A new cover

The cover to my hoop house split down the seam on July 18, likely the result of fierce winds that accompanied a summer thunderstorm. The storm was short in duration, but that didn't seem to matter. Perhaps, the seam was gradually tearing open and this particular thunderstorm finally got the job done.

Cover completely removed

In the days that followed, the cover continued to peel open, leaving more of the hoop house exposed to the elements. The lack of cover was making one of the pens particularly hot, so I erected a tarp over part of the pen.

A few days ago, another fierce storm took most of one side of the hoop house down, exposing the area where I keep my hay. Fortunately, my hay supply is almost depleted. I covered what was left with a tarp.

Getting ready to pull the cover over

Nightly rains, sometimes heavy, were filling some of the hay feeders and making everything pretty soggy. On the plus side, some of the lambs got a much needed bath.

The new cover was put on today (August 3) by a team of three contractors. The crew knew what they were doing and had the job done in less than 6 hours. No problems were encountered. Everything fit. Everything worked. They used their truck and a tractor to pull the cover over the top of the frame.

Cover almost over

The new cover is white, which should make the hoop house brighter and cooler. The sheep don't seem to notice the new color and weren't too upset when the cover was pulled over the top of them. I had put the ewe lambs out, but had left the ram lambs in their pens.

The new cover

It's a relief to have the new cover. With each storm, I had worried about how much more of the hoop house would come down. I worried about the lambs and I worried about storing hay (I've got a load of hay coming tomorrow).

The first cover lasted 10 years. Not too bad. This one should have a 15-year warranty.