Horse Stalls Guide- a look at latches
Horse stall latches are as varied as the animals they contain. A simple latch can include a slide bolt, chain with a snap, gravity close, no latches, a horse shoe clip, or a simple slide peg or pen.
Latches are very important as of course our horse treasures could escape and get hurt. A simple slide bolt is very common. The draw backs to it is that the bolts many time become hard to operate. With a vast majority of women working around barns, the latches need to be such that they can operate them. If a door begins to drag some, the bolt will not slide as it should. If using them, careful attention has to be paid that the bolts stay in working order.
Some barns simply mount a round ring on the horse stalls, put a snap on the end of a short chain, and that is the latch. An economical solution, it also does not stop working even if the door drags. The main down fall is if the snap itself breaks. When bolted to the end of the chain, replacement of it might not be the simplest.
A gravity close system is the newest idea. It is very clever and does keep the horse from escaping since it latches as soon as the door is closed. The down fall is if a small child goes into the stall and closes the door. They can become trapped because they cannot reach the gravity latch. Another draw back is that if someone leads a horse into the stall, the door closes, and the horse panics, the handler cannot just yank on the door and have it open. They would have to make it to the gravity latch to let themselves out.
A slide pin is a good option. The slide pin is simple, but can be the easiest for the horses to open with their mouths. If you have an escape artist, be sure their is no way for them to wrap their lips around the slide pin.
Horse are a dream, desire, and passion of people all over the world. Custom designing a horse barn and horse stalls to match your passion is fun, enjoyable, and also a journey. We will never totally out think the horse. Over time we learn from them and develop better and improved designs for all of our man made horse equipment.
