation and Properly Ventilating Barns When Emptying Manure Storage Pits,” a University of Minnesota Extension and Minnesota Pork Board “PorkCast” internet-based presentation.

The idea for this PorkCast came from “talking with some of our producer members,” said Mark Whitney, University of Minnesota Extension swine specialist. With interest from many people, and the fact that it hadn’t been addressed specifically in a PorkCast before, they decided to explore this safety issue.

While Whitney believes producers and pit pumpers have “pretty good knowledge of safety dangers when pumping pits,” it is a lack of good communication that can leave pigs and humans vulnerable to a disaster.

Problems can occur when someone is pumping out a manure pit, but there is no sign on the hog barn door stating that pumping is going on. A person could walk in a barn with high levels of hydrogen sulfide and be quickly overcome by the dangerous gases.

Leading this PorkCast will be Mike Brumm of Brumm Consulting.

Brumm was a professor of Animal Science at the University of Nebraska for 27 years and a swine Extension specialist at Nebraska before moving to Mankato to start a consulting business, working with producers on troubleshooting ventilation in barns.

In addition to working with producers and businesses, Brumm has served as an expert witness in lawsuits involving pigs that died due to poor ventilation.

Like Whitney, Brumm believes that most people are aware of the dangers associated with improper ventilation during manure pumping.

“Pit pumpers are asking owners to sign a waiver of liability,” he said. This is done so that the pit pumper is not liable if something happens that is out of their control.

Brumm believes that the No. 1 thing he sees hog producers do incorrectly is failing “to maintain the emergency system,” he said. “If we have a ventilation failure with big pigs, you have less than 30 minutes to react otherwise you start losing pigs.”

Brumm recommends that “if you have emergency systems, test them on a routine basis.” Keep a written log of those tests in case something happens and you need to prove to your insurance company that the emergency system had been functioning.

“I keep hearing cases of people having close calls,” Whitney said. While it is ideal to not have any pigs in the barn while pumping, he said that “usually a good chunk of your barn is going to have pigs in it.” That is why those who pump manure need to be vigilant in their actions to prevent the death of pigs and humans.

One way pigs can die from manure pumping is simply a lack of wind. According to Whitney, many producers with curtain-sided finishing barns open the curtains to get a cross breeze through the barn. However, if the wind dies down or if it is not windy enough — at least 10 miles per hour — there could be a build-up of hydrogen sulfide, and that could be fatal.

Whitney has some tips for producers to keep their operation safe from manure pit dangers. He recommends “maximizing ventilation in your barn,” and whenever possible “remove animals from the barn.” For human safety “let everyone know the barns are being pumped.” The easiest way to do this is to post signs on barn doors.

The Minnesota Pork Board will soon have tags available on their website that hog producers can place on the doors to their confinements to let people know pumping is occurring and that it is not safe to enter.

Properly ventilating hog barns may not be hard to do, but should not be forgotten as something that’s very important and needs to be done correctly and with great care.

To watch this and previous PorkCasts, log on to www.extension.umn.edu/swine/porkcast. This particular PorkCast was presented Aug. 20.

To get warning signs for your barn, log on to www.mnpork.com. Brumm can be reached at (507) 625-5935, he also blogs on the Minnesota Pork Board’s website, www.mnpork.com.

        

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