V O L XI V , NO 4

. . 1 9 1 8- 1 9

TH E SI LO
C O N ST R U C TI O N , C A P AC I T ! AN D C O ST

F W I V ES
'

B ! . .

g s

xy
.
5

Mo n o l i t h i c co n c re t e s ilo

EXTENSI O N B ULLETI N

TH E O H I O S T A T E U NI V E R S I T ! C O L U MB U S , , O HI O
A GRI CUL TURAL C OLL EG E EXTEN SI O N SERVI CE
C LAR K S . W H EELER Di r e c to r ,
 TH E SI L O
B! F W
. . I VES

F O R E WO R D

The p u r p o s e of t h i s b ul letin i s n o t to u rge t h e u s e o f sil o s n or

to d iscu ss th e econ omy o f sil os as an ai d t o th e feed in g o f l i v estock !
rathe r i t i s desi gn ed as a n ai d i n th e proper sel ecti on o f a sil o from
am on g th e m any good types i n u se b oth h om e mad e an d com ,
-

m e rc i al .

Th e su ccessfu l u se of th e s il o i n every sta te i n t h e U n i on h as

d em on strated i ts u til ity beyon d qu esti on Th e dai rym an sh ou l d b e .

especially interested as th e silo h a s pro v ed to b e a v erita b l e yea r

,

r ou n d pastu re The sil o was l argely i n str um en ta l i n en a b li ng s to ck

.

“ “ !
m en to i ntrod u ce baby b eef an d h ot h ou se l am b s t o o u r m a r
!
-

kets th u s n o t only savi ng a year of fe ed in g to p r odu c e p r acti cally

,

th e sam e l ive weigh t but giving a h igh er qu al ity o f fi n i s h e d p r odu ct

, .

TH E S I L O DE F I N E D
Th e s il o i s an ai rtigh t vessel for th e prese rv ati on o f gr ee n fo r
age crops am on g wh ich are corn sorgh um p eas K a fi r co rn r ye
, , , , , ,

soybean s cl ove r an d al fal fa

, .

C orn s eem s t o b e th e best en si l in g m ater ial of an y n am ed as i t ,

i s easi e r to pack an d th u s excl u de ai r wh i ch m ig h t cau se excess i v e

,

ferm entati on an d conseq u en t l owering o f th e v al u e of t h e s il age .

Th e p rocess o f fe rm entati on tak es pl ace very soon after t h e ma te

5
rial i s place d i n th e s il o an d takes away abou t 3 p e r cent o f t h e
,

food val u e o f th e c orn as compared to a l oss o f 3 p e r cent o r m o r e

wh ere th e fodd e r i s l eft i n th e sh ock u n ti l De cemb e r .

The sil o m ay be alm os t any sh ap e an d si ze an d m ay b e m ade ,

o f vari ou s m ateri al s p ractical ly all of o u r comm on b u il din g ma te

,

rials h aving been u se d i n i ts c on stru cti on T h e l im i ta ti o n m o di fy .

i ng th e above sta te m ent w ill app ear i n th e fol low ing d is cuss i o n .

R E Q U I R E ME NT S O F A GOOD S I LO
Th e s ilo m u st b e ab ove al l th i n gs ai rtig h t .

I t l ogi cally foll ows th at it s h ou l d b e w ate r p r oof .

I t sh ou l d h ave a good an d suffi c i ent fou n dati on to pr e

ven t u n even settl em en t o f th e walls an d con sequ ent i n
j u ry o f th e structu re and its c onten ts .

Th e in sid e s u rface of th e wal ls sh oul d b e sm oot h a n d

perpen d icular .

Th e walls sh ould be stron g en ough to with stan d t h e

I mm ens e ou twa rd p ressu re ca u se d by t h e sil age
.
 S uffi cie nt open ings sh ou l d b e provi d ed f or the easy r e
m oval o f th e contents .

