Used Tires Find Use in Dairy Free Stall Bases

The Piedmont Research Station near Salisbury, NC, has used discarded tires for a number of years in dairy free stalls. More recently, a number of farms across the U.S. has begun adopting the practice.

Cows have accepted the soil-embedded tires in their stalls tires and seem to prefer them to alternative surfaces. The use of tires in this way virtually eliminates the cow's digging of holes in stall surfaces.

The tires must be embedded firmly. If the soil is not packed in and around the tires, cows can move them out of place. Tires for a 13- or 14-inch diameter wheel work best in a 48-inch-wide stall. Larger-diameter or wider tires may be used but require more soil depth and packing. They should be placed side-by-side and touching. Six tires are required for each stall.

Thoroughly packing fine-textured soil inside and around the tires removes the need to cut or drill holes in the bottom sidewall, since moisture and urine do not seep through the soil and accumulate in the tire. Some operators using the tires for stall bedding initially fastened them together with lag bolts for anchorage. This also would appear to be unnecessary for properly installed tires. Tires toward the front of the stall should be slightly higher with a 4- to 6-inch slope from front to rear. Tires at the rear of the stalls should be about even with the top of the curbing.

A sand layer underneath the tires facilitates positioning of them relative to the stall surface and helps drain moisture away from the stall base. Soils containing some silt or clay or other fine-textured materials work best for packing in and around the tires. Care must be taken to pack soil inside the tire carcass as well as around it. Wooden spreader blocks are helpful for opening up the carcass to get soil inside the tire. Soil should be filled and packed to the top of the tire tread.

A thin layer of bedding material such as wood shavings, composted manure solids, or lime is usually spread over the stall surface. A minimum of maintenance weekly should keep these surfaces dry and comfortable for the cow.

Used automobile tire carcasses can be found near landfill sites at automobile service stations, tire service centers, and farmsteads. Usually, these tires are available for the asking or little cost.

Perhaps the biggest drawback to using tires as free stall bases is the work required to position and anchor them properly. The advantages, however, seem to outweigh the shortcomings. The cows prefer the tire-surfaced stalls and appear to be comfortable. Bedding costs and maintenance can be significantly reduced. Cow cleanliness is much improved and the potential for udder diseases is reduced. The incidence of bruised hocks and leg abrasions is reduced compared with harder more abrasive stall surfaces. The durability of tires in free stalls seems to be about five years if they are heavily used.

The previous case study is adapted from a North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service publication, EBAE 176-93. James C. Barker is a professor and extension specialist, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.