Anyone need a milking parlor makeover?

[wooliewabbits]

We surely do. We need to paint the goat stand, hang some shelves, have a small table. What accessories in your milking area that you like??

 

[Southern by choice]

I would like to hear more too. It would be great for pics of peoples set ups.

Great topic.. hope it gets some attention.

 

[babsbag]

Mine is a mess right now, been storing some tools in it that need to get hauled to the shop. What I would really really really like is hot water and a sink. I have a hose right outside the door but hot water would be a huge plus. But now that I am moving the whole housing and milking area 100' to get things in line for building a dairy I am not sure how much work I should put into my current set-up. I bring hot water and towels out from the house for washing udders, boy oh boy, I really want that sink.

I also store all the grain, dog food, medical supplies, and some chicken feed in the milking parlor, it is a cozy place.

 

[chicken pickin]

I too would like if people talked more about their milking rooms things they have in it what is necessity and what would just be a major plus. And pics would be a huge help. I love seeing all the different types of things people build and come up with.

I have 2 doelings and so far have built their fence and house where they eat and sleep. I plan to build a milk room attached to the goat house and then was debating on whether or not I need to make a separate kidding room. DO people typical build a milk stand or buy them already made?

 

[Pearce Pastures]

x2 on the hot water and sink so I don't have to haul if from the house.

I also would like a cabinet to keep my stuff in--sanitizer, baby wipes, listerine, bleach (which I would like a pump for), stainless steel pails, strainers, coffee filters, a funnel, measuring vase, and hair trimmers.

I had DH rebuild our stand and it is nice though a bit taller would be good.

We keep our stand in the main part of the barn away from the goats--otherwise they play on it and get it all funky. All of the other stuff is mostly in the house so I have to carry it back and forth two or three times a day.

The only pic I have are of the stand which I had rolled outside for shaving goats.

 

[michickenwrangler]

Like Babs, we're in the middle of rennovations for a dairy.

I was "gifted" with 4 more milking does. Luckily, a milking machine and vacuum pump came with them. Unfortunately, we don't have 220v in the shed.

So we're moving from a 10 x 12 shed into our garage. Garage has cement floor, 220 power and we're planning on running water lines out there. We're looking to get set up as a manufactured milk facility (Grade B). So we need to start getting compliant with rules & reg.

 

[Kotori]

can't help at all with most of this, but for the water, you could try a laundry sink so you could sanitize the equipment out there, and instead of shelves, you could use milk crates. attach them facing out and you can hang things (halter, leadline,) off the bottom, and set things inside and on top. This was used by a barn I visited for horses, and it worked great. they also used plastic drums cut in half and put saddles on top.

If hot water isn't an option, Tractor supply or a similar store should have a drop-in water heater. A person at my barn uses this to bathe one of her horses. takes <10 minutes to heat up a standard horse bucket.

Random milking tip: put some ice in a bucket, take it to milking parlour, fill it and you can drop jars of fresh milk into it to cool.

If you're planning to use 220, then get a little higher, just in case.(feel free to disregard since I know nothing about wiring/electricity)

 

[AshleyFishy]

If I was able to upgrade... I would do sealed concrete floors with a drain, air conditioning/heating, more storage, on demand hot water, more lighting and put my pump into a "sound proofing" box.

Oh and maybe put a pen in front of the milking stand for the goat kids.

 

[babsbag]

One more thing I want...and IN door and an OUT door. When I put the goat I just got done milking back into the pasture I get pushed and shoved by the next one that wants out to get to the grain on the stand. Separate doors or another pasture with an adjoining gate that I can just open when I am done milking.

This is my fifth year and every year it gets a little easier. I finally have the cabinet in the milk room for supplies, but I still haul the milk to the house, about 200' UPHILL. That part will never change. But what I do intend to do is get another lid for my milking bucket ( I have a machine) that is used for transporting the milk. No more glass jars to transfer milk, that would be awesome. If I really had the money I would buy another can too, would make the logistics of how to clean the machine much easier. Have to work on that.

We have a propane hot water heater from an RV and I am thinking that DH can set that up for me pretty easily; I have water literally at the door. A five gallon propane tank should last me a couple of weeks. I am going to buy one of those plastic laundry tubs and just let it drain into the pasture. The one other thing that I am on the verge of doing is putting an apartment size stacking washer and dryer that we have in the milk room too. I just have to see if it is 110 or 220 for the dryer. Or I could (should) put a clothes line up and sun dry them. Look like Green Acres for sure if I do that. I use white rags for udder cleaning, just can't bring myself to use disposable wipes.

If I put all this in the milk parlor it is going to get pretty cramped with all the feed that I store in there. I sure like storing the feed in a shed that is goat proof however, so I need to figure out how to condense and make it all fit. I have dog food, chicken food, alfalfa pellets, kelp, DE, minerals, beet pulp, dairy grain, and sometime BOSS, and pelletized feed for the kids. It gets a little crazy and crowded. The shed is only about 8x10 .

Today I put a box fan in there since it has been over 100 here for almost a week. 112 one day. Not only does the fan help with the heat, but it keeps the flies out. Should have done that 5 years ago.