A roof sh oul d be provi ded as an ai d to th e preser v atio n

o f the s ilage an d th e b ui ld ing itself an d to give a fi n ,

i s h e d appearance to th e str u ctu re alth o th e r oof i s not ,

cons id ere d abs olutely essential .

A ch ute to p revent th e scattering o f the s ilage when

,

thrown out sh oul d b e provi ded

, .

Th e height o f th e s il o m u st be from t o 3 times i ts

d iameter in order to pack th e s ilage tightly for its pr es
e r va t i on .

RECTANG LE
SQ UARE .

O C TAG O N C l Q C LE
Fi g . 1 . Th e r ou nd s i lo e n closes t he mo st ar e a fo r th e l a t p e r i m e t e r
e s

S HA P E O F TH E S I LO
Al l man ner of shapes have b een u sed for s ilo constru ction Th e .

M exi cans u s e an adob e u rn shape d affair ! long narrow p i ts were

-

u sed i n early exper imen ts ! sh allow obl ong ston e cellars were u sed
,

by som e o f th e p ion eers of s ilo constru cti on b ut the rou n d s ilo h as ,

d em onstrated beyon d doubt that th e cyl i n der i s th e p rop er shap e

b oth f o r econ omy of constr u cti on an d u til ity i n prese rv ing the
s ilage F ig 1 sh ows the compari son betwee n d ifferent sh apes an d
. .

3
t h e ir ar ea s an d peri me ters to i ll ustrate h o w the ci rc l e e n clos es th e
,

m ost area for the l east p erimete r .

E arly s ilos were b u ilt o f b ot h w ood an d s tone i n squ a r e o r r ec ,

ta n gu l a r form but it was s oo n fou n d that th e squ ar e co rn e r s ca use d

,

a great deal of spoile d s ilage s ince it was p racti cally im p oss i b l e to

,

tramp it properly at thes e p oi nts M or e o r less ai r was im p ris o n e d

.
,

an d m ol d an d decay ca u sed m u ch l oss S ome of th es e si l os we r e .

late r improved by rou n d ing th e co rn ers Th e squ are f o rm i s v ery .

d ifficu lt t o re in force aga in st bu rsting pressu re The flat wal ls es .

,

p e c i a ll yo f th e w ood con stru ction are l ikely to b u lge an d t h u s fo rm

,

ai r p ocke ts or at least caus e un even s ettlem ent e it h e r o f wh ich

, ,

w ou ld b e detrim en ta l t o the s ilage .

Th e cyl i n d ri ca l si l o th en m ay b e con c e de d th e fol low i n g a d

, ,

van ta ges ove r th e oth er shapes .

1 . A gi v en wal l area i ncloses m ore space t h an any ot h er

practical sh a p e .

2 . Th ere is n ot s o m uch dange r o f l oss of s il age th r u um

e v e n settlement an d ai r p ockets .

3 .
H oops o r rein forceme nt are easy to a p ply to a cy
, , l in
de r of any ki n d of bu il d ing m ate ri al wh eth er w ood , ,

metal o r maso nr y
, .

F or th e best s u ccess th e cyl in de r sh oul d h a v e a h eig h t at l east

,

tim es th e d i am ete r Th e h e ight m ay b e m o r e t h an t h is h ow

.
,

ever b ut sh ou l d n ot be ex cessi ve M any s ilos h a v e b ee n constr u cted

, .

oth er ta ll sil o F orty fi v e o r fifty feet i s ta l l en oug h f o r any s il o

.
-
,

as th e expens e of fill ing b ecomes v e ry g r eat w it h g r ea te r h e ig h ts ,

an d wh en the s ilage i s u sed it m ean s a l ab o ri ou s as c ent an d des ce nt

wi t h each feed in g S i nce the comp r ess ion o f t h e si lage d e p e n ds
.

largely u pon th e we ig h t ab ove it t h e gr eate r th e h e igh t of t h e si l o

,
,

the grea te r w il l be th e p ressu r e Th is i s an exce ed i n gly d es i r a b le

.

featu re as it h elps to exp el th e a i r as t h e s i lage s ettles D u e to

,
.

th is sam e compressi on m ore s ilage ca n be store d p e r foot of h eig h t

,

in a ta l l silo than i n a sh ort on e .

