Protocols and preparation for manure agitation and pumping

Each farm should have safety protocols for manure storage systems.  A farm safety checklist is a good start to developing a specific plan for your operation.

There is a brief window of time for manure agitation and pumping during busy spring and fall seasons. While manure gases are always present when there is stored manure, the danger level for hydrogen sulfide and methane is elevated when manure is agitated.

Manure pumping activities may only involve a few people from on or off your operation. However, all on-farm family members and staff should be aware of the dangers of manure gas exposure and how to reduce the risks to human and animal health and safety. For example, everyone needs to understand what signs mean and what to do when they come across one.  Another example is manure transfer pits may be a distance from the actual manure storage area, but gases may be released at this point.

General safety preparations for manure agitation and pumping on farm are evacuate – extinguish – signage – ventilate.

Evacuate

When stored manure is agitated or pumped from under the slatted floor of a barn, get everyone out of the barn, including animals if possible. Once people are evacuated, post signs and use barriers to reduce the risk of re-entry before it is safe.

For outdoor manure storage areas, the only people around the area should be those moving the manure.

Extinguish

• Remove any potential ignition sources to guard against flash fires and explosions.
• Turn off power to any non-ventilation equipment and extinguish any pilot lights or other ignition sources.

Signage

• Place warning signs at all entrances to buildings and storage areas where manure agitation is in progress.

• Make sure all on-farm family members and workers are aware of procedures, even those who may not be directly involved with manure removal.

• Ensure everyone understands what this activity means and the potential dangers so they respect and follow the signs.

Ventilate

Monitor wind conditions, particularly wind inversions, when pumping from outdoor manure storages.   

For barns

A ventilation strategy during manure pumping needs to be dynamic and considerate of the day-to-day temperature, wind conditions and barn type. Whenever possible, remove animals from barns before manure agitation and removal.

Turning off pilot lights to reduce ignition sources takes heaters offline. This is an important safety step, but in cool weather can translate to chilly conditions for young animals. Therefore, a ventilation strategy also needs to consider the stage of production and the animal environment.

For deep pit swine and dairy barns

Manure pump-out ports are often located and accessed under pit ventilation fans. Taking ventilation fans offline reduces the ventilation capacity. These large openings can also influence airflow patterns and distribution. Air will take the path of least resistance, and air may short-circuit through these openings rather than come through curtain walls or ceiling inlets. Cover these openings around the pumping equipment, if possible, to reduce the influence on the airflow patterns in the barn and animal area.  

When pit ventilation is in place, remove manure at least two feet below the bottom of the floor slats before agitation to ensure ventilation in the animal zone during agitation events. If the manure is too high, pit fan ventilation does not effectively move air from the animal zone, and increases the risk of gas exposure.

The table below gives an overview of ventilation strategies during manure pumping to optimize airflow through the animal-occupied zone and temperature for animal comfort for wean-finish swine operations. Similar principles, but different ventilation rates apply to dairy and beef cattle barns.