Handy Hints

Do you have an idea you’d like to share with other dairy producers? Send it our way! We pay $50 for Handy Hints printed in the magazine.

To be considered, all submitted hints must include a clear, print quality photo (at least 240 dpi and approximately 4" by 6” in size). Please send items to Hoard’s Dairyman, Handy Hints Department, P.O. Box 801, Fort Atkinson, WI 53538. You can also email your Handy Hints to editors@hoards.com. Please include your name, full mailing address and a short description of the handy hint with each submission.


Click here to order our Handy Hints Book,
a collection of Handy Hints from our readers.



Here are a few Handy Hints from fellow readers.

An easy way to push up feed
Sept. 10 2020
Instead of using a shovel or an expensive piece of equipment for the ever-pressing job of pushing up feed, our dairy uses an old lawnmower with a scraper dedicated exclusively for the job
A chute that moves
Aug. 25 2020
Every time I tried to move my portable loading chute, I would have a hard time grabbing it with forks because it is unbalanced. I took an old bucket from my loader, cut off the attachment, and simply
A smoother way to roll barbed wire
Aug. 10 2020
I created an easier way to take down an old barbed wire fence. I cut the ends off a 55-gallon drum and lag screwed it to a 4 by 4
A hands-free thermometer
July 15 2020
I mix milk replacer for 10 calves at one time and want to make sure I have consistent water temperatures for each batch
Coffee containers become bottle holders
June 15 2020
My dad is an avid coffee drinker. We were running low on calf bottle holders, so we came up with an idea to reuse the plastic coffee containers for easier feeding
A flatbed for many jobs
May 25 2020
This lift wagon is one of the most convenient pieces of equipment on our farm! Both the fronmaking it super convenient for
Pushes water out of pipes
May 10 2020
We ran water pipes into our old barn to fill the livestock drinking tanks. That barn freezes during the winter, so we used this old propane tank as an air supply tank and plumbed it into the water pipe
Parlor hose is all rolled up
April 25 2020
The roll-up that stores the hose we use to wash down our parlor was getting rusty and leaky
Warm enough to write
April 10 2020
It is not recommended to write on ear tags when the temperature is below freezing because the ink won’t set. When tagging in cold weather, I turn the heater in my truck to maximum
A quicker way to fix fence
March 25 2020
Every time I had to go mend a fence, I first had to pile all my supplies onto my truck or tractor. To get the job done quickly, I came up with the idea of making a fencing wagon
No more spilled feed
March 10 2020
I was looking for a better way to store bags of mineral and feed in my feed room so they don’t tip and spill product
An attachment to push feed
Feb. 25 2020
It is important to push up feed multiple times a day. We built this feed pusher that just slides on to the corner of the feed bucket so that we do not have to change the skid steer bucket every time
A pressure washer made for bottles
Feb. 10 2020
We made this pressure washer gun to wash the insides of our calf bottles on our bottle trailers. It is made so that three bottles can be washed at a time
A hitch for the skid steer
Jan. 25 2020
Backing wagons and carts into tight spots in the shed for storage can be a challenging job. So, I welded a receiver on the bar behind the bucket of my skid steer. Now, I can move trailers with ease
Open soap drums with ease
Jan. 10 2020
Do you want a faster and easier way to open soap drums? Cut a 3-inch circle out of 1/8 inch thick metal and drill four holes in it 1 3/4 inches apart. Put a 1-inch long bolt in each hole and weld the
A peach teat bucket holder
Dec. 12 2019
We went to Peach Teat Buckets to feed calves and needed a way to hang them. This is what we came up with. Get a 13-inch by 1.5-inch piece of metal and bend it at 5.25 inches into a 90-degree ang
A tighter seal for this door
Nov. 21 2019
Over the years, we had problems with the garage doors in our barn not sealing tightly. We came up with a simple solution
New use for leaking water tanks
Oct. 17 2019
I built a calf warmer from two water tanks that wouldn’t hold water anymore. I took one water tank and drilled holes in the sides to run steel piping through to create a floor base
Handy Hint: Calves stay clean and dry
Oct. 8 2019
To keep our calves clean, dry, and warm on harsh winter days or dry during those rainy days, I made a storm door that keeps the wet out but lets the sun in. I took a clear 4-foot by 3-fo
A zippy way to label halters
Sept. 11 2019
During a crazy, busy fair week, it’s hard to keep track of all your show supplies. We put colorful zip ties on our show halters and leads so we know which ones belong to us. Christine Broehl
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