Questions about manure pit treatment
Common questions about PitCharger manure treatments: how the products differ, what dosing rates apply to your head count, what to expect from the first week to about six months, how foam and feed spills are handled, and how the product ships. Anything not answered here, call 833-258-7631.
How the products work
- What is PitCharger?
- PitCharger makes manure pit and lagoon treatments, each formulated for a specific manure-management problem. The five products are Manure Digester (the flagship), LTC-E, Crust Digester, N-Loc, and Feed Digester, and foam is handled as a separate process. Depending on the product, formulations may include aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria, enzymes, or other specific modes of action. PitCharger has sold them from Elkhorn, Nebraska since 1998.
- Are all PitCharger products the same?
- No. Different products are designed for different problems. Depending on the product, they may use aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria, enzymes, or other specific modes of action. The product is selected based on the problem being treated.
- Which product has 51 strains of bacteria?
- Manure Digester, PitCharger's flagship product, contains up to 51 strains of bacteria.
- What is the difference between LTC-E and Crust Digester?
- LTC-E is the liquid product for ongoing treatment of high-fiber manure. Crust Digester is the powdered product used during washout to soak into and break down manure crusts.
- Why does a manure pit stop digesting on its own?
- A confinement pit is effectively a closed system. Unlike an open natural environment, nothing replenishes the bacterial population from outside. Over time the material that is hardest to break down, like fiber from feed and bedding, stops breaking down and accumulates as crust on top and hardpan on the bottom.
- What is manure crust?
- Crust is a mat of fiber and other material that begins to float on top of liquid manure. Undigested fibers, dust, and other floating material collect at the surface, mat together, and gradually change the makeup of the pit. As the layer builds, it can become thick, dense, and difficult to break apart or pump. PitCharger treatment is designed to help break down that fibrous material and weaken the crust so it can move back into the manure system.
- Does PitCharger work in deep pits, shallow pits, pull-plug systems, and lagoons?
- Yes. PitCharger products can be used across different manure systems, but the treatment plan and application method should be matched to the specific layout.
- How does PitCharger work with agitation?
- PitCharger is designed to work with your normal manure-management process. As treatment helps break down solids and fibrous material, those solids can become easier to suspend during agitation, which can make agitation more effective and help manure move more easily during pumping. The goal is not to eliminate agitation; it is to make agitation and pumping easier.
Dosing and timing
- How much PitCharger do I need?
- Hog systems commonly start around one gallon per 1,000 head per month, so a 4,000-head finishing barn runs about four gallons a month. Cattle and dairy systems commonly start around one gallon per 75 animals per month. Rates are adjusted based on system design, loading, and the problem being treated. The calculator on this site gives an estimate; the consultation sets the actual program.
- How is lagoon treatment sized?
- Lagoon treatment rates may be adjusted based on the amount of manure already in the lagoon and the amount expected to be added each month. If treatment begins after several months of loading, we may recommend a higher initial rate before moving to the standard monthly treatment.
- How long does it take to see results?
- Most producers should notice a difference within the first month, with continued improvement through the second and third months. Significant overall results are normally measured after about six months. Odor can respond much faster, often within the first week.
- Is there a minimum program length?
- No. Six months is not a contractual minimum. It is the general point at which significant overall results in the manure system are measured. Odor usually responds much sooner.
- Why can a deep pit look the same while treatment is working?
- In a shallow pit, changes can often be noticed within the first month because the pit is checked and emptied more frequently. In a deep pit, treatment may be working and changing the manure below the surface long before those changes are easy to see. With eight feet of manure below the slats, the system can continue improving even when the visible surface looks much the same.
- Do I have to keep treating?
- To hold results, yes. New fiber enters the pit continuously from feed and bedding, and monthly treatment keeps breakdown ahead of accumulation. Auto-Ship is available for scheduled monthly delivery.
- Does it work in cold weather?
- Bacterial activity slows as temperature drops, so outdoor earthen lagoons work more slowly in winter than in summer. Deep pits under a barn stay warmer and are less affected. Climate and structure are factored into rates and expectations.
