7,000 lbs later

So a recurrent issue with our temp barn/ shed has been flooding.  Last month our area of NC just about doubled the average rainfall. We usually get around 3 inches of rain in Feb, and we were over 5.5!!  Much of that rain fell as very heavy storms followed by days of drizzle, which made it hard for the ground to recover.

The current shed/barn is halfway down a hill and in the direct route of most of the runoff.  I have just been dumping bedding hoping to raise them up out of the water.  Which is not a long term solution!!

So much rain!

This weekend was warm and sunny and the husband was home, so in between once again re-homing Cecil (there will be a very long write up later this week), and getting quotes of starting our forever barn (another post on that is coming as well because holy $$$)

This story has a very happy ending!

We do not have any actual farm equipment, so this meant wheelbarrowing in the gravel.  On Sat we stripped the stalls and the mats. Jeeze was that smelly and gross.  I put down a layer of Sweet PDZ and we let it air out and finish drying overnight.

This is where water kept bibbling up and pushing mats around.

You can see how some areas sunk.

Mudd soaked shavings are about 5 times heavier than normal.

Sunday we packed and leveled 5 inches of gravel in each stall.  We used 2x6s across the doors as our marker and filled up to an inch from the top.

Then we added back the mats and dripped and staked down the corners. 

We also redid some of the wood walls, the hay bag clips and feed bucket clips.  We lowered the interior panel on the aisle (we will be putting in 'windows' next and re-hung our blanket racks.  We brought the horses in for a few hours to see how well we had packed everything and make sure the mats were stable before we covered them with shavings.

Look how shiny he is even when he is filthy. 

Steve is mad he cannot sneak under the stall guards anymore.

 Then we bedded the stalls, moved all our supplies back in and picked up some more hay to hold us over through this week's rain.  Then we ate pizza!!

Dutch is enjoying his new lower wall - He doesn't have to giraffe his head up to see out anymore.

It looks really nice, and I am hoping that the almost 6-inch rise will be enough to keep their feet dry when it starts to rain tonight.  My husband deserves huge credit - I hurt my elbow a few weeks ago, so although I did all the leveling and scraping, and organizing and drilling; he shoveled and dumped all 7000 lbs of gravel by himself, then hammered in all the stakes for the stall mats.

He is amazing!