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How to a Growers Tips for ST Pathfinder Maintenance

Maintaining your equipment is essential to ensuring longevity and optimal performance. In this blog post, we share maintenance tips from Joe of VanQuaethem Farms, based on over five years of hands-on experience with the ST-8 and ST-10 models. Learn how to keep your ST-Series Applicator running smoothly with minimal effort. 

Step-by-Step Instructions 

There are a few key things to keep in mind to extend the lifespan of your equipment and ensure optimal performance: 

1. Regular Calibration 

  • Ensure that you calibrate the machine correctly when you first purchase it. 
  • Once calibrated, you rarely need to recalibrate unless there is a notable change in your operation or product. 

2. Keep Equipment Clean 

  • Like with any large machinery, maintaining cleanliness helps prevent buildup of debris or residue that could affect the machine’s performance. 
  • Focus on cleaning the metering rollers and any moving parts to avoid unnecessary wear and tear. 

3. Check Moving Parts Regularly 

  • Inspect moving parts such as the metering drive and metering rollers and ensure proper lubrication to avoid any malfunctions. 
  • Make a habit of checking the hydraulics and chains for any visible signs of wear. This can prevent unexpected breakdowns. Newer models have direct drive hydraulic motors. 

4. Simple Adjustments as Needed 

  • The Salford Pathfinder is designed for minimal intervention. Once you get the machine set up, it runs smoothly. 
  • Keep an eye on the machine’s components, but you should rarely need to make adjustments beyond basic checks. 
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Cleaning Sheep Barns & Setting Up Chutes

Video: Cleaning Sheep Barns & Setting Up Chutes

Indoor sheep farming in winter at pre-lambing time requires that, at Ewetopia Farms, we need to clean out the barns and manure in order to keep the sheep pens clean, dry and fresh for the pregnant ewes to stay healthy while indoors in confinement. In today’s vlog, we put fresh bedding into all of the barns and we remove manure from the first groups of ewes due to lamb so that they are all ready for lambs being born in the next few days. Also, in preparation for lambing, we moved one of the sorting chutes to the Coveralls with the replacement ewe lambs. This allows us to do sorting and vaccines more easily with them while the barnyard is snow covered and hard to move sheep safely around in. Additionally, it frees up space for the second groups of pregnant ewes where the chute was initially.