Open biofilters have previously been shown to reduce odour from typical swine production facilities, but it was not known whether the exhaust air contained sufficient heat to prevent the biofilter beds from freezing during ambient temperatures below -20 degrees C without the use of insulation or supplemental heat. Four experimental biofilter units were retrofitted to a 2000-hog, 4-room feeder facility in southern Manitoba, Canada. Temperatures within the biofilter bed were constant at approximately 16 degrees C when ambient temperatures ranged between +9.2 and -34.2 degrees C during the period from September 1999 to February 2000. Due to inconsistent odour concentration reductions, which ranged from 56 to 94%, the effectiveness of different air plenum designs and biofilter media mixtures were not apparent.
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