Homemade Slaughterhouse or Cooler??

[Wannabee]

Has anyone ever built a homemade slaughterhouse or meat cooler? Something large enough to butcher a few pigs in, hang them up for a couple of days, and large enough to store tables, meat grinders, etc?

I am thinking of a 10x10 room inside my pole barn, cooled with a window air unit. I woyuld like to build it so that it can be up 12 months of the year, but if I ever want to use that space, I could disassemble and reassemble. Thinking about barn siding on the inside so I can bleach and hose it down....

Any thoughts???

[ihuntgsps]

For what it is worth:
I have 20x24 insulated metal shed I process hogs/deer/etc. in and it has barn siding througout the walls and ceiling. I love the way it looks but is tough to keep really clean. If I had it to do over I would have metal barn siding on the walls and ceiling for ease of cleaning and a couple drains in the floors.

[Micahn]

a friend done one years ago for mainly deer and wild hogs.
He done it just about what your talking about. He used 2x6 walls with the pink fiberglass insulation like for a home. The window unit he used was a rather large one and seemed to really cool things done fast and to low temps.

[||Downhome||]

I have wanted one for a few years now , seems everytime I take a deer the weather warms up. same Idea to use a window shaker to cool it though a central air unit and blower might be a better choice.

seemed like when I was younger the grocery stores where always tearing out coolers and replacing them. if you could find a situation like that it would be ideal! I have my eyes open but nothing as of yet though there have been a few that have closed if anyone ever takes over the building and does something different with it might just get lucky. restaurants and bars may also end up being a source.

[TurnerHill]

You can get MDF paneling with a melamine surface that can be cleaned to an operating-room level. It's not expensive.

[Stephen in SOKY]

I don't have one......yet.....check this out: http://storeitcold.com/

[||Downhome||]

thats cool stephen, bet if you look into it though you could modify a regular themostat a lot cheaper. I had a 11,000 btu that would keep my 15x15 living room 40 degrees a smaller room would of been colder. and I belive 40 is fine for holding a carcass a few days. I just need to keep it cool well Im cutting as soon as its cut its packaged and in the freezer.

[NCLee]

I've seen a few done with the body of a short haul refrigerated truck body. Drive train removed. Body set on blocks. Suspect, but don't know for sure that a converter was used to supply power to the unit.

Just a thought.
Lee

[Beeman]

Research old refrigerated truck bodies. Look for the type milk delivery companies use for local store delivery. They have a diesel powered refrigeration unit that also can plug into house current. Made to be hosed out, completely sealed and self contained with sealed lockable doors. It's already made and can be placed anywhere.

[Caitedid]

Saw a produce cooler near here made from an old beer truck. We're looking for an old bread truck to renovate in to a mobile chicken slaughter plant.

[agmantoo]

Wannabee
I have what you described. Mine is a 10' x 10' room with corrugated metal for the walls. I have a recycled commercial stainless steel sink and work tables. On one wall I have a small SS table (meat cuber on top and water heater underneath), SS sink and SS work table (meat grinder on top). Then I have an aisle the length of the room. The other wall has a recycled convenience store upright 2 door freezer modified to be a low temp refrigerator plus another SS work table. Additionally I have meat processing tools. meat totes, scales, roll paper holders and commercial cutting boards, tv, etc. Total expense for the room and equipment minus the cubing machine was less than the cuber costs. I heat the room with a small electric heater and the heat from the refrigerator compressor. Space is a little tight but I only process meat for myself and seldom if every have any help. I can an do wash down everything with hot water and a hose. My floor unfortunately is level with no drain as this room was an afterthought. I open the access door to the room and wash out through the door then to an outside rollup door. I used treated wood for the base plate for the walls. There are some things I would do differently if starting from scratch but what I have works OK. I keep track of the deer I have processed and the last one was number 89.

[Farmerwilly2]

I kind of figured you only needed to keep your hanging box chilled down. If you planned to do this all day long then maybe an entire room might be needed, but 8x10 or 8x8 should be big enough to hang with shelf room to hold trays or buckets. I'd like a warmer place to stand myself. I think 12x24 gives you room for a cold box, tables, sink, shelves and freezer space. Concrete floor lets you scrub it clean. Put you walls on a course or two of block and your walls won't be as prone to wick moisture when you spray the rascal down. I'll second the melamine surface, used for years as a shower liner. If you're gonna build it custom consider an overhead rail to hang/roll on and save your back as much wear as you can.

It might sound like over kill, but this same setup can be used for canning or drying, pretty much any food prep work. Add a stove or burner and you get the mess out of her kitchen and into a separate building.

[michiganfarmer]

My dad built one 25 years ago when we were milking cows. He found a refrigeration unit at an auction, built a cooler around it, linning it wiht 2" thick sheets of styrofoam, and built a 12x20 building aorund that.




this picture is facing one direction where you can see the bonning tables, and the wrapping table...




...and this picture is facing the other end where the cooler is. Dad has a band saw that you cant see in either pic, but you can see part of the griinder.


All the bonning benches are made from marine plywood so they can stand getting washed all the time.

[Wannabee]

Thanks for the ideas!! I am going to use some of them. Our goal is to be able to do 3-4 hogs a year, a few deer, and maybe a calf. (Not our family alone - several friends will participate as well.)

Thanks!