How to Build an Iron Farm: Unlimited Supply of Iron

Iron is one of the most valuable resources in Minecraft, as it is needed for many different recipes. But constantly going underground is certainly not an option, as it will only cost you a lot of time in the long run and can also be somewhat boring. Long-time Minecraft players have thus taken advantage of a certain mechanic that ensures iron is produced completely automatically! This involves the iron golem, one of the most interesting mobs in Minecraft. We will show you how it works and how you can build your own small iron farm!

How Do Automatic Iron Farms Work?

We have already talked about iron in our article on mining (Minecraft Mining Techniques: Efficiently Mine Resources) . And if you enjoy digging underground and searching for iron ores through cave tours or strip mining, you can still do that!

However, it can take some time, and you may not always have the inclination and time for it. But your iron will run out sooner or later. What now? Minecraft has an interesting mechanic that works with villages and villagers. When they feel threatened or form a village, they spawn an iron golem. And this is the key to an automatic iron farm!

For the farm, we take advantage of exactly this mechanic and ensure that new iron golems keep appearing and then get killed. Each time they die, they drop 3-5 iron ingots. And you don’t have to lift a finger!

Instructions for Building a Simple Iron Farm

This iron farm is not the most efficient variant, but one that you can build very early in the game. Additionally, it works in Peaceful mode and doesn’t require any Redstone. So, it is universal and perfect for any player, regardless of experience.

List of Materials

• One stack of walls of any kind
• Building blocks
• 5 beds
• 5 slabs
• 5 villagers (or 2 villagers + food)
• Torches
• Water bucket
• Lava bucket
• 3 signs
• Shovel
• 4 hoppers
• Chests

Room for Villagers

Choose a suitable location where you want to build an iron farm. Not far from your base is a good idea, preferably a flat area. Dig a hole measuring 3x5 blocks and make it 4 blocks deep. This is where your villagers will live and create their own village.

Place the five beds in a row in the dug hole. Fill the remaining space with slabs so that no monsters or iron golems can spawn there. Also, place some torches.

Now you only need to get five villagers into the hole, which is probably the most challenging task. But with some tricks, it becomes easier, as you actually only need two villagers who can breed. You can bring these from a nearby village with a boat to their new home. Give them food, preferably carrots or potatoes, and wait a few days until they have filled all 5 beds with villagers.

This small community now serves as an independent village and quickly notices that it doesn’t have an iron golem. Therefore, they create one.

Finishing the Iron Farm

The rest of the farm can be completed in just a few minutes. First, close the hole with the villagers, but leave one corner open. Place your four hoppers and your chest there, where the iron will be collected later.

Surround the 3x5 field with walls so that the golem spawns inside later. In the corner where the chest is, raise the wall to a height of 3 blocks. On the other two sides, a height of 1 block is sufficient, so you can always watch the iron golems spawn.

Collecting Iron

Now you need the water and lava buckets, as well as the signs. The lava is needed to kill the iron golem. First, place the signs above the corner with the hoppers to hold the lava. Our picture will hopefully help you.

The water goes in the opposite corner so that the flow pushes the golem directly into the lava.

The Finishing Touch

The farm is essentially complete, but you need to ensure that the iron golem actually spawns in the designated area. You need to secure a 19x21 block rectangle around the farm. The best way to do this is by using a shovel to turn dirt or grass into paths, as no monsters or iron golems can spawn there. Measure 7x7 from each opposite corner, as shown in our picture.

Then, you need to wait one night until all the villagers have claimed their beds. The next day, a golem should spawn! There are about 3-5 golems per day, which is not a lot, but more than sufficient over a longer period.

Improving the Farm for More Iron

This farm alone will produce quite a bit of iron without you having to do anything. And for most game modes, it should be completely sufficient. Moreover, the described farm also works in Peaceful mode, so you don’t have to deal with monsters.

Villagers produce significantly more iron golems when they are frightened and startled. Other iron farm designs, therefore, work with a zombie that the villagers see and, out of fear, produce more golems. The zombie must either be able to hold an item or be named with a name tag. It must stay within the villagers’ sight but not attack them. However, this is not necessary unless you need large amounts of iron.

What to Do with the Poppies?

You may have noticed that iron golems drop not only iron ingots but also flowers. This is inspired by the Japanese anime film “Castle in the Sky,” where the large robot in the film also carries a red flower.

You can use these either as red dye or funnel them into a composter to convert them into valuable bone meal.

Conclusion

An iron farm is now an essential part of any Minecraft world! And the best part is that our design also works in Peaceful mode! Sooner or later, you will likely have more iron than you actually need. The farm works completely automatically and always runs in the background while you do other things. Never want to search for iron again? Build an iron farm on your own server and share the wealth with your friends. Rent your Minecraft server and get started!