The best barn brooms for cleaning your barn fall into three categories. But first, remember that technique is often more important than the tool, and in the case of barn brooms, daily sweeping is the key. Hay, dust, and dirt accumulate rapidly in the barn. If you sweep the barn every day—even on busy days—the job is never hard, and the barn is basically always clean, tidy and a joy to work in. If you can do that, the choice of the brooms themselves is easy. So if your current barn broom is a decade old and missing bristles, consider replacing it with something fresh:
1. Push Broom
For the barn aisles and other large, flat areas, you probably already know that a push broom is best. But don’t settle for just any push broom. First, select a broom that is a comfortable weight for the user. Some push brooms are built like tanks, and while that’s great for durability, it makes the broom pretty heavy. The wider the broom’s head, the more real estate it cleans in a single sweep. But super-wide brooms also add weight. And if a push broom is just too heavy to use comfortably, you’ll be less likely to put it to daily use. So select the most durable push broom you can, but one that is still light enough that you’ll easily grab it each day. That said, some push brooms are very low-quality, with a handle that constantly unravels from the base. Better push brooms have a handle that locks in nicely and won’t twist while the broom’s in use.
2. Lobby Broom
A basic straw-bristled lobby broom—the kind that looks like it belongs on Auntie Em’s porch—is also helpful. You can use it in place of a push broom for sweeping any open areas, but it also does a great job along the edges of the wall or in places too confined for the push broom. It’s also a plus for any stairways. You can use natural or synthetic bristles—both work great.
3. Angle Broom
Even though it’s just a barn, a bit of finesse can make your aisles look sharper than you’d expect, and it’s not much work at all. A small-angle broom can be used to precisely remove dust from corners and edges with better results than either of the other types of broom. This is maybe a job you do weekly rather than daily.
4. Ceiling Broom
One extra task for a very small, lightweight angle broom: cleaning cobwebs off the walls, doors, windows, and the ceiling. Spiders absolutely love to inhabit barns and make webs for the flies attracted to the animals, so cobwebs can quickly build up and get loaded with dust. Not only unsightly, but they’re also flammable and can pose a fire hazard. A lightweight angle broom can rapidly sweep away the bulk of these cobwebs without tiring your arms. It isn’t something you’re going to need to do daily, but every few weeks. A Shop-Vac-type vacuum can do an even more thorough job on the ceilings and cobwebs when needed.
This article about the best barn brooms for cleaning was written for Hobby Farms and Chickens magazines. Click here to subscribe.
