Manure pits primarily function as containment systems for animal waste, collecting and storing it safely until it can be managed or applied as fertilizer.
Manure pits are essentially storage reservoirs designed to hold liquid or semi-liquid manure (slurry). Their main purpose is to provide temporary or long-term storage, preventing environmental contamination and allowing for convenient handling.
How Manure Enters the Pit
The method by which manure enters a pit can vary depending on the system used in the animal housing facility.
- Under-Floor Pits: A common system involves under-floor pits integrated directly beneath animal pens. In this setup, manure is deposited directly into the pit through slatted floors. This allows gravity to move waste from the animals' living space into the storage below.
- Scraped or Flushed Systems: In other systems, manure is scraped or flushed from barns into transfer channels or pipes that lead to a separate storage structure, which could be a pit or tank.
Types of Manure Storage Structures
Manure pits or storage facilities come in various forms and materials:
- Fabricated Structures: These are often constructed using durable materials designed for containment.
- Concrete: A common material for building robust, long-term storage tanks.
- Coated Metal with Glass Lining: Another type of fabricated tank, offering resistance to the corrosive nature of manure.
- These fabricated tanks can be constructed either above or below ground.
- Earthen Structures: These are typically excavated areas, often lined to prevent seepage, forming a basin to hold the slurry.
Basic Function
Regardless of the specific type or how the manure gets there, the fundamental working principle of a manure pit is collection and storage. They serve as holding areas, allowing for:
- Accumulation of waste over a period.
- Potential for some level of natural anaerobic digestion (though this is often not the primary design goal unless it's specifically an anaerobic digester).
- Convenient access for agitation and removal using pumps or other equipment when the pit needs to be emptied.
In essence, manure pits work by providing a designated, contained space to hold animal waste, directly receiving it through slatted floors in some systems or via transfer from barns in others, utilizing various constructed or earthen structures for storage.
