Deep Cleaning Your Barn

Due to the current state of things, you may or may or may not have been able to get a start on your barn's spring cleaning. Since the Lowcountry is starting to open up again, it is the perfect time to get started! 

Hello Lowcountry friends and fellow horse lovers! We are so excited because it looks like we will see you back in our barns and back on our trials sooner than many of us thought possible. With that becoming a reality more and more every day, we have started on our barns and stables deep cleaning and have continued to follow safety guidelines to keep our employees safe. We also want to make sure that when you come and visit us again, you'll stay healthy and safe too! Since we are digging into the deep cleaning of our barns and stables and are continuing to sanitize everything, we wanted to share some tips and suggestions on how to give your barn the best deep clean possible! 

If you are are a farmer or a horse owner, deep cleaning and disinfecting has always been apart of your cleaning schedule. Horses are so susceptible to bacteria and germs that are found on all surfaces in a barn and anything they can come in contact with, that it is always important to keep up with a consistent cleaning schedule. When this pandemic set in, the need to clean and sanitize was nothing new to us! Regularly disinfecting your barns and stables have always been important to help with the care and health of your horses. It has always helped with keeping your horses and employees healthy. But, with the world in the state that it is, it's more important than ever. As many of you know, this is hard work. It takes time, and a lot of extra elbow grease to do it well. But it is always worth it. 

When you get started, it's important to move your horses away from the area that you will be cleaning, and relocate them until you're finished. Also, it is important to remove their bedding from their stalls to maximize the deep clean. When cleaning with soap, detergent, and disinfectants of any kind, make sure that you choose based on how it could affect your farm, your animals, and yourself. Always wear the proper clothing and safety gear to keep yourself safe when using chemicals of any kind. 

• As you're getting started, it's important to remember that you are cleaning more than just your barn and stables. You need to make sure to clean the barn walls, doors, paddocks, fences, and gates. You need to make sure to clean and pay attention to any tools, equipment, farm equipment, vehicles, trailers, down to the very last horse toy. Make sure to go through this process consistently to help avoid the spread of any sickness in your horses, to keep your employees safe, and to help keep the current pandemic away from your farm. 
• Move any equipment out of the barn and stables that could potentially block the surface space of the barn itself from getting a full deep clean. Move these items outside and to another location where they can be cleaned and disinfected at a different time. 
• Muck out all of the stables as you normally would, paying extra attention to get everything out. This can be a good time to get rid of all the bedding in your horse's stall. 
• Now it's time to get out your power washer! Start in the back of your barn and work your way forwards. Start at the top of the walls/ceilings and work your way down to the floor. Push the dirty water towards the drains in your barn. 
• If your barn has dirt flooring, along with moving or getting rid of your horse's bedding, remove the top layer of dirt as best you can. Go down a few inches if possible. 
• Once this process has been finished, to help with bacteria coming back due to the use of hard or well water, or possibly using too high of pressure with your power wash, it's time to scrub your stables down. This might seem tedious, but it is very important. 
• Scrub all of the stables surfaces with water and detergent, and spend the time to rinse everything thoroughly. 
• Allow the stables to completely dry out. Opening the barn doors and windows will help with this, along with the use of fans. It is very important to let everything dry. This can be the longest part of the process. 
• Once this has been completed, create a solution of 10% bleach and 90% water and spray each stall with it. Once that has been done, clean each stall and the rest of the barn with the proper disinfectants of your choice. This process allows more bacteria to be cleaned away before the disinfectant is applied. The disinfectant will then be able to kill even more germs. 
• Make sure you are disinfecting everything from their toys to their feed buckets! While the barn is drying or has been disinfected and is drying, it is the perfect time to work on the barn's accessories and these other objects that need a deep clean just like the barn. Make sure they are cleaned and disinfected before you put them back into the clean barn. 
• A second round of disinfectant spray doesn't hurt! 

Like we mentioned above, keeping a barn and its horse stalls clean and disinfected takes time and serious work. But, the horse's health and the health of your employees is worth that time. Also know that when you are getting ready to head back out on our trails and to visit our horses again, a deep clean like this has always been normal for us. It is nothing new. It is something that we take very seriously. We have been and will continue to apply these ideas to helmets, saddles, and any other riding gear that is used by our guests and visitors. Remember, once we do get back to normal we offer the best horseback riding in Charleston, the best horse trail riding in Charleston, and more. During this break, take the time to visit all of the pages of our website, and enjoy learning more about Middleton trail rides! We will see you soon!

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