Odor Control 8
Dust Control
Dust particles can carry gases and odors. In fact, a large portion
of the odor associated with exhaust air from mechanically ventilated
swine buildings are dust particles that have absorbed odors from
within the building. Therefore, dust control in the buildings
can reduce the amount of odor carried outside by the fans. High
dust concentrations can also be a health risk for workers in swine
facilities as well as the pigs. Control of dust improves the working
conditions for the producer and helps significantly in odor reduction.
Dust is generated from feed, bedding material, manure, and the
animals themselves. Factors determining the amount of dust includes
cleanliness of the buildings, animal activity, temperature, relative
humidity, ventilation rate, stocking density, and feeding method.
Management practices that can greatly reduce the amount of dust
in swine buildings are described below.
(1) Clean Interior Building Surfaces Regularly.
Modern
swine production facilities are designed around an "all-in,
all-out" style of management. That is, all of the animals
of a particular age or reproductive stage are housed in the same
room, and are moved to different facilities or are marketed at
the same time. The time between animal groups is used to pressure
wash, and disinfect all of the interior surfaces. Strict adherence
to this practice helps to reduce dust levels.
(2) Reduce Dust From Feed.
Addition of oil to dry swine
rations significantly reduces the amount of dust in a building.
Gestation rations are often mixed with water which also greatly
reduces dust. Proper and timely maintenance of feeders, augers,
and other feed handling equipment is required for proper dust
control.
(3) Spray pigs with oil or water?
Spray cooling of finishing
swine during the hot summer months may also improve dust control.
Recent research in Canada indicates that frequent light oil sprays
of pigs, and the pen surfaces can greatly reduce dust. The research
also indicated that the odor inside the oil sprayed rooms was
much less than the untreated rooms. Results also indicated that
dust control decreased the amount of respiratory effort required
by the workers in the swine facility. The idea of using oil sprays
for dust control is promising, but additional on-farm research
is needed to develop an optimal system.
