That is the question of the day!
That is the question that reader Robin asked in her comment in the previous blog post “Paradise Point … one last morning drive” … why are so many barns painted red?
I’ve been thinking about that since Robin asked that question in her comment to that blog post. And I’ll bet you folks have been thinking about that too. In fact, I bet lots of people are keenly interested, have been wondering about this very same question, and are eagerly waiting and watching for an answer. In fact, here are some exceptionally curious folks in the photo below.
They too must be wondering … why are so many barns painted red?
Is it so cows can find their way back to the barn? Maybe cows see red more easily than they see other colors?
Maybe barns are painted red so the farmer can find the barn more easily in a terrible winter white-out snow storm? Or maybe the thinking long ago was that the color red kept barns warmer in winter?
What about the idea that the color itself repelled or prevented the entrance of critters that might hurt the animals inside or that might damage the wooden structure of the barn? You bad critters, you keep out of here!
Maybe people figured red barns would keep the hay stored in them warmer (or cooler?) or more moist (or drier?)
Why do so many people paint their barns red?
As you might expect, I’ve done a bit of research regarding this very question. Here’s what I found out … it’s interesting!
Hundreds of years ago, when wooden barns were first being built in North America, there were no paints or sealants that were produced commercially. Farmers had to be resourceful in finding what would protect and seal the wood.
They came up with a number of ideas and practices. The most popular idea was brought over to North America by Swedish people. The basic substance that was applied to wooden barns (and homes) was linseed oil made from flax seeds. Linseed oil is orange. Farmers would then add a variety of things to the linseed oil, sometimes milk and/or lime, but often ferrous oxide … rust … dark red rust! Rust became more and more plentiful (and free) on farms as the use of iron increased. Farmers noticed that moss and mold did not grow on rust, and they noticed that rust killed moss and mold when rust was applied to wood that already had moss or mold growing on it. So red rust was scraped from iron things that were used around the farm and the red rust powder was then added to the orange linseed oil mixture. Voilà … red “paint”, that protected the wood from moss and mold growths and protected the wood from deterioration.
The photo above is of a barn in Sweden.
Today, there are modern paints readily available commercially in all sorts of colors, many of them with mold inhibitors and other components that protect the wood no matter what the color of the paint is. But many farmers (and other barn owners) all over the world continue to paint their barns red today simply because of time-honored tradition.
And so, my friends, that’s why barns are painted red. 🙂
Very interesting!!
Hi Anne! Oh I’m so glad to hear from you. Your blog went blank for so long that I stopped checking it, but just checked today after I read your comment here and zowie you are back on line! I’m so sorry to hear about your brother, it just hurts, wish there was something more to say. But it sure is good to hear from you, it really is. For all of you readers of Travels With Towhee, feel free to check out Anne’s blog at http://rightbrainrightlane.blogspot.com/ … funny upside down Saguaro in Anne’s April 10 post. She TOO owns an Escape-built trailer.
Thank you so much for answering my question – I feel honoured that you would write a blog post about it. I felt as surprised as those little lambies looked in the photo!
In Iceland, it is the ROOFS of many homes and barns that are red – (but perhaps that is tradition.) At any rate, a barn is almost always a beautiful, eye-catching building – the proportions are pleasing, and the colour red just seems to enhance it.
Ok, now you’ve opened another door! 🙂 Roofs in Iceland! So what I found after a bit of online sleuthing this evening is that many roofs in Iceland are green (literally, from the grass on them because they are turf roofs) … but a very large percentage of roofs in Iceland are corrugated metal and they are painted red again because of tradition, but again because those folks too used to use ferrous oxide to protect wood AND metal roofs, so the tradition is that roofs are either green turf or they are red metal or red wood. So many things to learn! 🙂
Fascinating! I never knew that I didn’t know! 🙂 I shared this blog post with a friend of mine earlier this evening. He told me that the lime was added in order to help the linseed oil dry and harden faster than it would otherwise so the whole mess would adhere to the exterior walls of the barn.
I wondered why someone would add milk or lime to the linseed oil. Nebraska thank you, another piece of the puzzle solved. 🙂
LOVE this. You have some gorgeous barns..and I learned something too! Barns are some of my favorite subjects to find, and I never questioned why so many are red, I just love when I find a good red barn in a pretty setting. You have found so many! I can’t decide if my favorite is that little one in the meadow with the aspen trees or the last one with the shadows. So I’ll say it’s a tie for me!
I love barns too, they seem so cozy and warm even in winter when they probably aren’t too cozy or warm. The little red barn in the aspen trees is in Sweden … and the last photo of the red barn in the shadows is in Alabama … and neither of those photos is mine, I must admit … got both of them off the internet. 🙂
That lamb photo is precious!
I agree. It makes me smile a big smile every time I look at it.
Loved this! And the pictures.
Thanks Kristin. This was a really fun blog post to write.
Alright I gotta weigh in on my favorite photo .. the cows! That one cow is looking right at you, are you a barn? why are you here? why is there a black box in front of your face? (taking a photo obviously but the cow doesn’t know that) Like other folks I never even wondered about why barns are painted red but now we know! Who has the next question for Ann to figure out?
I loved that cow photo too Tim. It’s so irreverent. 🙂 And yes, if anyone has any questions that I can sleuth out, just say the word, especially if I can work the question into a future camping adventure. I love that kind of stuff.