You can bale dry, wrap tight, and stack neatly, and still lose hay — because most outside storage spoilage happens at the bottom of the bale, where it touches the ground. The net wrap sheds rain off the top and sides just fine. What it can't stop is moisture wicking up from wet soil into the bottom few inches. Get the base right and a net-wrapped bale stored outside comes through the winter looking almost like the day it was baled. Here's what farmers actually do to prep a storage spot.
Quick answer: The bottom of the bale is where outside-stored hay rots, because moisture wicks up from the ground. Prep a storage base that's well-drained — a crowned or sloped spot, ideally a gravel/breaker-run pad — and get the bales up off bare dirt on pallets, poles, tires, or rock. Run rows north–south so both sides get sun, keep bottom bales out of standing water, and either push bales tight end-to-end or leave a deliberate gap between rows (don't let them just barely touch). Do that and net wrap handles the rest.
The problem is the bottom, not the top
Ask a room full of cattlemen where outside-stored bales spoil and you'll hear the same answer: the ground. One producer who stores net-wrapped bales outside in Michigan put the priority in one line:
"The biggest problem with outside storage is moisture wicking up from the bottom of bales. I placed bales on electric poles, stone piles and pallets."
— r82230, Thumb of Michigan · AgTalk thread 1080242
That's the whole game in two sentences: the damage comes from below, so the fix is getting the bale up off the dirt and onto something that won't hold water against it. Pallets, poles, tires, crushed rock — anything that breaks the soil-to-hay contact and lets air move underneath.
Best fix: a drained pad
If you store in the same spot every year, the highest-value thing you can build is a drained base. A producer who tarps big native-hay stacks recommended exactly that when asked about a permanent yard:
"Bottom bales will have some moisture damage, but not bad. If going to have a permanent area for stacking bales, make a breaker run pad for drainage."
— beefgrower, SW Wisconsin · AgTalk thread 1212658
"Breaker run" is the crushed-rock road base — angular gravel that compacts into a firm, free-draining pad. Water runs through and away instead of pooling under the bottom row. Even a few inches of rock on a crowned or gently sloped spot turns a soggy low corner into a dry one.
Not everyone wants to buy pallets for every bale, and that's a fair question — it's the trade-off between a little bottom loss and the cost of getting every bale airborne:
"I'm hoping to get by without pallets does the tarp shed water enough the the bottom-middle bale of a 3-2-1 stack has minimal waste on bottom? I would have 3 bales off the ground, 4th in good shape if the bottom middle was on dry soil per tier."
— Doug61, Eastern NE KS · AgTalk thread 1212658
The practical answer most land on: a drained pad does most of the work, and you reserve pallets or poles for the spots that stay damp.
Orient rows north–south, slope away
How you lay the rows out matters once the base is dry. Running rows north–south lets sun hit both sides through the day, so the wrap and the ground between rows dry out instead of staying shaded and wet on one face:
"Also, in snowy areas, I found bales orientated North/South rows worked better. Ice on north side of net wrapped bales makes work for you, with East/West rows."
— r82230, Thumb of Michigan · AgTalk thread 1080242
Pair that with a spot that sheds water — crowned or sloped so runoff leaves the yard — and you've removed the two biggest sources of bottom rot: standing water and a permanently shaded, never-drying side.
Tight rows or a gap? Pick one — just don't let them "kiss"
Once the base is right, spacing is the last call, and farmers genuinely split on it. Both camps work; what loses hay is letting bales barely touch, which traps water in the seam without any airflow.
The "push them tight" camp keeps ends sealed against weather:
"Push em up tight as long as they're dry and they'll look almost like the day you baled them when the wrap comes off."
— gee-haw, North central TX · AgTalk thread 1080242
The "leave a gap" camp avoids the wet seam where bales meet:
"Leave a gap between them and you won't have rotten spots where the water ran down between them."
— flyboytoo, southern middle TN · AgTalk thread 1080242
A common middle ground is the best of both — bales tight within a row, gaps between rows — which also protects the wrap from ice:
"We push them tight together and leave a foot or two gap between rows that way the snow and ice won't rip the wrap off"
— Deere08, Northwest Illinois · AgTalk thread 1080242
That foot-or-two gap between rows keeps snow from bridging and tearing the net, and lets each row dry on both sides — which loops right back to running them north–south.
Storage base prep checklist
| Step | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Pick a well-drained, crowned or sloped spot | Runoff leaves the yard instead of pooling under bottom bales |
| Build a breaker-run / gravel pad (permanent yards) | Firm, free-draining base; biggest single bottom-rot fix |
| Get bales off bare dirt (pallets, poles, tires, rock) | Breaks moisture wicking up from the soil |
| Run rows north–south | Sun dries both sides; less ice on a shaded face |
| Tight within rows, gap between rows | Sealed ends + airflow; snow/ice won't bridge and tear wrap |
| Don't let bales barely touch | A loose seam traps water with no airflow — worst case |
Where XES fits
A good base keeps the bottom dry; good net wrap keeps the top and sides dry. They work together. Our net wrap is DLG-tested (Report #7439) and carries a 12-month UV rating (tested to ISO 4892-2), so bales sitting out through a full season stay tight and shed weather instead of slumping and sponging up rain. If you bale with the right wrap width and coverage and stack on a drained pad, outside storage losses get small. Compare widths on the net wrap product page.
The bottom line
Outside hay spoilage is a ground problem before it's a wrap problem. Store on a well-drained, crowned or graveled base, get the bales up off bare dirt, run the rows north–south so they dry on both sides, and either push them tight within rows or leave a real gap between rows — never let them just kiss. Prep the base that way and tightly net-wrapped bales come out the far side of winter with only an inch or two of bottom damage, if that. For the spacing-and-tarping side of the same question, see storing net-wrapped bales outside and the hay bale tarp selection guide.
Frequently asked questions
Why do round bales rot on the bottom when stored outside?
Because moisture wicks up out of the ground into the bottom few inches of the bale. The net wrap sheds rain off the top and sides, but it can't stop water coming up from wet soil — so bottom contact with bare, poorly drained dirt is where most outside-storage spoilage happens.
What's the best base for storing round bales outside?
A well-drained spot, ideally a crushed-rock or "breaker run" pad that's crowned or sloped so water drains away. For permanent stacking yards, building a gravel pad is the single most effective fix for bottom rot. Getting bales up off bare dirt on pallets, poles, tires, or rock also breaks the moisture path.
Should I put round bales on pallets?
Pallets, poles, or tires help by lifting the bale off the soil so air moves underneath and moisture can't wick up. Many producers skip pallets if they have a well-drained gravel pad, since the pad does most of the work, and reserve pallets for low or damp spots that stay wet.
Which way should I orient bale rows?
Run rows north–south so the sun reaches both sides through the day. East–west rows leave one side permanently shaded, which stays wet and ices up, making more work and more spoilage on that face.
Is it better to store bales tight together or with a gap?
Both work; what fails is letting bales barely touch, which traps water in the seam with no airflow. A common best-of-both approach is tight within a row to seal the ends, with a foot or two of gap between rows so each row dries on both sides and snow or ice can't bridge across and tear the wrap.
This guide is maintained by the XES Netting team — a bale net-wrap manufacturer. Every farmer quote in this post is verbatim with a thread link, so you can go read the originals. Storage results depend on your climate, soil, and bale moisture — these are producer-reported practices, not guarantees.
Featured photo: Reeder Creek Ranch, CO by inkknife_2000, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