S IZ E O F TH E S I LO
paragraph there is a practi ca l l im ita tion on th e di ame ter namely
, , ,

th e qu ant ity o f si lage to b e fe d off each d ay When s ilage i s exp osed .

to th e action o f th e ai r decomposition s ets i n There i s b ut l it t le

, .

action i n th e in te r val b etween feedi ngs ! h oweve r th er e sh ou l d b e ,

abo ut 2 i n ch es rem ove d from th e en t ire exposed su rface eve ry 2 4

h ou rs i n cool w eather an d about 3 in ches rem ove d i n th e sam e
per iod du ri ng warm weather It can be read ily seen th en th at if
.
, ,

on e h as n ot su ffi cient l ivestock to consu me th is am ou nt da ily th ere ,

5
5
w ill b e m ore or less was te .

’
Table I wh i ch i s rep rod u ced from Fa r m ers B ulletin 8
, ,

sh ows th e relati on o f th e s ize of her d t o diam eter of si lo for w inter

feedi ng b a s e d o n 4 0 p ou n ds of silage per cubic foot ( Note : 4 0
, .

p ou n ds p er cub i c foot i s th e m ean w eight o f sett l ed si lage in the

average sil o ) .

TAB L E I .
-
R E L A TI O N or SI Z E o r HE RD TO DI A METE R or SI L o ,
FO R
W I NTER FEEDI NG

30 p ou nd s I 20 p ou nds l I S p ou nds
per h ad
e p e r h ead I p er h ea d

From th e foregoing tabl e w e m ay see t h at fo r th e small es t

,

p ra cticabl e s ilo 8 feet d i ameter at least th e equ ivalent of 9 fu ll

, ,

gro wn an imals mu st b e ma in taine d i n orde r to u se th e si lage fast

enou gh It i s h ar d work to throw t h e silage from a silo m ore th an
.

1 6 o r 1 8 feet i n d iameter w ith out t w ice h andl ing I n su mm er or .

,

i n warm weather a h alf m or e s ilage m u st b e u sed over th a t give n

,

in th e secon d col um n of T abl e I .

Tabl e I I from th e sam e B ulle t in sh ows th e am ou nts of set

, ,

t l e d silage expresse d in tons for di fferen t diam eters of si lo Note .

that th e h e i gh t i s t h e d e p t h o f t h e s il a ge a f t e r s e tt l i ng a n d n o t t h e
a c tu a l h e i gh t of t h e s i l o .

I t is p ossible fr om th e data given i n th e t wo tabl es to buy or

. , ,

to b ui l d th e si lo that w ill meet bo t h t h e qu esti on of p roper s ize an d

height ec onom ically .
TABLE I I .
—
DE PTH O F SI L A G E ( AFT ER SE TT LI NG ) FO R A G I VE N
CA PA C I T ! O F SI L O W I T H A G IV E N DI A MET ER

C apa c i ty of s ilo ha i n g an i n i d d i am t e r
v s e e o f

10 fee t 11 f t
ee 12 fee t 13 f t ee
I 1 4 f ee t I SI ee t 16 f ete l ee t

TO NS TO NS TO N S I TO NS T O NS TO NS T O NS

Th eoreti cally a l arge bu i ld ing w il l in close space m ore ch eaply

,

than a sm all e r o n e H oweve r wh en w e con s i der t h e l oss O f s il age

.
,

th at m ight occu r from th e u se Of a l arge di am eter S il o it w il l be ,

fou n d th at two smal l Or m ed i um s ized S il os m ay be ch eape r th an —

on e la rge si l o S uppose f o r example w e desi re to fe e d 1 4 cows

.
, ,

d u ring the en ti re year At a good rati on t h is w oul d r equ ire about

.
,

1 0 0 ton s o f s i l age W e m ight by l oo k ing at Ta b l e I I ch oose a si lo

.
, ,

1 3 by 3 6 feet o r a s ilo 1 4 by 3 2 fe et H oweve r by a stu dy o f Tabl e .

