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Manitoba | I'd suggest something like SaddleSore recomended. or a homebuilt hybrid of that and the one pictured by engbert2. The high tensile wire works great for this application. We have ours tied to a beam about 1/2 way into our parlor and running back through the holding pen and across the feed alley (next nearest beam) . crank it up tight and run pulleys on the wires. suspend a horizontal pipe or pvc (but an aluminium or thin wall metal pipe will be conductive) almost the width of the holding pen. then have drop pipes or something you have laying around to be the actual gate. I'd suggest not using chain for these, something solid that can't catch a tail switch or some electrified animal will decide to go for a run and cause you (and your crowd gate) some grief. We have a loop of rope running through a pulley at the back (same area the wires are attached) with another pulley at the parlor entrance and a 3rd low down in the pit. the one in the pit is on a spring to take up the rope slack. milker can pull it forwar or backward from in the pit. We electrify it for a milking ever month or so just to keep them respecting it. works great, just the squeek of the thing gets them moving. it's basically the same as the pics engbert posted with the exception of it being made from material laying around and the rope pulley system instead of the electric motor. Actually I think I copied that system when I built mine (think it`s a sikkema if I`m not mistaken)
With crowd gates I think you have to either go so heavy / solid that the cows / skid steers can't break them ($) or go super light. The only wear parts we find are the pulleys (we use cheap metal clothesline pulleys) have to be replaced every couple years. To electrify ours I hook a fencer to the high tensile wire, we use an insulator at each end to prevent any tingle voltage.
Edited by Oakwood 3/11/2012 12:45
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Crowd Gates
