This week, I feature a suckler house for 45 to 50 cows in Co Clare. The farmer, Kevin Grogan of Brisla, is doing the job in stages.

The slatted tank went up first, while the roof went on this autumn. Doorways have been left at the back for access to the open area or to lie back, etc, at a later date.

The tank and shed were built by Declan Fennell of nearby Cooraclare and the total cost so far is €50,000.

Picture one

The shed is six bays long. There is plenty of open yard in front for feeding silage. Most of the pens are fitted with locking feed barriers. It has a single roof with an 8ft canopy to keep rain out.

Picture two

The tank has 13ft 6in slats. With 1ft of toe-space, the roof spans almost 14ft. The shed is south facing. The gable ends are fully sheeted and have a wing wall for shelter.

Picture three

Kevin wanted good ventilation, so he went for a 1ft-deep opening between the roof and the canopy. This is the highest point in the roof, so warm, moist air will exit here. There is vented sheeting at the rear, over the shuttered wall, to let in fresh air. Air will also move in and out of the open front, depending on wind direction.

Picture four

The new shed adjoins an existing calving shed. The roof of the new shed was kept at the same height as that of the existing shed.

Pictures five and six

The pillars at the back of the shed sit on the wall of the underground tank.

To allow this, while also giving 6in bearing for slats, Declan Fennel built this wall 14in wide. The tank is 9ft deep, helping to give good slurry storage capacity.

The eave is 11ft high. The shed is currently divided into two double and two single pens.

Cows can enter and exit via the three doors.

These are sliding doors with flashing overhead to keep out rain and a handgrip and an antiluce fastener.

Picture seven

The roof is made to Department of Agriculture specification. There is cross bracing in every second bay. The cladding is 0.55mm Corri 200 sheeting from Halcon Steel.

There is a roof light in each bay and a flouresent light in every second bay.

The timbers are low-moisture Russian white wood, supplied by Shannonside Building Supplies, Kilrush.

Enda O’Flaherty of Shannonside told me that this timber comes in at about 15% moisture content: “Timber with higher moisture – it can be up to 45% – will twist as it dries out in a roof. We pressure-treat this timber ourselves with Vasqul – it’s not just dipped in a preservative. This imported timber is about 15% more expensive than domestic timber at the moment. At other times, the difference can be greater.”

Declan Fennell has placed damp-proofing under the timbers where they sit on the steelwork.

Locking barriers good for AI

Kevin Grogan is all suckling, selling progeny as weanlings. He put up this shed to give himself more housing for the cows. “Down the road, I plan to put up a straw shed and a machinery shed at the back.

“The locking barriers are great – no calves get out. We do all AI on the cows and you just catch the cow’s head in the barrier before the AI man comes. The canopy is effective in keeping rain out, while the ventilation is also good,” he said.