Stall Bedding Calculator

Initial Fill Volume is how much bedding it takes to fill the stall to the correct depth for your chosen Bedding Type, which is entirely a function of Stall Width, Stall Depth, and the bedding's typical fill depth -- it doesn't matter whether you plan to strip and replace that fill weekly or monthly, the volume needed for one complete fill stays the same.

Initial Fill Volume and Daily Top-Off both scale directly with stall floor area (Stall Width times Stall Depth), so doubling either dimension roughly doubles the bedding volume needed at the same fill depth -- larger stalls need proportionally more bedding regardless of bedding type or change schedule.

Each bedding type carries its own fill depth, daily consumption percentage, bag or bale size, and per-unit cost -- wood shavings fill to about 6 inches, straw to about 8 inches (loosely packed), and pellets to only about 3 inches because they expand substantially once wetted, so switching bedding types changes both the volume needed and the number of bags or bales that volume translates to.

A shorter Full Change Frequency means more complete strip-and-refill cycles happen every month, and each full change consumes a full Initial Fill Volume on top of the ongoing Daily Top-Off, so more frequent full changes add up to more total bedding volume and more bags or bales purchased per month.

It doesn't account for bedding compaction that reduces effective depth over time between changes, seasonal usage increases in cold weather when horses spend more time stalled, regional price and availability differences for shavings, straw, or pellets, or losses from spoilage and improper storage.