Will This Auger Work for Moving Coal From Outside to Bins

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NhCoal
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Post by NhCoal » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 11:52 am

My new coal system is humming along (love the AA-220 and guys at Leisure Line). I am burning rice and finally have my ash handling and bin to hopper figured out.

I am looking at a way to auger my coal. I will get a load dumped on my yard as far as the TT can go. This will be about 22lbs of rice. I will then auger it 60-70 feet into the woods and on to a tarp that I will cover. When I need to load my home bins (6 tons), I will auger the coal from the outside pile to the bins.

I am looking at getting the model 75 flex auger from: http://www.neagri.com/product.asp?List=58&findKey ... er=&Page=2

They were recommended by someone in another post. Does anyone know if the model 75 with a 1hp motor will do what I need for rice?

Thanks,
Peter

 
Pacowy
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Post by Pacowy » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 12:47 pm

I think there are lot of risks that the auger system would not work as you envision. I have stored coal outside, and it's hard to avoid at least some infiltration of water. It seems pretty likely that chunks of frozen coal would wind up messing it up, let alone the possibility of water getting into the flex auger and freezing. Maybe you could get away with it in MD, but NH seems like a stretch.

A second set of issues relates to the fact that much/most of the coal in a pile will not flow to the auger without a lot of shoveling (or a container with sloped sides).

I would suggest that you focus on creating as much indoor storage as you can (which hopefully is sufficient to carry you through the nasty part of winter). If you need to get at outdoor coal in the middle of winter, and you can't put a bin against the house/in the garage/etc., I would suggest something like an agricultural gravity wagon (with a cover), which could be parked away from the house and towed to your coal intake when needed. The wagon could be refilled with a loader in summer, and used to restock your indoor bin(s). Even if you have to rent a loader for a day each year, to me it would seem to be a better bet than the auger.

Mike

 
NhCoal
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Post by NhCoal » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 12:57 pm

Mike,

My plan was to have enough coal indoor for the 2-3 months of very cold. Currently I have 6 tons, but can easily move to 9 tons (I am using 4x4x8 wood bins). For water, I was going to leave the "end" of the auger system under the coal and with 20 feet coming out. I was then going to seal the end. The rest of the system would stay indoors except the time I need to load coal (1-2 times a year).

My assumption is that coal that is just wet will not be a big deal. Once indoor it is in with the boiler and will dry out over a couple of days. Does that make sense or do you still think it will be a problem outside those months?

Peter

 
Pacowy
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Post by Pacowy » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 1:26 pm

Peter,

I would say if the coal is wet outside in the winter it is a big deal. If you take delivery during warm weather the coal will dry out enough that it generally will flow when the weather gets cold. However, it's not easy to keep it that dry if there is any way for windblown rain or snow, surface water, etc. to get at it.

I would be all in favor of increasing your indoor capacity. I don't have a problem with the general idea of long-term storage outdoors on a tarp, but it would be best to count on accessing it only during the off-season. The better it is shielded from the elements, the more accessible it will be to you during the season.

I had one further thought about the logistics you described. A lot of TT guys aren't going to be real excited about off-roading with a full load. The wagon/loader option I described potentially would let you take delivery on a nearby paved surface (at our old house a neighbor let us borrow their driveway), and use the wagon to both stock your bins and move the surplus to remote storage. If you create enough indoor capacity you might be able to skip the wagon, and just use a loader.

Mike


 
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Post by Den034071 » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 1:31 pm

Peter read the Post jim from or in Macungie .He built a 5 ton auger assisted covered bin an I saw it .Works real well .Jack

 
NhCoal
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Post by NhCoal » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 4:13 pm

Den034071 wrote:Peter read the Post jim from or in Macungie .He built a 5 ton auger assisted covered bin an I saw it .Works real well .Jack
That system is very slick. Unfortunately I cannot build next to the building. For me the only practical place to store the coal not in the basement is in a pile outdoors. I had a 22 ton pile in the front yard for a long time. As long as it is covered, nothing really happens to it. If I cover the new spot and only pull coal when it is not frozen I am hoping it will workout. The daily moving of coal from the bins to the boiler will be done with a vacuum system (two shop-vacs and two cyclonic separators).

 
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Post by lzaharis » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 6:00 pm

NhCoal wrote:
Den034071 wrote:Peter read the Post jim from or in Macungie .He built a 5 ton auger assisted covered bin an I saw it .Works real well .Jack
That system is very slick. Unfortunately I cannot build next to the building. For me the only practical place to store the coal not in the basement is in a pile outdoors. I had a 22 ton pile in the front yard for a long time. As long as it is covered, nothing really happens to it. If I cover the new spot and only pull coal when it is not frozen I am hoping it will workout. The daily moving of coal from the bins to the boiler will be done with a vacuum system (two shop-vacs and two cyclonic separators).
==================================================================================================

I am not trying to spend your money but:

Rent a tracked skid steer for the times you want to move the coal
as even oiled coal will freeze together even when tarped as coal
attracts moisture just like rock salt.

If you can get the coal off the ground and covered to prevent
moisture from entering that is half the battle.

Even a simple bin made 20 by 20 with 4 rows of 2 by 12's on three sides
and resting on 6 by 6's would break the ground contact issue for you and
prevent a lot of moisture issues and allow you to use the vacuum more effectively

Buy an expensive water proof tarp to cover it not a cheap one and you will
have fewer issues as long as the tarps edges are held over the edges of the bin.

You will be money ahead using a vacuum to pull the coal from the dumped pile
and sending it to the bin behind the house.

 
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windyhill4.2
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Post by windyhill4.2 » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 8:48 pm

If I read your first post right you plan to auger the coal into the woods & then auger it from there into your bins.I would be concerned about running the coal thru the auger that often as that will make more fines to deal with. I think others have offered good solutions with storing as much in your basement as is possible & then move the outdoor pile during the warmer weather.


 
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Post by NhCoal » Mon. Jan. 19, 2015 9:00 pm

windyhill4.2 wrote:If I read your first post right you plan to auger the coal into the woods & then auger it from there into your bins.I would be concerned about running the coal thru the auger that often as that will make more fines to deal with. I think others have offered good solutions with storing as much in your basement as is possible & then move the outdoor pile during the warmer weather.
I am going to use vacuum to move it from inside bins to boiler. I will auger it 1-2 per year from outside pile to inside bins.

 
lzaharis
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Post by lzaharis » Mon. Jan. 26, 2015 10:04 am

NhCoal wrote:
windyhill4.2 wrote:If I read your first post right you plan to auger the coal into the woods & then auger it from there into your bins.I would be concerned about running the coal thru the auger that often as that will make more fines to deal with. I think others have offered good solutions with storing as much in your basement as is possible & then move the outdoor pile during the warmer weather.
I am going to use vacuum to move it from inside bins to boiler. I will auger it 1-2 per year from outside pile to inside bins.
===========================================================================================
I have left my oiled coal in the dump trailer
and it still freezes together so keep that in
mind too.

 
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CoalisCoolxWarm
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Post by CoalisCoolxWarm » Mon. Jan. 26, 2015 12:50 pm

Rednecks checking in here... ;)

Got a decent sized tractor? Get a set of forks for 3pt lift, build bins on solid pallets.

Fill pallets at truck, pick up with tractor and store in woods.

When needed, haul a bin close to house to vacuum xfer inside.

You can cover the outside bins. Hauling them will help break up any frozen, reducing problems. Bins stored out of way. And you have a nice hauling capability with the forks for whatever else you want!

Neat and Sweet :D

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