Barn Fires Are Bad News for Farm Animals and Livestock
Barn fires are bad news for livestock, causing hundreds of thousands of farm animal deaths in America every single year. Many farm animals will die in the fire itself, while others must be euthanized later due to severe burns, smoke inhalation, or other complications. Either way, it’s a pretty tragic situation.
The Animal Welfare Institute (based in Washington, D.C.) released an updated report in January 2022, compiling information on the prevalence and causes of farm animal deaths due to barn fires during the four-year period from 2018 to 2021. During the time frame encompassed by the study, nearly 3 million farm animals perished in barn fires, and about 98 percent of those deaths involved poultry. Large chicken houses and barns are typically the sites of the highest number of fatalities, but chickens aren’t the only types of animals at risk. So far, in 2022, there are already multiple instances of barn fires killing other farm animal species too, including horses, goats, cows, pigs, sheep, turkeys, ducks, dogs, and rabbits.
What Are Leading Causes of Barn Fires?
There are many different ways that a barn fire can be sparked, ranging from widespread wildfires to careless smoking to faulty electrical wiring, unsafe heaters, lightning strikes, and improperly stored hay. While a fire can really occur in any season, more barn fires tend to occur during the winter months when electrical and heating usage is high and when more bedding and flammable materials tend to be stored in barns. This is often exacerbated by the fact that winter barns can also be filled with recently harvested crops, seasonally retired tools, and equipment, and potentially even more horses and livestock.
Of course, barn fires aren’t just attributable to what may be stored inside the barn. What the barn itself is made of can also be a contributing factor to whether a fire breaks out, and how quickly the fire spreads.
A Wood Barn Will Burn Quickly, While a Metal Barn Won’t
Wood burns. This is probably not a newsflash to you, but it’s certainly something to keep in mind when it comes to choosing which construction materials to use for your new barn. And a traditional wooden barn is incredibly susceptible to fire. Once a wood barn catches fire, the whole thing will often go up in flames very quickly, with little chance of saving any animals trapped inside.
While there’s no such thing as a completely fireproof structure, a metal barn is MUCH more fire-resistant than a stick-built structure. The International Building Code recognizes steel framing and steel paneling to be noncombustible materials. Steel won’t ignite, won’t add any fuel to a fire to an existing fire, and can help keep a fire from spreading. You simply won’t get the same fire resistance benefits by going with a wooden structure.
The Proven Performance Value of a Metal Barn
What makes a metal barn a better choice? Honestly, plenty of things. Let’s start with the fact that a building framed with light-gauge steel tubing is durable, reliable, versatile, and cost-effective to construct. Steel structures of this type can be designed to meet all sorts of building solutions, not just for farms and agricultural settings but also for residential and commercial applications. You’re probably already familiar with metal carports and metal garages, but steel-framed buildings can also be engineered and installed for a wide range of other purposes.
Why Steel Makes Good Sense
Steel barn components won’t warp, rot, crack, or chip. And unlike wood buildings, steel structures don’t need frequent painting or staining, either. A steel building is engineered to be able to endure constant usage, and is also better poised for withstanding all sorts of natural threats, including wind, rain, snow, lightning, and even earthquakes. Steel buildings aren’t threatened by termites, pests, mold, or mildew either.
Turn to Metal Barn Central for All Your Metal Barn & Farm Building Needs!
Need a reliable steel structure for your home, farm, or business? Metal Barn Central has you covered! We serve 46 states – covering nearly all of the continental U.S. – and we’ve been taking care of residences, businesses, and farms across America for years. And while our name may be Metal Barn Central, barns are really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the many types of custom metal buildings we offer. Ready to get the best prefab metal barn at a competitive metal barn price? We can help you to protect your people, animals, and property from the next weather event, fire threat, or whatever else may come your way.
But what about metal barn kits? Yep, we provide those too. If you’re looking for a barn you can install yourself, every metal structure we provide is custom made-to-order, and includes all building materials you’ll need for installation. Whether you need a barn, garage, carport, utility building, workshop, retail building, warehouse, manufacturing facility, production facility, office, barndominium, metal home, or something else, we can make it happen for you at Metal Barn Central!
Got some questions? Ready to get started? The easiest way to connect with one of our friendly building experts is simply to give us a call at (980) 365-8481 today!
