Happy to help.
Speaking of help.
Have plenty of helpers on hand when you go to take one of those bins down. If you get a bin made out of the heaviest guage metal, those panels are not light, but even more importantly, they can be extremely awkward. More hands makes the work much easier.
Don't neglect the incredibly obvious either. Choose a calm day with no wind, and WEAR GLOVES.
The bolts may not break loose easily. If you have an air wrench and a portable compressor... it's a good time to make sure it's all oiled up. Of course, then you'll want ear plugs too. Those grain bins will resonate every pneumatic sound and make you deaf.
The best technique I've seen is to have a few really long bolts. 4 inches long or so. Replace one of the bottom corner bolts for the panel to be removed with a long bolt and a nut, but leave it very loose. Then remove all the other bolts holding that panel up. Use that long bolt as a pivot point to swing the panel down. Those panels are not to be underestimated. They can be sharp and act like a gillotine. Take your time. If it seems unsafe, you're probably doing it wrong. Rethink your technique. Obviously nobody should be standing under a panel that is being removed.
Using ropes to lower panels in a conrolled manner is smart, but don't let the ropes drag over sharp edges and get frayed or cut. Tape scraps of old carpet over the edges of panels still on the bin with packing tape or duct tape. The friction from the carpet will be your friend slowing the decent, but it will also protect the rope from damage.
--- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, cloud wall <windwalkerwill@...> wrote:
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> I've seen lots of those silos; usually missing their roof and begging to be recycled. This is a great idea! I'm not at all attached to the gable roof. It just happened to be what I had to work with. I didn't realize those grain bins were a stronger metal, either. I could think of a few uses for that. Draft ~ proofing at the top of the list. Trying to withstand a 2200# butt scratching or kicking has been the biggest challenge. Thank you!
> Clarissa
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> --- On Wed, 3/14/12, JayH <slurryguy@...> wrote:
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> From: JayH <slurryguy@...>
> Subject: [papercreters] Re: Earthbag, Superadobe, Hiperdobe, why not Hiperpapercrete?
> To: papercreters@yahoogroups.com
> Date: Wednesday, March 14, 2012, 1:03 PM
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> You might keep your eyes open for old rusty metal grain bins.
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> The cylindrical ones.
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> If you can find a farmer that has an old one that is rusted enough that the bolts don't hold it together very well, those old grain bins become unusable. The grain pressure splits the seams and the grain falls out.
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> Those old grain bins are made like a tank.
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> The edges of the metal sections and the holes won't have galvanizing on them, so that is where the rust will form, and that is where the bins will fail. However, most of the metal is in great shape.
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> If you were to consider a barrel vault roof, by using sections of an old grain bin, you might have a nearly indestructible roof for ... well maybe for free.
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> You might be able to convince a farmer to give you an old rusted falling about grain bin, if you volunteer to take it down and haul it away.
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> This is super heavy duty guage metal. Not the thin stuff typically used for roofing.
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> In any case, if you see an old grain bin that's falling apart, take a close look and consider what you might be able to do with most of the metal.
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> The upper roof of the bins will rust faster than the walls. When the walls fail, it's at the seams. Think about using the wall panels as a roof, and cutting off the rusty seams or just painting them over with rust inhibitor. There are no rules that say a gable roof cannot have an arc to it.
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> --- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, cloud wall <windwalkerwill@> wrote:
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> > https://picasaweb.google.com/106060429030466659564/20112012BuildingTheShedrow?authkey=Gv1sRgCOPwvOKwz6DkEgÂÂ
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> > I almost forgot; for all my whining about that billboard roof, it has withstood 70mph winds without a hitch.
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