,

I w e s e e th at a s il o 1 0 feet i n d i amete r w ou l d b e th e cor r e ct s iz e

, ,

i f w e are to keep the silage from sp oil ing T u rn ing back to Ta b l e .

I I we fin d that tw o si l os 1 0 by 3 0 feet w i ll give u s the d es i re d ca

,

p a c i t y H oweve r as thi s represen ts th e d epth of settle d s i lage w e

.
, ,

m u st ad d ab out 4 feet to th e h eight m ak ing ou r final ch oice tw o ,

s il os 1 0 fe et i n d iameter an d 3 4 fe et h igh .

F O U NDAT I O N
H aving dec ided u pon th e s i z e of S ilo t h e next con s iderati o n ,

i s t he fou nd ation Th i s i s an imp orta nt m atte r as a goo d f o u n d a

.
,

t ion i s essen t ial to th e su ccess of th e s il o for m any r eason s U n .

eve n s e tt l ement d ue to in suffici ent fou n d ati on m ay res ul t i n a

, ,

c racke d or warped si lo a s il o ou t O f pl um b or e v e n t h e overtu rni ng

, ,

O f t he s t ru ctu re C racki ng or warp in g both ca u se spoil ed s i lage

.
.

A silo ou t of plumb results i n u n even s ettlem ent a n d air pockets ,

eith er of wh ich cau ses spoil ed silage .

Th e t h ree factors govern in g th e desi gn of fo u n dati on s ar e

t he n a t u re of th e s oil t h e we ight O f t h e str u ctu re a n d i ts co n tents
, ,

6
 an d th e stren gth o f th e f o u n d a
ti on s I n tal l stru ctu res s u ch as
.

s ilos w i n d pressu re m ay als o b e

,

com e an imp ortant factor as th e ,

foun dation m ust w ithstan d a large

p orti on of th e overtu rn ing th ru st .

D ra inage e ith er n atu ral o r ar

,

t i fi c i a l i s imp ortant as tw ice th e

, MO RTAR
,

l oad w il l b e supporte d o n a given

area o f dry soil that w o u ld b e s u p
p orted wh en the sam e area is w et FO UNDA TI O N
.

Th is m ay b e i ll ustr ate d by th e f a
m il iar con d iti on o f an earth r oad
wh en wet an d wh en d ry The l oad .

o n th e s ilo fou n dation m ight w ith ,

out th ought b e assum ed as m erely F i g 2 M th o d of p o t c t i n g Joi nt b t w e n. . e r e e e

w oo d silo an d an y t yp e f m aso n ry
,
O
the weight o f th e sil o wal ls ! th er e fou dati o n n

i s en ough fri ction betwee n th e

walls an d th e s ilage s o that t h e l oad i s i n creased con s iderably
a n am ou nt hard t o determ i n e h ow ever Th e verti cal comp on ent , .

Of th e force exerted by th e w i n d on th e si de o f th e S il o i s c on s i d
e r a b l e an d at th e fou n dati on i s greatest o n th e s i d e Oppos ite th e
, , ,

o n e from wh ich th e w i n d com es All ow in g for u nu su al s oil c on .

d i t i on s th e fou n dation walls may b e m ad e as h eavy f o r on e t yp e

,

Of silo a s for a noth er In fact i t m ay b e well to d esi gn th e .

