Calf Care Checklist: 5 Checkpoints for Summer Ventilation – Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus

By Ann Hoskins, Vita Plus calf products coordinator
During the summer, our goal is 40 to 60 air exchanges per hour in calf barns and pens.  With a late spring, some of these tasks might have been put on the back burner.  However, as summer arrives, good ventilation goes a long way in promoting calf health.  Plus, an efficient working ventilation system saves dollars on your bottom line.

• Check all fans to make sure they are running properly.  Clean fan blades and the areas around fans.  Dust and dirt build up on the blades and the area surrounding the fan.  This will affect the fan and its air output.  Fans should be on a twice-a-year maintenance schedule.
• Check your positive pressure tubes to ensure all the holes are free of debris.  If you can clean out the tubes, do this twice a year to ensure proper air movement.
• Check that barn ridges and soffits are free of build-up.  These areas will often fill in with dust or become housing areas for birds.
• If your curtains have taken a beating this winter, now is the time to fix them.  Don’t wait for the fall or winter to return.
• For those using hutches, it is time to open the back doors and vents.  You might also use blocks to lift the backs of hutches.  If you have indoor calf pens, make sure all the areas of ventilation are open.

Like all areas of a farm, it is key to make sure the ventilation systems are performing to their best ability.  They need a little routine maintenance just like any other piece of equipment.