SowBridge Importance of Ventilation for Pig Comfort Basic Environmental Factors & Their Effects on Pigs Steve Pohl South Dakota State University Stephen.Pohl@sdstate.edu 1 2 Thermal Environment of the Pig Heat Exchange Between a Pig & It s Surroundings Air temperature seldom temperature pig feels Air speed Humidity Group size Building materials, design, surface temperature (insulation) Effective Environmental Temperature (EET) What pig really feels Combined influence of many factors 3 4 basic forms of heat transfer for the pig Conduction Convection Radiation Evaporation * Understanding how a pig gains/loses heat is the key to providing the pig with the optimum environment and comfort 4 Effect of air temp on rectal temp, respiration rate, & pulse rate of growing pigs 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 125 120 120 102.3 102.2 102.6 100 104 30 20 40 60 80 100 60 Room Temperature ( O F) Rectal Pulse Resp 5 LCT, UCT, & TNZ Lower Critical Temperature (LCT) Consume more feed Apply extraordinary measures to keep warm Upper Critical Temperature (UCT) Suppress feed intake Apply extraordinary measures to stay cool Thermal Neutral Zone (TNZ) EET that optimizes production efficiency 6 1
Thermal Neutral Zone, Upper & Lower Critical Temperatures Heat Stress and the Breeding Herd 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0??? o F 75 o F LCT TNZ UCT Cold Stress Heat Stress Mcal intake Feed/gain ADG, lbs 7 Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Heat Stress Litters affected by heat stress on sows Reduced boar fertility Litters affected by reduced boar fertility Levis, 1980 8 Ventilation Systems Affect: n Air temperature n Fluctuation n Uniformity n Moisture and contaminant levels n Dust and disease organisms n Gas concentrations (odor, unvented heaters) n Air speed across animals n Surface conditions n Temperature, condensation, drying, etc. 9 Conventional, Negative- Pressure Ventilation Systems Exhaust fans Air inlets Controls Total [HVAC] system Heaters Evaporative cooling 10 Exhaust Fans Select # and size for cold, mild, and hot weather Place so not exceeding suggested maximum spacings. Centrally along regions of room Away from corners of room In banks (groups) for ready wiring & access Recommended Ventilation Rates (cfm/pig) Minimum Mild Hot weather Sow & Litter (cfm/sow) 20 80 500 Finishing 150-250# 10 35 120 Gestating Sows 12 40 150 Breeding Sows 14 50 300 Boars 14 50 300 11 12 MWPS 2
Choosing Fans for Your facilities Fan Test Data Or Static pressure Speed Airflow Efficiency in. H2O rpm cfm cfm/w access fan data online at: 0.00 24,600 21.4 www.bess.uiuc.edu 0.05 22,800 19.3 0.10 21,000 17.5 0.15 18,900 15.5 0.20 16,100 13.4 0.25 www.mwps.org to order 13 BESS Lab Effect of Drive Belt Tension 48-inch Fan 25000 Airflow (cfm) Air Inlets Room BESS lab 20000 Airflow before belt adj. 15000 Linear (Airflow before belt adj.) 5000 Linear (Airflow after belt adj.) 0 0 20 0.08 inches 40 0.16 inches Place for even air distribution Size for capacity to meet maximum ventilation needs Airflow after belt adj. 10000 14 Include ability to adjust properly Attic/building air intake? Ensure there is enough! 60 Static Pressure (pa) 15 16 As Always, Inlets Are Key. Powered Inlets Weighted or Velocity Inlets 17 18 18 3
Attic Air Intake with Proper Soffit Construction Cold winter air 20 19 Negative Pressure Inlets and Open Doors 24 crate farrowing room has 12,000 cfm of summer capacity (500 cfm/crate) 15 ft2 of total inlet capacity needed to maintain inlet velocity at 800 fpm. Tilting Fans for Cooling Effect (View from Center Aisle toward Sidewall) Fans Used for Supplemental Cooling Space to utilize throw 800 fpm Incoming airspeed correct Air moves well into the room and circulates Fans Used for Distributing Air One 6ft 8in x 3 ft walk-in door left open inlet capacity to room increases by 20 ft2 and inlet velocity drops to 342 fpm. Tilt fans to expose pigs to moving air stream Throw ~ 10 x fan diameter (ft) 342 fpm Incoming airspeed too low Air comes into the room and drops Spacing ~ 25 x fan diameter (ft) 21 No tilt results in air circulation without exposing pigs to moving air stream 22 Dr Rick Stowell, Extension Ag Engineer, University of Nebraska When to turn on stirring fans? When used for cooling: 3-5oF lower than drip cooling or sprinkling (75-78oF) Goal is to first use direct airflow to cool the pigs, then add water for evaporative cooling. If making up for poor air distribution, some fans can always be on, but they must be re-oriented (along ceiling) for colder weather. 23 Tunnel-Ventilated Gestation Barn 24 w/evaporative Cooling Pads 24 4
