A team at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences has
developed an online tool that determines how long a manure pit needs to be
ventilated before it’s safe to enter.
It’s software designed for use by barn contractors building
manure pits.
On-farm manure storage poses a significant hazard to
agricultural workers due primarily to the danger of toxic and asphyxiating gas
buildup. Farmers and service personnel occasionally need to enter these pits to
conduct repair and maintenance tasks.
An article by Jeff Mulhollem
explains that airflow through the animal living space in the barn above a
manure storage also can be simulated by the new tool, so it can be used to
determine whether animals need to be evacuated from all or a portion of the
barn during pit ventilation.
The design tool is available at https://ventdesign.agsafety.psu.edu/
The website offers instructions, tutorials, workshop videos
and a user's manual.
