Sliding Horse Stalls are the most popular stall options for most barn projects. They are one of our favorite options because of their practicality and safety. Since the door slides flush to the stall front, we believe it is the safest door since it does not protrude in the aisle. It is also an exceedingly safe option in the case of an emergency in a barn.
When it comes to our Sliding Horse Stalls, we have so many available options. We offer our clients many upgraded options to change the aesthetics, but also the functionality. Options can include aesthetic choices such as yokes, welded wood sections, and brass finials. Functional options can include feed and water options. In this post, we’d like to explore 5 upgrades that can impact your stall fronts’ looks and overall function.
Option #1 – Open Yokes for the Horse Stall Door
The first option to consider is an open yoke for your stall door. Do you have a private barn with just your horses? Do your horses get along just fine without any issues? If so, an open yoke can allow your horses to hang their head outside of their horse stall door. This allows them to socialize with others in the barn – a big plus for their mental health and barn experience. This also applies for a commercial boarding barn or training facility. We can build open yokes in many different shapes. However, the most common are our v-shaped yoke and our rectangular yokes.
Option #2 – Closable Yokes for the Horse Stall Door
An extra addition to a yoke is the ability to close it. There are two options that we offer to clients who’d like the ability to close the yokes:
- Hinged Drop Down Yoke – Our team simply welds hinges and a plunger latch to allow you the option to open and close the yoke. This yoke drops down as pictured below (left)
- Removable Yoke Piece – This option is in contrast to a hinged, drop down yoke which uses a plunger latch. Instead, clients can choose to have a removable yoke-fill piece that fits into their v-shaped yoke or rectangular yoke. Our team pre-drills holes on the top and bottom of each open yoke where the removable yoke piece sits within. This option is shown below (right) where the left stall is filled while the right stall remains open.
Both closable options are great for private barns or commercial barns. For example, if you have certain horses that might be sensitive to others in the barn – a closable, hinged yoke is a great option. Another example is a high-traffic barn where you’d like to limit visitors’ access to the horses. In these cases, a hinged drop-down yoke or removable yoke fill can work wonders. It allows you the freedom to open the yoke when the time is right.
Option #3 – Mesh or Grilled Bottom on the Horse Stall Door
As horse owners, we all know that ventilation is key to a healthy barn. One way to accomplish ventilation is to add an open, vented bottom to your horse stall door. We can add either mesh or grilled 1″ round bars to the bottom of your stall door. This allows airflow to flush in and out of the horse stall better than it would for just a wood-filled bottom.
This addition also has the added benefit of increased visibility and odor control. An open bottom will allow you to maintain a clear sight line into the horse stall at all times – from different parts of the barn. Odor management is accomplished because heavier gases tend to sink to the bottom of the horse stall. An open, vented bottom allows those gases to be flushed out of their horse stalls.
Option #4 – Grilled Feed Door
We understand that our clients have been many different preferences when it comes feeding. Some clients prefer to go into the horse stall to directly manage feed through buckets or hay nets. However, one of the most popular additions to our Sliding Horse Stalls are Grilled Feed Doors.
These door is set on 2 stainless steel hinges and opens outward using a plunger latch. This seamless feed door allows you to quickly open the door and provide grain, feed, and care to your horses. We find that our clients enjoy this feature as it saves time in feeding – not to mention, effort!
Do you have any questions regarding any of the above options? Our team is here to help guide you every step of the way to ensure you have the most functional horse stall products. Please kindly feel free to send us an email at sales@americanstalls.com or a call at (855) 957-8255. Alternatively, you can also complete a Contact Us Form.