Impact of Relative Humidity on Effectiveness of Evaporative Cooling Evaporative Cooling Pads (KoolCell Pads) Incoming air drawn through wet pads Air evaporates water from pads Outside Temp (F) Temp reduced Moisture increased 25 Sizing Tunnel Ventilation: Gestation [ Ceiling height x Room width ] x Desired velocity x 62 66 70 84 67 73 78 92 73 79 85 100 79 87 93 Meyer and Van Fossen, ISU, 1971 26 Pad efficiency drops sharply at >400 fpm 1) Producing desired airspeed 60 ft ] 76 Design of Evap Coolers Use the Higher Fan Capacity: x Outside RH% 50 70 Pad Exit Temp (F) 80% efficiency Temperature will decrease until RH nears 85%. When incoming air is humid (relative humidity >70%), air temp decrease will only be 5-10 F. When incoming air is relatively dry (<55% RH), air temp reduction may be 15 F or more. [ 8 ft 30 300 ft/min 850 females x 250 = 212,500 CFM 8 x 60 x 300 = 445 fpm 6 ft pad height 212,500 / 400 = 531.25 ft2 = 144,000 cfm 2) Producing desired air exchange 531.25 ft2 / 6 ft high = 88.5 ln feet # females x 250 cfm/pig 500 hd x 250 cfm/hd = 125,000 cfm è 260 fpm 850 hd x 250 cfm/hd = 212,500 cfm è 445 fpm 2828 27 When to turn on pad pumps? Evaporative Pad Cooler Issues Uneven Wetting Water Quality Full tunnel ventilation first Algae growth use dilution of copper sulfate Mineral deposits Minimum outside temperature your system specifies? Routinely drain 10-15% Alternative muratic acid or vinegar in water Covers Static pressure control point Winter 29 http://www.aerotech-inc.com/www/help.nsf/bykey/rscz-628nbg/$file/qp1511.pdf 30 5
Evaporative or Direct Cooling Sprinklers Wetting the pig and then allowing moisture to evaporate off provides substantial cooling (1050 BTU s lost for every lb of water evaporated) Good systems wet the pig & allow the water to evaporate Increased air speed Lower humidity = increased evaporation so want intermittent wetting Sprinkling & dripping Used for grow-finish pigs Want time interval & nozzle size to deliver 1 gal of water/hr/10 pigs 31 32 Sprinklers Start sprinkling at 80 0F & wet all pigs Once pigs are wet, stop sprinkling and allow water to evaporate off If continually wetting, relative humidity in the barn will rise & evaporation will decrease Timers on sprinklers allow for pen drying 33 34 Sprinkler vs Fogger Sprinklers 80 F set point Non-corrosive nozzles Should provide a solid cone of water droplets Do NOT want a fogger Fogger cools the air Raises relative humidity & decreases evaporation Sprinkler cools the animal Place nozzle 6 above the dunging area Control (no cooling) Fogger (small droplets, always on) Sprinkler (1 on, 29 off) ADG, lb (I) 1.15 1.28 1.54 ADG, lb (II) 1.44 1.56 1.74 (I) 140 lb on test wt, 56 d trial (II) 150 lb on test wt, 42 d trial K State, 1983 35 36 6
Drip Cooling for Sows Water Drip and Sow Performance 37 Drip Cooling Drip Off Drip On ADF, lb/d 7.8 12.3 Wt loss, lb 47 31 Days to estrus 5.2 4.7 McGlone, 1998 http://www.moormans.com/swine/techbulletinhtml/s9333%20heat%20stress.htm 38 Drip Cooling Emit small droplets of water on neck & shoulders (areas of high blood flow) Preferred method of cooling lactating sows Start at 80 0F Drippers should provide.5-1.0 gal/hr sized for minimal runoff from sow Dripper should be placed 20 behind front headgate Cool the sows but keep piglets warm & dry Reduces feed wetting Keeps young pigs dry Wets a high bloodflow area 39 Atomizer Cooling Make sure creep area stays dry 40 Summary Evaporative cooling is most effective cooling system for swine Water needs to be properly placed and at the correct flow rate Increased air speed & lower humidity greatly increase evaporative heat loss Sprinklers for G-F pigs & drippers for sows 41 42 7
Thank You Questions??? 43 8