Although fitting together a barn requires a number of decisions and challenges, one of the most important decisions that you can make is the type of horse stall door to put into place. Doors come in a wide range of different sizes, materials, and designs. The two most common types of horse stall doors are swinging or sliding door models, however. These may cover the entire full height of the horse's doorway opening, or they could cover a partial portion of this doorway. Sliding doors of metal bars are often used to allow the horse to see out of the stall door, however there are a plethora of sliding lumber door options also to consider. Doors can also be hinged and split into two panels, which is known as a Dutch door.
If you choose to put a swinging horse stall door into place, be sure that it opens outward into the aisle, instead of impeding on the horse's space in the stall. To ensure that the door doesn't block your way in the aisle you can put a hook and eye latch into place that holds the door in an open position. A benefit of choosing a swinging door is that it is simple, with less hardware to operate correctly. However, you will want to look at some heavy duty hinges, so that the door doesn't start to sag over time.
Another option is to choose sliding doors for your horse stall door design. These run on an overhead track, and also need a stop to keep the door from falling off the track or opening too far in general. Consider using an enclosed round track rather than a square or top open track which can collect dust and particles therefore reducing the tracks ease of movement over the long term. Some other parts that are necessary for sliding doors include floor level guides or stay rollers. These are put into place to keep the horse from pawing or kicking the door out of the closed or locked position. With both types of horse stall doors, it's important to keep the clearance at the bottom of the door to a minimum. Most experts recommend that this clearance be less than one and a half inches, or else the horse might get its hooves stuck if it kicks under the door.
It's important to remember that horses are strong, smart animals, and they can figure out how to unlatch the doors if they practice enough times or get board standing in the stall. To prevent this, be sure to attach a latch snap to your horse stall door latch. Also for safety's sake, it's a good idea to avoid protrusions, sharp edges, or any other features that could injure the horse and cause accidents.
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