Twin Creek Farm

At one time (1990's) we use to bale hay with a conventional small baler but that required a large amount of labor which became harder to find each year.  Also with small square balers, your limited in the capacity of the baler which ultimately limits the amount of acres of quality hay you can harvest in a growing season.  With a big baler and our conversion machine we can harvest 3 times the amount of hay a day with much less labor and have a higher quality product.

Yes our bales are very similiar to a traditional small square bale.  Our flakes are a bit larger but our customers are typically feeding two flakes a day. This is a typical size flake.

We can only use the plastic strapping with our conversion machine. The straps are a little harder on the hands than twine but when handling a few bales there is no problems.  If moving more than a few, gloves would be recommended.  Also, with the way the straps are bound together, you can pull a tab and break the strap without use of a scissors or a knife.  

Selling by the ton is the fairest way of selling hay.  A ton is a unit measurement and is always the same.  A bale is not a unit measurement.  A bale can be all different weights.  A bale weighing 60lbs will have twice the amount of material as a bale weighing 30lbs.  Our bales are much heavier than "standard" bales and when pricing on a per bale basis is much higher in cost but time and time again we'll hear from customers about how amazed they were to see how far the bale went. To get a further understanding of ton prices see the Price conversion section of the website.  We use certified truck truck scales located on the farm to weigh every load of hay.  These scales are yearly inspected and certified by the state.

Like the name implies this machine converts large square bales (3x3x8; 3x4x8) into small square bales that can be handled by a person.  The large ones will typically weigh around 750lbs and after the conversion will weigh anywhere from 50lb to 70lbs depending on the type of hay.  This machine does not rebale the hay but instead "repackages" it to keep the integrity of the flakes and the leaves of the hay.  It is similar in principle to a wood spliter in that the hay is forced through a stationary knife by large hydraulic cylinders.  There are many different methods of making hay and with this machine we have the option of selling the hay in the large square package or breaking them down into the small ones. This also allows us to custom convert large square bales for other farmers too.   Steffen Systems is the manufacturer of this machine and make other hay handling systems as well.

We do all that is possible to avoid hay spoilage.   It is  a danger to your animal and also a loss to us.  To minimize this we have moisture meters mounted on the baler to watch the moisture level while baling.  We have large tedders to fluff the hay and have aggressive conditioner rolls on the discbine to help speed up the dry down time. In the event we can't dry the hay down prior to a rainstorm we do apply a hay preservative which controls mold.  This product is perfectly safe for your animal and is close to the type of preservative used in human foods.   In the event there is a problem with the hay, whether it be dusty or they just won't eat it, we will exchange it out or do whatever neccesary to resolve the situation.   Remember our biggest challenge is working with mother nature which at times can make things difficult.