# Milking machine success and a question



## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

OMG I used my milking machine for the first time this morning, and it was so great! It only took less than a minute to milk each doe.  

I do have a question for those of you who have experience with milking machines. First, I put my fingers in the inflations before I tried it on the goats, and that thing sucks really hard! Does anyone know if that's normal? The goats didn't seem to be hurting when I used it. They were a little freaked out at first, but as soon as they realized it wasn't going to eat them, they settled down and ate their grain.  Should I be watching the pressure gauge on the pump to make sure it doesn't get above a certain number? Thanks for any info.


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## michaelhannaster (May 30, 2012)

I have a machine I put together and it is set to 6 cfm's and does haven't had any problems. From what I am told the fact that you run a pulsator on it allows for that suction to break up and not be constantly sucking which is the biggest plus


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## Di (Jan 29, 2008)

I'm so excited, I am also putting together my milking machine! I have the pump .5 horsepower, pulls 6cfm. The surge milker, and I just got the hoses and pulsator, inflations etc., from Hamby. What did your pressure gauge register? Do you have a "balance tank", that one still confuses me. And, do you have a "pressure regulator" on yours? 

Thanks so much for any info, I'll be watching this for sure! It will be awhile yet, but, I'll be milking 6 Nigerians this year and 3 Alpine/Saanen/Nubian crosses next year.


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## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

Hi Di. How exciting! You're going to love it. It's sooo much faster. I'm only milking 3 nigerians this year, but I just want to get all the "kinks" worked out this year because I'll be milking 6 or 7 next year. I'm confused about the balance tank, too, but mine does have one. My pump is from Hoegger, so it's a little different. The pulsator is built in to the pump rather than on the bucket lid. I bought it used, so unfortunately I have no instructions. The gauge is registering around 10, but it goes up and down a tiny bit with the pulsations. But I'm not really sure what that number means.?? I'm not sure if it has a pressure regulator.. lol I'm so clueless. So far I've been using a half gallon jar with the lid from that came from my Henry milker, and I was reading somewhere that the vacuum is stronger if you have a smaller bucket. So I think that might be why the vacuum seems so strong. I have a surge bucket, and as soon as the lid for it comes in the mail I'll start using that and see if it works better. The girls don't seem to be hurting when I'm using the machine, so I'm probably worrying about nothing lol. 

I hope you enjoy your milking machine once you get it up and running!


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## ZiggyNC (Apr 16, 2013)

Your vacuum pressure should be around 10-12 pounds. Much higher and it will milk them out faster but like you noticed it is hard on teats and can contribute to bruised treats and mastitis.


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## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

ZiggyNC said:


> Your vacuum pressure should be around 10-12 pounds. Much higher and it will milk them out faster but like you noticed it is hard on teats and can contribute to bruised treats and mastitis.


Oh good! That's right about where mine is registering. Thanks so much for the information.


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## Di (Jan 29, 2008)

Love this thread! I would call Hoeggers and see if you can get a copy of the instructions. They are very nice and while you bought it used...you will still need some replacement stuff eventually, so they want to keep you as a good customer and here you are advertising their milker! mtmom75, thank you, michaelhannaster, do you have a "balance tank"? I need to go to HD to get my fittings for the pressure gauge, and I guess a pressure regulator. I've seen 1 system where the balance tank was just a big piece of plastic pipe. I don't think you "need" it, but, it makes the pressure more "stable"?


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## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

Di said:


> I've seen 1 system where the balance tank was just a big piece of plastic pipe.


I bet you could easily use a piece of 4 or 6 inch PVC with ends on it for the balance tank. Mine just looks like a piece of metal pipe. There's not really anything else to it.


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## lissablack (Nov 30, 2009)

I have a Hoeggers machine, I'm sure they will email you the manuals if you ask them. They are really great, and proud of those machines. I love it too. This is my second season using it.


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