"Caves" Provide Low-Cost Shelter For Livestock

"Caves" Provide Low-Cost Shelter For Livestock LIVESTOCK Buildings 22-5-19 There are thousands of discarded fuel tanks all over the country and we've seen them turned into sheds, feed bins, houses, and other things. But Jack Crippen came up with a new idea. He buries the tanks in a hillside to make "caves" that provide shelter to livestock. It worked out so well he's made nine of them and there's probably more to come. "They're cool in summer and warm in win-ter. It's a great way to use up these old tanks, which you can often pick up for the cost of hauling them away," says Crippen who raises exotic animals - llamas, emus, etc. - on his farm near Great Falls, Va. The fuel tanks he used are 30 ft. long and 12 ft. in diameter. He cuts off one end of each tank and sets the tank into the hillside. He buries the tanks about 3 ft. below ground level on the open end so he can put 3 ft. of dirt inside for flooring. In winter, he beds the caves with fresh straw. "They stay warm and dry and there's enough headroom so you can get in there with a small tractor or skid steer loader to clean them out," he says. Crippen points out that tanks must be thoroughly cleaned to get all the old fuel and fumes out before cutting into them. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Jack Crippen, Lockmoor Exotics, P.O. Box 83, Great Falls, Va. 22066 (ph 703 430-1300; E-mail LMEXOTICS@AOL.COM).

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