Anyone have sheep wool for sale?

I don't know if it would be cost effective to ship, but I need sheep wool for insulation in the Layens bee hives I am building.  I would like to buy 20 lbs or so if that is possible for a reasonable price.

Hey Trace.  Whereabouts are you?  

There may be ways to get it free, or super cheap, locally.  Do you need it skirted and washed or are you willing to do that yourself?

A couple of thoughts:
- Lots of backyard flocks have to sheer just for health and don't use their wool.
- There is always waste in any fiber-mill run, and it is a waste stream to them.
- Shearers dump the belly and britches when they shear and most shepherds throw that out.  (I use it as weed block, mulch, and fertilizer)
- If you can find a local fleece show, there will ALWAYS be people looking to get rid of older fleeces.
  - Corollary: Most fleece shows only want fleeces sheared in the last 12 months, but out in the parking lot folks will unload their older fleeced cheap to get them out of their barns.

In my neck of the woods, this is the busy time for shearing.  We want to get the fleeces off before the ewes lamb.  Raucous, playful lambs are hard on a mom's fleece.  It started in February and will run through April/May.

This makes me think that I should go find a 'what to do with all this wool' thread.

Dave Lucey wrote:Hey Trace.  Whereabouts are you?  

There may be ways to get it free, or super cheap, locally.  Do you need it skirted and washed or are you willing to do that yourself?

A couple of thoughts:
- Lots of backyard flocks have to sheer just for health and don't use their wool.
- There is always waste in any fiber-mill run, and it is a waste stream to them.
- Shearers dump the belly and britches when they shear and most shepherds throw that out.  (I use it as weed block, mulch, and fertilizer)
- If you can find a local fleece show, there will ALWAYS be people looking to get rid of older fleeces.
  - Corollary: Most fleece shows only want fleeces sheared in the last 12 months, but out in the parking lot folks will unload their older fleeced cheap to get them out of their barns.

In my neck of the woods, this is the busy time for shearing.  We want to get the fleeces off before the ewes lamb.  Raucous, playful lambs are hard on a mom's fleece.  It started in February and will run through April/May.

This makes me think that I should go find a 'what to do with all this wool' thread.

I'm in WI.  I actually emailed a sheep farmer yesterday that is only a couple hours from me and she said exactly what you mentioned.  The belly fleece and fleece that has vegetation stuck in it, she loads into her truck and dumps it in a ditch.  She said I'm welcome to all of it for free.  For insulation, I don't think I would bother cleaning it unless it was really filthy, and if that's the case, I would probably just compost that part of it and dig through for some that is relatively clean.