,

AN HO TS A EC I I ED
C R BO L
fou
S SP
n dati
F
on Of a w ooden s il o
h ea vyen ough t o bear a m a
s o n ry s ilo SO th at i n case t h e ,

E IN CE ME NT Rw WTH FO R woo den

re ne s
s il o
I is r eplaced by on e
N MAI N w m w m9 9 es a e iz s s,
q W D ACE °
'
on, é s
Of t h e h eavi er t yp e s ilos th e
T l ST E RO OS SP )
!
AT A N T 6 I F e uos RE O s pu cz o
A AT EA T L P L S 30
'
, ,

expen s e o f r em odel ing th e

CO N C E T E R fou nda t i on wi ll n ot b e n e ce s
M I 2 4 I X

sary The fou n dati on sh ou l d

'

N T E
.
O L SS

be exten ded bel ow frost l i ne .

Fo r O h i o th is d ista nce wi ll ,

average about 3 0 i nches b e

low grad e W h ere th e soil i s .

W A
gravelly or lo ose th e frost
SQ T I STE D B R S
,

may pen etrate 4 feet Where .

th e fou ndation wall i s carri ed

3 o r 4 feet b elow grad e th e
F i g 3 $ 1 fou ndati o n f co n c r et e fo r of t
. 1 0 O S
,

o r w t oil co nd i ti o n s ( ma y b adapt e d
.
,

e s
t o an y t yp e f i lo ) o
earthS
Sh
e
oul d b e excavat ed to
form a p it t h e depth of the fou n dation th u s ad d ing gr eatly to th e ,

capac i t y of t h e sil o w ithou t m ate r ially increas i ng th e cost TOO .

grea t a d ep t h i s n ot desi rable as it i nc r eas es th e l abo r of getting ,

ou t the s ilage n ear th e b ott om .

FO U N DATI O N M ATER I AL S

B flTTER ED F C E A Th e m ater ials of pe rm a

n ent n a t u re m ost n early at
h an d are s u i ta ble for s il o
REI N FORCEMENT WI RE M I N G
IT A N foun d ati on s B r ick ston e an d
.

M
5
W H N 9 SN A 9 I NIB Q .
, ,
m 2 STA S { 0 TW STED [ ! on , I
os A D mm c on crete a re m ost comm only
a o 39
,

C£ 6
'

u sed S ome m an u factu rers of .

t il e an d c oncrete bl ock S ilos

2 M X I 14 I

u se th os e ma te ri als f o r fou n
dati ons b ut u su ally p rovi de a ,

footing O f m on ol ith i c c on
crete C oncre te is p ro b ably .

t h e m ost w i d ely u sed footing

an d fou n dati on ma terial a s i t ,

can be h an dle d by anyon e wh o

Fig 4 S i l fou ndati n of co n c r t fo r w ll
o o e e e
drain e d o r ol id I co ndi ti o n ( ma y be w ill foll ow a few S imple d i re c
.
.
,

s SO I s
adapt d to an y t y p of 51 )
e e 1 0
tion s t h at may b e Obta in e d
from any cem en t organ i zati on M oreove r it i s qu i te easy to i n .
,

s t al l rei nforci ng steel an d N w s o T N TH S O T£ I F sn s it I S Ea c C to O L

F N D ATI N ANCHO R s on s S m o oz OU O
'

u
fou n dati on b ol t s in c on N TA D A O NO w m m I S LLC
,

CC OR ‘ TO i us
MAN A G U F U U Rfi R

c rete Wh ere a l ittl e care

.

BE A HEADE R C O U Rfi !
is tak en i n proporti oni ng ,

m ixi ng an d plac ing th e ,

E N FO RCEM NT ONE N 6 “!
c onc re t e becomes p ractical EA CH c n s DE C
R I
a
fi
e Cf
9
K

l yon e s t one an d i s very ,

n early i f n o t qu i t e w ate r
, ,
M ORTA FACE R

p roof .

