Pretty Far OT - Bulk Salt Storage

Kirk Grau · Feb 7, 2013

Not my usual cup of tea, but have a client that asked for my help. Since you guys have great volumes of practical experience I am hoping you can help me brainstorm a few options.

Client is a small campus. Currently receives rock salt in 50 lb. bags and load small hoppers on gators and pickups for spreading. Would like to receive salt in bulk via dump load for cost purposes and eliminate the manual lifting via some sort of auger/loader set up.

Campus is pretty landlocked so a new building is difficult, but that is one option to consider. I am thinking something tall enough to back into and dump then skid loader dumping salt into a hopper that feeds an auger into their spreaders.

Another thought is to utilize the garage space that is currently dedicated to salt storage. It is not tall enough to raise a dump bed so receiving becomes problematic. Thinking of some sort of rolling hopper that could roll out to receive a load and roll back into the garage. Other thought is to somehow modify the garage (can get a truck behind it) to allow dumping into a hopper and transfering into garage or some sort of slanted funnel to transfer inside.

Anybody know manufacturer"s who do stuff like this.

Thanks for any help,

Kirk

RickieBlue · Feb 7, 2013

The trailer dumps used in this area for salt have conveyors in the bottom to unload..if a hauler has that in your area it would solve one of your problems.

Jim in Ma. · Feb 7, 2013

After working for the MA DOT for 30 years, All I can say it Salt must be stored DRY - any moisture and it will become a large rock.

donjr · Feb 7, 2013

If you have and area for dry, flat storage (good concrete floor) and a loader to load it, you can get a long, portable belt conveyor that can be positioned behind a dump trailer to move the product to it's storage area. There's very little loss and the bulk price is a huge savings on bagged product; depending on amount, more than enough to pay for the handling equipment.

sdc eastern ia · Feb 7, 2013

Watch for fertilizer plant auctions. You can pickup a pretty good conveyor or weigh hopper reasonable. Heck get the blender and load out conveyor also and blend your own salt and sand.

320B · Feb 7, 2013

Why use an auger when you have a skid loader? Our salt is stored inside a roofless concrete bin that's open on one end with a tarp over top. The walls of the bin are large concrete blocks, about 18" wide by 24" tall and about 48" long stacked 2 high. I have seen other guys build 4ft high walls with these blocks and then they put a tall tarp building over top with a tarp roll up door. Around here you can get the blocks from any cement company. They use to give them away but they became so popular that now you have to buy them. If you do a google search on tarp buildings I'm sure you will see pictures of what I'm writing about.

Harry

Kirk Grau · Feb 7, 2013

The hoppers on these spreaders (especially those mounted on the Gators) are not very large seems like most of the bucket would miss the hopper. I appreciate the attempt to keep me from looking at the forest through the trees, sometimes the simplest solution escapes me.

FWIW, the "mechanical" portions of this campus are pretty open to view from the outside, don't expect an open bin or tarp building to go over very well.

Kirk

Kirk Grau · Feb 7, 2013

They have capitol allocated to this project and would expect that they would prefer new. Any ideas who makes this kind of stuff? Been using Google and get plenty of hits, but would appreciate some sort of referral to a decent outfit.

Thanks,

Kirk

Spook · Feb 7, 2013

You also have a enviornmental issue. Salt in large quantities can leach out into the water table.

Sid · Feb 7, 2013

I have seen dry tankers deliver salt to feed mill and blow it up into storage area.
Just a thought to simplify the unloading part.

donjr · Feb 7, 2013

Kirk, smaller loading amounts can be done with a 'side dump' bucket attached to a skidloader. It loads like a regular skidloader bucket, then dumps the load out the side into a funnel like end. Smaller amounts can be controlled.

Ken Macfarlane · Feb 7, 2013

Bulk salt for smaller operations is handled in a lot of ways here:
-DOT/big private guys- salt domes or tarp buildings, some small garages without loader have a hopper thing with a ramp to the top, salt truck dumps in top hopper, spreader truck backs in under neath.

-Municipal, med private, malls etc - salt is dumped on paved corner of parking lot with or without bunker blocks transport tarps are kept on the piles.

-Small contractors, private buildings - small pile with tarp normally. I'm sure a few use supersacks with salt in them and store inside. Some have their salt delivered in plastic pallet totes that are about 24" high with plastic lids that you can stack outside, I'm not sure what they are but they look a lot like the ice pack totes used for fish and lobster. Others just fill the back of one of their dump trucks and tarp it.

cd1 · Feb 7, 2013

You can surely make something like this to load http://www.starindustries.com/ConcretePlacementBucket.htm

I'd contact the salt supplier and find out what delivery options they have next.

Kirk Grau · Feb 7, 2013

See now that is just the kind of thing that sends me here for something like this. I googled "side dump skid steer bucket" and for less than $10,000 we half of their issue resolved. They have talked about $250,000 for the project. Now give me a good point to start looking for a way to convey the salt into the existing garage and it will be finished.

