Q: Can you burn fresh horse manure? You can't burn fresh manure (it contains too much moisture), but you can burn it once it is dried. Horse manure can be dried in “bricks” and then burned for heat.
Yes—really! Horse manure can be used as a fuel source for burning. A writer for Backwoods Home chronicles their journey creating “bricks” from horse manure to later burn as a heat source.
Natural heat generates methane from the manure; the methane rises into the chimney, where a tube runs the gas into the home to power the kitchen burners. It takes between three and five days for the methane to be generated, and the manure – by now an odourless sludge – to flow out of the other end of the cylinder.
First you must decide whether to haul waste off-site, or manage it on the farm. If you choose the first option, look into commercial compost facilities that accept livestock manure for a fee. Another option is to find a nearby plant nursery, organic farm, or landscaping company that may take it for free.
The more you turn, the faster you reach the end result. Turning the pile can be done by hand or with a front-end loader. Increase the surface area by chopping, shredding, or breaking up the material speeds up the composting process. If the compost lacks oxygen, it will have a bad odor.
You can use manure onsite by spreading it as a fertilizer on an open area, pasture or field. You can also haul manure offsite for fertilizing or composting. Use caution when spreading manure on pastures grazed by horses. Don't spread manure on pastures if there are more than 1 horse per 2 acres.
When is it ready? So how long does it take to compost horse manure? Generally, it'll take three to six months for horse manure to turn into compost. The NRCS says this allows fertilizer nutrients to stabilize and weed seeds to be killed.
Manure that is piled and left alone will decompose slowly. This can take three to four months if conditions are ideal. It can take a year or more if the starting material contains a wide carbon:nitrogen ratio (as is the case when manure contains wood chips).
Place daily manure and stall waste in one bin or pile. When that bin or pile is as large as you want it (at least three feet), leave it and begin building a second pile or bin, and so on for the last bin. In two to four months, the first bin or pile should be finished, and you can start using the compost from that bin.
Horse manure is a good source of nutrients and a popular additive to many home gardens. Horse dung manure is highly valued by farmers because composting of horse manure makes the compost pile become super charged and also increases soil fertility, regeneration, and high quality yields.
She and her husband, Matt, burn horse manure collected from their three horses by making the manure into bricks. They have used the bricks to heat their rural Spooner home, Chickadee Hills Farm, for the past two winters and have found the bricks burn beautifully with no odor.
Once temperatures within a heap of organic matter — energy-rich fuel — hit about 300 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, they can catch flame.
The anaerobic bacterial action that breaks down the manure can generate methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and ammonia. These gases may produce toxic effects, but more important, they can displace oxygen in a confined space.
Horse (and other equines)
Horse manure is richer in nutrients than cow, but not as rich as chicken. It is borderline hot, but should be composted to kill off the weed seeds it usually contains.
Manure not only piles up quickly, it is also a haven for parasites, leading to an infestation of flies and other insects and can even attract rodents. Thus, it is imperative every horse owner has a solid manure management plan.
Ideally, manure should be removed from stalls daily. If allowed to accumulate in stalls, it can attract flies, harbor parasites and pathogens, increase the risk of thrush and other hoof- related problems, and generate offensive odors. Exercise paddocks may need weekly cleaning.
Horse manure is high in nitrogen, way too volatile to put straight onto the garden, so it must be always be composted. Also, the high nitrogen manure is very often mixed with a carbon bedding material, like straw or sawdust, which makes it a ready-made compost mix. Stack it in, adding a little water (if dry) as you go.
Horse manure can also be used in throughout the year and needs no special treatment. Just scatter it over your garden area and work it into the soil. It's as simple as that! Horse manure can be a great way to give your garden a boost.
Horse manure is rich is nitrogen so it's especially beneficial for nitrogen loving plants including leafy green vegetables, garlic, brussels sprouts and rhubarb. You'll see a big difference in the growth and health of your plants after the addition of horse manure.
Horse manure is rich in nitrogen, which promotes the development of leaves and plant growth but can inhibit the development of fruit on the plant. Consequently, vegetables such as tomatoes, chilies, sweet peppers, peas, beans, cucumber, and other fruiting plants will not produce high yields when fed with horse manure.
Horse manure
Horse manure has a higher nitrogen and nutrient content than cow dung. Moreover, horse waste contains significantly less water than cow manure; therefore, it can include up to twice as much nitrogen when dried. Horse manure requires composting or aging to kill weed seeds, larvae, and pathogens.
Management. Manure that is piled and left alone will decompose slowly. This can take three to four months if conditions are ideal. It can take a year or more if the starting material contains a wide carbon:nitrogen ratio (as is the case when manure contains wood chips).
Poo-picking your paddock, especially if it's a smaller one, helps to keep the pasture palatable as well as reducing weeds and the worm burden of any horses grazing the field. You should poo-pick at least twice a week and ideally more often than that.
If it does not smell and it started off as manure, it is ready! I think if it is sweet or none smelly and crumbly then it's ready to go - takes about 6 months apparently for any chemicals to dissipate ... this from answers to my own recent questions about manure!
Horse manure alone will have close to the optimum proportions of carbon and nitrogen that compost microbes require. Carbon is the major component of organic matter (45 to 55 percent) in manure and bedding.