U nl ess the c on cre t e i s

p ou red in t o a sm oo t h trench 81 A "W U! c m
i t bec om es n ecessary t o p ro
vid e forms The se m ay be .

qu i t e expen s ive o r q u i t e
ch eap accord ing to the
,

m e th od and man ne r O f u s
i ng Typi cal c oncrete fou n
.

da t i on s a re sh own i n Fig .

3 and Fi g 4 V aria t ions

5
. .

m ay be mad e if n ec essary Fig ilo fou ndat io n of

S b ric ! ( ma y
be adap te d t o ty p of
.

.
an y e 8 1 10 )

8
 B r ick or rubble m ay be u sed wi t h good s uccess wh ere they
are easy to obtain an d where perh aps concre t ing m ater ials are
,

S U PPL! ANC HO R BOL O TS TO C NFO RM

TO MAN U FAC T U RER S S PEC I FI CAT I O N S
IF STA E O R M ETA L S ILO I S TO B E
V
E D
.

ER C TE

NO T L E SS PL A ST ER W I TH '
I Z z PO R T A ND
L
C E M EN T TA R
MO R TO wmc u
Zo % H! D R AT ED LI ME HAS
BE E N ADDED .

REI N FO R CE MENT O N E 5S Q U“A R E

:
‘ "

TWI S T ED B AR FO R E A C H 8 O F
HEI G H T

FO O T I N G S TO N E

I — fl
w —
i
Fig . 6 . Fou ndat io n of nat i e fi l d s to n e r u bb l
v e e ma so n r y
( ma y b e adapt d t o an y t yp e f 5 1 )
‘

e o 1 0

n ot availabl e Th e ch i ef advantage Of th ese materials i s that n o

.

form s a re n e cessary Th is i s partially counterbalan ce d by the fact

.

5
th at special i ze d sk illed labor i s n ecessary f o r their rap i d con stru e
t i on Fig
. . Sh ows a typ i cal b ri ck fou n dat i o n wall wh il e Fig 6 , .

C I M LL TR AP

C I NDE RS

EA A ND
CL R RO U FO UNDKTI O N

Fi g . 7 . Dra i na ge fo r 51 and fou ndati o n

1 0

sh ows a rubbl e ston e masonry wall B oth thes e wal ls Sh oul d b e r e

-
.

i nforced as n ote d i n the draw ings Wher e drainage i s n ecessa ry

,
. ,

it may b e provi ded as sh ow n i n F ig 7 . .

WH ! TH E S I L O AND I TS F O U N DAT I O N MU S T B E R E I NF O R C E D

A l iqu i d presses outwardly o n the s i des o f a con ta i ni ng v essel

i n d irect p rop ortion to th e weight of th e l i qu i d an d th e depth O f

9
th e l iqu id a t t he p oint wh ere th e p ressu r e is take n F o r exampl e . ,

wate r we igh s app rox im ately p ou n ds per c ub i c fo ot At a depth .

o f 1 0 fee t t h e pressu re o n th e S i d e O f a ta nk w o ul d be 1 0 x6 2 4
,
or .
,

6 2 4 pou n ds per square foot I f th e p o in t take n i s 2 0 fe et bel ow th e

.

s u rface t h en t he press u re w ill b e 2 0 x6 2 4 o r 1 2 4 8 p ou n ds p e r

,
.
,

squ are foot I f t h e ta nk i s cyl in d ri cal th e p r e s su re w il l b e o u t

. ,

ward an d equ al at any h oriz ontal

sec t i on w i t h a resul t th at it
,

t e n d s to b u rst the ta nk The p res .

su re acts i n th e d irecti on o f th e
arrows sh own i n F ig 8 If w e d i . .

vid e th e c i rcle i n tw o parts w e ,

s e e th at th e forces represen te d by
th e arr ow s acti ng on o n e h al f are
equ al to th e forces acting on th e
othe r h alf Th is w ou l d be tr u e a u v .

way we care t o ru n ou r d ividi n g

d iam ete r Th e r es ult of th ese .

forces is th e forc e te n di ng to break

ma h oop o r th e m aterial o f th e
tank .