Maybe I will cut you all in on the fee. FWIW, this is a freebie so far. If it should turn into a real construction or renovation project I will see something, but seems like they can keep it pretty simple.
Kirk

MSM · Feb 7, 2013

You would be better off with a building specifically for salt. All pressure treated material,sealed up weather tight.
Dumping loose salt in a parking garage is a recipe for disaster. Salt degrades the concrete,the steel rebar,and you have to deal with the salty brine run off getting on nearby vehicles.If it all isn't used this year,it will solidify,and then you will have to deal with lumps and clumps in the salters next season
Conveyor system strictly for salt will be cost prohibitive,needs to be all stainless,and even so unless it is cleaned meticulously,you will have frozen bearings and chains to contend with along with corroded electrical connections.

320B · Feb 7, 2013

Kirk,
the big tarp building company around here 15 years ago was Coverall I believe but there are so many now I wouldn't know who to recommend. Some of the main things to look for are, thickness of the steel, and thickness of the tarp and what the tarp is made of. Some companies use a thick plastic which would be great but it cuts very easy.

As for getting it in the building, I would call the local salt supplier and see what they will deliver it with. It also depends on how much you need. Our salt is preordered long before the season starts for the whole season so we know we have enough and also gets us a good price. Then we just call when the bin starts to get low and they send another trailer load from our original order. You could have it set up that they just dump a smaller load once a month so you have what you need but don't have left over at the end of the season. With smaller loads you can also use the skid loader to push it into the building.

Michael Soldan · Feb 7, 2013

Yes, and when there is moisture in the air your saltpile becomes wet mush..unless you have a dry indoor space with dehumidifyers or sealed bins that the air cannot touch .
There is a reason salt is bagged in sealed plastic bags and in the long run for the amount of salt being used is it really feasable to go bulk..price yes,headaches,lump salt and soggy salt..no and there is certainly as one poster pointed out an enviromental concern if any wet salt or salt/rain combination leaches it outside the storage area.

donjr · Feb 7, 2013

Kirk, take a look at 'Crustbuster- Speed King' handling equipment. They have a tubular belt elevator like you would want, and they would be in varying lengths. There are also a few more on the market. Some are open,flat conveyors, but a tubular will likely serve longer than an open conveyor. You could get away with an ordinary farm elevator, but it would be very slow to unload, and prone to rust. Stainless steel would hold up the longest, but may cost more initially.

Don-Wi · Feb 7, 2013

Tyler makes fertilizer handeling equipment, so i would think they'd work just as well on salt.

Donovan from Wisconsin

evilboweivel · Feb 7, 2013

2 thoughts on filling exsisting building

back in the 70's worked at a local feed mill. bulk fert was delivered by a dump truck who parked outside and dumped out the small door in the back onto a portable belt thrower that the truck carried with him. could throw fert over 50' at 30'+ high made a very nice pile.

See a lot of trucks now with Slinger beds on them belt conveyour that folds along the side of the truck unfolds and reaches out over fences, to far side of basements, garages etc. See who locally has one of those and have them haul the salt

another idea contact the supplier of bulk salt in your area and tell him what you want to do. Odds are very good they are set up for delivery to oher people with the same needs.

Side dump bucket for skid loader is excellent idea for loading

Good luck

Ron

IaGary · Feb 7, 2013

Back the truck close to the door. Dump it on concret and push it on to a pile inside the building with the same skidloader you will load out with.

One skidloader can do it all.

If you used 50 lp bags before I gonna assume we are not talking hugh amounts of salt.

Gary

504 · Feb 7, 2013

these are made for fertilizer and should hold up to salt too.
Untitled URL Link

VicS · Feb 7, 2013

I had this problem back when I was road commissioner. Built a small building, that was the same size as a semi-trailer. A semi-trailer on the ground would work. and are cheap!. Just dump it on the ground and put it in with your skid-loader. or what ever you have. Can do it in less than a hour. We unloaded on chat or chips. they didn't hurt a thing in the salt.

JD Seller · Feb 7, 2013

Kirk you stated that a side dump skid steer bucket would fill your spreaders. So you must have a skid steer already.

Well we deliver salt all of the time with our belt trailer. If the door is 12 ft. tall we can back in a dump right it the building. IF you already have a garage that has shorter doors then just have the salt delivered and dumped right out side the door. Then just carry it inside with your skid steer loader.

We had two different schools that do it that way. They have older garages that just have 7-8 ft. tall doors. They just have gotten concrete "T" walls that they put along the outside garage walls so the salt pile does not push against the wood walls. Simple cheap salt storage.

Also remember that salt is real dense. It does not take that large of a place to store several hundred ton of salt. A skid steer bucket that would hold a 1000 LBS of gravel will hold almost 2000 LBS of salt.

Also look into getting the treated salt. It will look green or light blue. This treatment makes it more Eco friendly. It is supposed to work better and not hurt the grass and plants as much.

Where are you located at??? We haul in IA, IL, and WI.

I just hauled a load of regular salt to Waukon, Iowa today.

Pretty Far OT - Bulk Salt Storage

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