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Vinyl Roof Installation Goes Right to the Bottom Line of Canadian Dairy Farm
It’s a truism of the trade. Ask any dairy farmer and he’ll tell you: a happy cow is a productive cow. But little did Chilliwack, British Columbia, dairy farmer John Wynker realize how stressed out his herd actually was.
Wynker was faced with making repairs to the roof of his 31,000-square-foot barn. The metal roof leaked and absorbed so much heat from sunshine that the sprinkler system Wynker installed below it to provide the herd comfort still couldn’t cool the 170 cows inside.
Wynker needed a solution that would keep the herd cool and dry. He sought the advice of a local roofing contractor, who suggested installing a Duro-Last Cool Zone roofing system. By all accounts, it seemed to be everything Wynker was looking for – durable, watertight and easy to maintain. And as an added bonus, the attractive white membrane would reflect the sun and create energy savings during the summer months.
But the vinyl roof’s bottom-line benefits weren’t apparent until after he installed it. Within a week, Wynker made a startling discovery: his herd’s milk production increased to the point where the holding tank overflowed.
The production increase puzzled Wynker. To what could he possibly attribute this mysterious development? Then it hit him: the white vinyl roof system made the milking parlor cooler for the cows. The roof now was reflecting the sun’s heat, not absorbing it, and driving down the barn’s ambient temperature while doing so.
As time went on, farm personnel noticed that they turned the fans on later in the year, turned them off sooner, and did not always have them running at full speed. The barn was also quieter in bad weather without the metal roof.
The cows, in turn, were more comfortable and more productive. So stark was the change that Wynker removed six cows from his herd and still increased its milk production 10-15 percent.
Wynker’s dairy, Artique Farms, Ltd., operates more profitably now thanks to the PVC roof. Not only is his herd producing more milk from fewer cows, but also he’s realized savings on energy, building maintenance and veterinary bills. The reflective roof has made the herd happier and healthier.
“With the added insulation and reflective roof, I will save about $44,000 a year in operating costs,” Wynker said.
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