Got moisture?

[Southernspeed]

So I cut and baled my first ever hay this week! All went well and the weather was better than expected. I baled on Thursday although now, on Friday evening, I wish I'd left it 'til today.
When I baled, the windrows were nice and crunchy. The grass would break easily and felt good to my inexperienced mind! Now it's in 4x4 bales I got paranoid about moisture levels so ran out today and bought a probe type moisture tester. Probing several places around the bales I'm getting readings of 17% up to 38% ! Surely this is way too wet but why such a range of readings? Are these testers reliable?
I was feeling very pleased with myself doing my first hay but now I'm disappointed and wondering what to do with a load of ,possibly, junk hay.
Is there a better way to test moisture?
How bad is moisture? (mixed grasses)
Should I leave these outside, uncovered for a month as I've read??

Any wisdom greatly received as always.

 

[Tx Jim]

Moisture in baled hay shortly after it's baled always rises. Years ago when I had first purchased a probe type moisture tester I had a similar experience to your experience. If I remember correctly hay I tested the day of baling was in the mid teens moisture % but next day was in the mid to high 20%moisure content. Your 38% moisture probe location is probably just an isolated wet spot. What % of moisture % tests in mid 20's probes vs over 30%??

 

[Southernspeed]

Moisture in baled hay shortly after it's baled always rises. Years ago when I had first purchased a probe type moisture tester I had a similar experience to your experience. If I remember correctly hay I tested the day of baling was in the mid teens moisture % but next day was in the mid to high 20%moisure content. Your 38% moisture probe location is probably just an isolated wet spot. What % of moisture % tests in mid 20's probes vs over 30%??

It’s very random. I’m checking each bale in several spots and depths. In the ‘teens is the exception, maybe two thirds of readings in the 20s, rest in the 30s.
I guess the warmer they get inside , the more humidity they’ll have?
Temps in bales yesterday evening were mid 90s. Some bales in my barn, bought in last year were around 80 degrees and 14-17% humidity.
This tester ( agratronix DHT-1 ) says that used on 100% mixed grass as opposed to alfalfa will read around 5 points higher on a 20% bale. Not exactly a precise instrument!!

 

[zzvyb6]

It's going to go bad. Whatever you decide, remove any broken open bales from the barn. The problem is that even though the hay seemed crunchy, ground moisture gets pumped into them unless you pick it up immediately. Plus, that's what the conditioner does on a mower-conditioner. It cracks the stems of legume plants to free the internal moisture content. Raking is a talent to be learned, too. You want it flipped ground side to the top when the top is dry. Roping the windrows also inhibits drying. I was told long ago that you should be able to hear the hay make crunchy sounds when being picked up by the baler. (presuming that you don't have a cab or the radio is on too loud).
Wet/damp, or moisture over 20% is harder on the baler, too. It tends to tear at the plunger instead of shearing.

But, congratulations on making your own! I remember tossing my very first bale into my horse pasture and enjoying watching the critters tear it apart. If you are planning to sell any of it, don't produce moldy hay. 1 bad load will take 10 customers away. A good load may bring you 10 more ! BTW: Some 2 year old small square bales of grass & weeds I produced sold at auction last week for $7.45 at the local auction, minus 10% for the auctioneer !

 

[5030]

Gert yourself a quality moisture tester like a Delmhorst which is what I use. They aint cheap by a long shot and I have slipper shoes in my round bailer that constantly monitor the RM of the hay I'm bailing plus I'll sample windrows prior to bailing using a 5 gallon bucket and the Delmhorst hay moisture sampler. Been doing it so long I can tell by the chaff cloud coming off the bailer about how dry the forage is. That comes with experience.

Nice thing about the Delmhorst is, it also works as a wood moisture meter (with the proper probe).

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

It's going to go bad. Whatever you decide, remove any broken open bales from the barn. The problem is that even though the hay seemed crunchy, ground moisture gets pumped into them unless you pick it up immediately. Plus, that's what the conditioner does on a mower-conditioner. It cracks the stems of legume plants to free the internal moisture content. Raking is a talent to be learned, too. You want it flipped ground side to the top when the top is dry. Roping the windrows also inhibits drying. I was told long ago that you should be able to hear the hay make crunchy sounds when being picked up by the baler. (presuming that you don't have a cab or the radio is on too loud).
Wet/damp, or moisture over 20% is harder on the baler, too. It tends to tear at the plunger instead of shearing.

But, congratulations on making your own! I remember tossing my very first bale into my horse pasture and enjoying watching the critters tear it apart. If you are planning to sell any of it, don't produce moldy hay. 1 bad load will take 10 customers away. A good load may bring you 10 more ! BTW: Some 2 year old small square bales of grass & weeds I produced sold at auction last week for $7.45 at the local auction, minus 10% for the auctioneer !

10% for the auctioneer.... I should have been an auctioneer. better returns than anything I ever did in my life other than stock market.

 

[5030]

Some years back when there was a hay shortage here (before I got into the forage growing business), I was hitting the local auctions with one one of the company tractors and their Talbert single drop trailer and of course I had my Delmhorst with me. I'd go around stabbing round bales with the moisture threshold alarm set at 23% and it made liars out of a lot of the people selling what was supposedly 'good' round bales. Like the 'Pied Piper', I'd get a crowd following me as I probed hay bales. The auctioneers weren't happy with me but I cared less. I was there to buy hay, not moldy crap.

 

[Hay Dude]

did you twist test the hay before baling?

 

[Southernspeed]

did you twist test the hay before baling?

Yes, nearly all of it broke with a few exceptions that were thicker stems from shadier areas.
Checked moisture again last night and it generally seemed lower slightly, temps in the bales were a few degrees lower too.

 

[Tx Jim]

Wet/damp, or moisture over 20% is harder on the baler, too. It tends to tear at the plunger instead of shearing.

Southernspeed stated 4X4 bale size & from viewing his profile photo I'll guess he's referring to round not square bales.