HAYGAIN HG-600 - Half Bale Hay Steamer is rated
4.7 out of
5 by
10.
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Cathy from
Very helpful in reducing my horse's allergies
I purchased the HayGain upon my veterinarian's recommendation. My show horse was struggling with allergies and an upper respiratory infection. After using it for 4 months, I sense a huge difference in his breathing. I am incredibly pleased with how effectively it removes dust and mold and other allergens from the hay. He loves the taste and everyone in the barn loves the aroma!
Date published: 2019-12-04
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Beth from
Gave me my horse back!
After 6 years of battling with my horse's allergies, (allergy testing, a year of shots, acupuncture, natural supplements, living out side, soaking hay, dengue, etc), I finally invested in a Hay Gain Hay Steamer. My horse had been on Clenbuterol last summer just to make him comfortable in the paddock but is now medication free and eventing at the Novice level at 18 years old!!! I am so grateful to have my horse back! I highly recommend trying this product if your horse has any hay allergies, cough, etc. I had a problem with the boiler a few weeks after to receiving it and Hay Gain was phenomenal to deal with and had my boiler replaced in days!! The steamer itself is very simple and easy to manage.
Date published: 2015-08-22
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Autumn81 from
Nice hay steamer
Highly recommend to anyone with senior horses or somewhat dusty hay. I do however wish the drip pan was better.
Date published: 2015-03-02
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Lisa from
A Lifesaving Alternative to Soaking Hay
I bought this steamer about 3 months ago after researching various options for either soaking or steaming hay and am thankful I did since we are experiencing the worst winter in recent memory. The steamer is what it promises to be: in less than an hour it steams to a consistent temperature and makes the hay more palatable for even the horses without respiratory issues. What I don't like is that the very heavy lid will not stay in the open position and if you move the chest, it falls with force. It has crushed my finger and knocked my head until I learned to close it before inserting the drip pan or other jarring activities. The drip pan is useless. It is much too small for the gallon of water recommended for top dressing so I replaced it with an old saute pan. The device also will freeze in cold temps, so you have to guard against this. If the gaskets or hose freeze, the steamer will overheat and shut off. I've resorted to using it in my garage and disconnecting everything at night when extremely cold. I like the wheels and handle for easily moving it about. I have also heard that the steam vents sometimes become clogged with debris, so it is advisable to keep the chest cleaned out. Not always easy in cold temps! Based on the lack of viable alternatives, it is a great help and am glad I bought it. I hope that it will last because there was a suspicious lack of a company guarantee. It is very expensive for something that you would think would be much cheaper to manufacture and distribute.
Date published: 2015-02-26
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Debra25 from
The horses love it!
I've had the steamer for several months, now. It was purchased because of an ill horse. Steaming his hay was recommended by our veterinarian. We now feed steamed hay to all 3 of our horses they enjoy their hay more, since we began steaming. This product is easy to use and seems to be of high quality construction. Buying it through Smartpak saved us a lot on shipping!
Date published: 2014-08-09
Rated 5 out of
5
by
annR from
Really Works!
Hay Gain has helped us manage a horse with allergies. Since we have put it into use in Dec 2013, we're off medications. The steamer is easy to use and maintain. The steamed hay is a hit with the horses who get it. Never any wasted hay!
Our horses eat timothy hay which is notorious for anyone with hay fever. An added benefit, the timothy that comes out of the steamer doesn't trigger my hay fever! Who knew.... Would highly recommend it.
Date published: 2014-03-05
Rated 4 out of
5
by
Hay Lady from
I want to love it....
Ditto to "Cloverpatch" review. It does the job but, for the money, should have been so much more user friendly. I have some of the exact same gripes...lid falling on my head when I'm trying to clean it, akward to move around...the "dolly" handle needed to be longer...a auto shut-off when the hay reached ideal temp. The drain-pan that was provided is actually too tall for the space under the steamer so I have to lift the steamer to slide it under. Enough of the negative...there are only two choices out there and I have not been impressed with the customer service with the competitor company. The steamer does kill what ever it is that my mare is allergic to and therefore I am overjoyed that this product was available as my horse cannot eat the local hay unless it is steamed. She can eat hay from dry climates generally with out the steaming. We think she is allergic to a mold or fungus that thrives in a wet climate... Nice to take care of a problem without the use of drugs!!!
Date published: 2012-12-13
Rated 3 out of
5
by
Nicefellow from
It comes with a useful hat
I bought this hay steamer in an effort to partially resuscitate the inferior hay we were stuck with last winter. It doesn't make bad hay into good hay, but it does seem to freshen it up a bit. Going into summer, where we can expect months of 100+ degree days, I feel better feeding moist, dust-free hay. I've found that pre-hosing the dry hay after placing it in the chest greatly improves the result. I steam 4 times a day for 3 horses.
The various components are solid, and will probably last a while.
However, if there were an "ease of use" category, I would give the HayGain a giant "FAIL." This apparatus is basically an ice chest hooked up to a Jiffy garment steamer, and the numerous design flaws resulting from this somewhat clumsy retrofitting of an existing product make the using the thing extremely time-consuming, messy, awkward, and dangerous. For example, there's no thermostat, so you have to guestimate the length of time it will take for your hay to reach 212F, and then arrange be on hand to manually shut down the boiler. The chest is awkward to clean, the lid slams down on your head when you least expect it, the steam spikes impale your hands, and because nobody thought much about adding a simple handle, it is a foregone conclusion that you will receive occasional steam burns when opening the lid. It holds, on average, only 4-5 flakes of hay without over-stuffing. You'll need to use it near a drain because it does emit rather a lot of effluent which, incidentally, stains the floor. But the thing that irks me the most is the absurd wooden dipstick. This goofy machine costs $1500! How about a water level indicator window?
The ideal version of a hay steamer would be a one-piece, self-contained unit that could be plumbed to a water line, fitted with a drain hose and a built-in thermostat/timer, and be able to be hosed clean without having to muscle it onto its side and prop it up at an angle to rinse out the gross hay guk. That imaginary machine might actually be worth $1500.
But I have to say, the included Haygain baseball cap has become one of my favorites.
Date published: 2012-06-21
Rated 5 out of
5
by
CKFarm from
Got my mares severe COPD in control
My 10 year old Draftcross mare had been hospitalized for severe breathing problems, on inhalers, scoped, and on multiple medications. All the above only helped for a short time. I had to eliminate all the factors that could cause an other attack. Now since 1/2 a year my mare is on steamed hay, pelleted bedding and Smartpak omega3. She stays inside the barn at night with all her friends in a well ventilated stall that has been rigged to avoid her to cribb. No cough since 3 months! I believe that the HayGain has been a major factor to improve her well being but the solution was to atact the problem from multiple sides. All the other barn horses love to get a snack of steamed hay too:)
Date published: 2012-02-24
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Sbeach from
Worked like promised
The steamer arrived within 3 days of ordering it and took about 3 minutes to set up. I am amazed at how little water it takes and how fresh and clean the hay is once it has steamed. My 20 year old Qhorse has allergies and is just shy of official COPD, and within days his coughing completely stopped. I was not able to achieve this with soaking alone. I do have it set up on a timer so the hay is ready by the time I arrive at the barn to feed.
Date published: 2011-09-20