Foam and feed spills
- How do I know which foam treatment I need?
- Foam can have different causes, including methane foam, mechanical foam from agitation or pumping, and other thick or slimy foams. The correct treatment depends on identifying the type of foam first and how severe it has become. We do not want you diagnosing that from a website description. Call us, explain what you are seeing, and we will walk through it and recommend the right treatment plan for that barn.
- What if I have a feed spill?
- Feed Digester is a specialty product for dense grain buildup or feed islands. Because application method matters, customers should consult PitCharger before treating a significant spill.
Safety
Pit foam and confinement gas have killed people and leveled buildings. If you have foam in a barn right now, treat it as an active hazard before you treat it as a manure problem.
- Why is manure pit foam dangerous?
- Methane foam traps gas in a stabilized bubble structure. Methane is explosive in air between roughly 5 and 15 percent, and a foaming deep pit holds a large volume of it beneath a floor that contains heaters, motors, welders, and static. Flash fires in foaming hog barns have destroyed buildings and killed animals and people. A foam collapse during agitation can also release lethal concentrations of hydrogen sulfide.
- What should I do if my pit is foaming right now?
- Treat it as an active hazard before considering any product. Ventilate at maximum during agitation, eliminate ignition sources near the pit, keep people and animals out during agitation, and monitor gas. Then call 833-258-7631 the same day. Do not agitate a heavily foaming pit casually.
- Is the product safe around animals and children?
- Yes. PitCharger products are described as safe around cattle, horses, pets, children, and vegetation. Animals do not need to be moved out of a barn for a pit to be treated.
- What gases are we talking about in a manure pit?
- Primarily hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, methane, and carbon dioxide. Hydrogen sulfide is acutely toxic at high concentration and is the gas most often responsible for deaths during agitation. Methane is the explosion risk. Ammonia damages respiratory tissue in animals and people over chronic exposure.
Buying and shipping
- Can I just order online?
- No, and that is deliberate. Every treatment starts with understanding your operation, the manure system, and the specific problem you are dealing with. A conversation establishes livestock type, head count, production stage, manure structure, and current practice before a program is sized.
- How does it ship?
- PitCharger ships by UPS, Spee-Dee Delivery, and LTL freight, depending on the size and destination of the order. Product comes in 3-gallon and 5-gallon buckets.
- What is Auto-Ship?
- Auto-Ship is available for customers who want scheduled monthly delivery, so the monthly treatment arrives without anyone tracking reorder dates.
- What does it cost?
- Pricing is set during the consultation, because programs vary by operation size, structure, and condition. We do not publish a per-gallon figure on this site.
- Where does PitCharger operate?
- PitCharger is based at 9950 N 225th St, Elkhorn, NE 68022. Since 1998, PitCharger products have been used by producers in 45 states, Puerto Rico, and three countries.
Results and nutrient value
- How much storage capacity can I recover?
- It depends on how much of your structure is currently sludge. A livestock producer in Mankato, Minnesota reported recovering approximately 200,000 gallons of usable lagoon capacity after treatment. The calculator gives an estimate range if you supply your pit volume, clearly labeled as an estimate.
- Does treatment change the fertilizer value of manure?
- It can. Much of the nitrogen in raw manure is in organic form, which plants cannot take up directly. In Iowa State testing, Manure Digester increased plant-available nitrogen by 21%. The treatment did not create additional nitrogen; it helped convert more of the existing nitrogen into a plant-available form, so more of what you paid for in feed reaches the crop in the season you applied it.
- Will it reduce my agitation and pumping time?
- As solids and fibrous material break down, they become easier to suspend during agitation, so agitation reaches a pumpable state sooner and manure moves more easily during pumping. The change shows up at pump-out rather than immediately.
- Has anyone tested this?
- A year-long Iowa State/Farmland study, as reported by PitCharger, showed approximately a 50% reduction in hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, and overall odor compared with untreated buildings. Nick, who runs pits for a livestock cooperative in central Iowa, reported that pits with additive showed significant reduction of solids compared with non-treated pits in side-by-side testing.