O w ing to th e d ifferent natu re o f s ilage as com pared to wa t er ,

i n th at it i s n ot as elasti c an d d oe s n ot p ress o utward ly as strongly

as th e wate r th e o utwar d p ressu re o n a s il o wal l i s taken to be
,

ab out 1 1 p ou n ds per foot O f d epth as c ompare d wi th w ate r at

p ou n ds p er fo ot o f d epth Ne v erth eless the press u re i s con s i derabl e
.
,

an d m u st b e p ro v i ded for .

No w i t h appen s th at mason ry wall s are comparatively weak

f o r res isting th e k i n d Of stress w e fin d i n h oops alth o v e r y strong ,

against crush in g Th i s d efic i en cy m ay b e s uppl ie d w ith ste el h oops

.
,

as s teel is v ery strong wh en u se d i n th i s m a nn er M any fa il u res i n .

early m ason r y tanks b in s an d s il os w e re d u e to th e lack of th es e

, ,

accessory h oops o r rei nforcements W ood s tav e s il os h a d h o ops

.
,

b ut th ese were only consi de red a s h ol d in g t h e stav es togeth er wh en , ,

as a m a tt er of fact th ey als o took care o f th e b u rsting fo r ce s as

,

well .

H oops a re n ow appl ie d to mason ry S il os alth o u su al ly i n th e ,

form of w i res o r rod s in cl osed i n th e wal ls of th e structu re i nstead

of being exposed as i n t h e ca se o f w ood an d con crete sta ve s ilos .

I t i s a fact t h at practically all Silo failure s m ay b e trace d back

t o a lack of u nd ersta ndi ng of th e stres s es i nvolved and th e m a
t e r i a l s employed rath er than to an y inh erent d efect in t h e
,

material .

10
 RO O F

U sers of s il os are n early u n an im ou s i n saying th at th e roof is

d es i rabl e b ut n ot essential I n an i nvestigati on on th i s subj ect in
.
,

wh ic h s om e 20 0 S il o u sers participate d th e foll owin g statements ,

“
were gi v e n : Th e r oof gi v es a fin ish ed app earance t o th e str u e
“
ture . Th e r o of adds to th e l ife o f wooden s ilos m o r e p articularly
!
,
“ !
t h e h om e mad e types
-
T h e r o of a i ds i n pr eventing f r eez ing of
.

“ !
th e si l age i n w i nte r The r oof a dds m aterial ly t o the comfort o f
.

th e p ers on taki ng o u t th e silage Th e two m ost popul ar arguments

.

“
agai nst th e r o of w e r e ( 1 ) th at th e ro of adds to the cost Of th e
,
! “
st r u ctu re ( b ) that th e s il o m ay n ot be fille d t o capacity w ith the
,

r oof i n t h e w ay There i s of co u rs e n o an swer to ( a ) b ut to

.
, , ,

( b ) we may an swer by s ayi n g th at th e r e ar e m any commercial

fol d i ng r oofs wh ich actu ally ad d to th e capa c i ty o f th e s il o The .

gam b rel roof m ay also b e u sed fo r ad d ing capacity A stu dy of .

Fig 9 w ill Sh ow th e rel ati o n of r oof form s to th e h ead room r e

.

HEADM O M

TH D PITC H RO OF
I R -
HALF PI TC H RO O F G AMB REL RO O F

Fig . 9 . S pa ce g a i n e d b y d i ffe r e nt r oof fo rm s

qui re d for tramp ing th e s ilage O n conc r ete an d til e Sil os a m on o

.
,

l it h ic con crete ro of i s s om etim es b u ilt Wh ere a fram e roof is .

u sed du e care sh ou l d b e exerc ise d to secu re th e roof to the s tr u c

,

tu re as at th e h eight of th e r oof th e w i n d h as a clean sweep an d

, ,

occas ional ly attai n s a fai rly h igh v el oci ty an d i s l ikely to w reck

any lo ose con st r u cti on W it h m ason r y s il os b olts si mi la r to fou n
.
,

dati on b olts m ay b e u se d to s ecu r e t h e pl ate .

