Well it's just me here, so i have control over all aspects. The cleaning is one thing that is putting me off but someone else is saying it's only a little more than i'm already cleaning and the machine draws the liquid through itself
Up until now I’ve always said I preferred the hand milking option for one milk cow. I experienced both ways when WWOOFing, and at that time felt the time was about the same for one cow, but hand milking you can do anywhere, you’re up close and personal with your cow, you Zen out with the rhythmic swish-swoosh of the jets into the pail against the background of nature’s sounds... it’s every bit as idyllic as it sounds! Whereas a milking machine is noisy and man-made, drowns out other sounds, needs to be near a source of power and running water, and then all the chemicals... :/. But, now Hillie is being so very productive (and her last year’s calf is gone and we didn’t get her in calf again last year, so we’re milking the lot for the summer this year), although it sounds idyllic, I’m keeping her stood in one spot for the best part of an hour every day, if we’re not early in the morning the flies bug her, if we do it too late in the evening it’s the midges... So my feelings are a bit mixed at the mo.
And if you’re on your own, it’s going to be much easier to find a relief milker to use a machine if you want a few days away....