F or th e p u r pos e O f fil l ing d o r me r wi n dows scuttl e w in dows

, , ,

o r r em o v abl e s ect i on s m u st b e p r o v i ded Wit h a fol d ing roof th is .

,

i s n ot n ecessa r y V e n tilato r to p s a r e s o m etim es a dded Th is i s i m

. .

p o r tant m ai nly wh ere th e Si l o an d i ts ch ute are u s ed as a uxi liary

,

v entil at i on s h aft s i n conn ection w it h t h e sta b l e L ig h tn in g rods .

m ay b e ad ded w ith goo d effect as th e s il o is a p t to b e th e tal lest

,

stru ctu re i n th e group O f fa rm b u ild ings an d h ence s om ewh at m ore

l ikely to b e st r u ck b y a l ig h tn i n g b olt .

11
 DO O R S AND DO O R W A ! S

D o orways for the S il o m ay be c ontin u ou s o r spaced C onti n u .

ou s d oo rways are a great advan ta ge wh en rem o vi ng th e s ilage as ,

th ere i s n o u ph ill p i t ch ing n ecess ary S ome fi rms man ufactu re s il os

.

w i t h a s t aggered d oo r way wh ich i n effect i s a c onti n u ou s d oor

, , ,

way s o fa r as ge tt ing o u t s ilage i s concern ed yet n ot contin u ou s ,

from top to bo ttom wh ich i s th ought by s om e to d etract fro m t h e

,

§K E L E T O H RE I N FO R CE M E NT CO M P LL TE: ’
DO O R W A!
Fig . 10 Doo r w a y i n pa i n g b ri c ! i lo
v S

strength o f th e s il o E very s il o sh oul d b e constr ucted SO th at th e

.

re in forcement about an d acr oss th e d oorways i s fu lly e qu al o r s u

per ior to th e re in forcem en t el sewh ere .

S paced d oorways sh ou l d n ot b e to o fa r apart as t h e l abor O f ,

getting o u t th e si lage i s th ere b y i n crease d an d i n fi ll in g tim e the r e

is m ore d anger from carbon d i oxi d e gas T h is gas i s h ea vi er th an .

ai r an d w ill settle i n th e sil o b el ow th e b ottom of th e l owest Ope n

,

ing I t i s generated at fil l in g time an d espec ially overn ig h t I f

.
, .

d oorways are spaced w i d ely o r d oors a r e l eft closed an d t h e s ilag e

,

set t les th e l owest open ing m ay b e ab o v e th e h ead of a m an wh o

, ,

j umping in m ay be asphyxi ate d i n a sh o r t tim e Th er e i s n o da n ge r

, .

wh ere th e gas c an flo w ou t .

Th e do ors may b e .

Si ngl e o r d oubl e p ly ,

w it h w ate rp roof p a
p e r D ou b l e ply d oo r s
.

Or d oors O f ton gu e
a n d g r oo v e m ate r ial
-

a r e reco mm en ded as
HO R I Z O N TA L SE C T I O H oi
!
DO O R WA! ,

th e d oo r s m u st be a i r
Fi g . 11

12
tight Th ey sh ou l d fit the open ings sn ugly Th e wr iter h as fou n d
. .

that comm on clay m ixed to the cons istency O f p utty m akes an ex

c e l l e n t seal arou n d an d b etween doors C ommercial doors Of ex .

c e l l e n t typ e may b e s ecu red Am on g the best ar e th ose arranged i n

.

sl i des o r u pon h inges Th is featu r e i s n ot absol utely essential b ut

.
,

saves m u ch bother i n stori ng w ith its accompanying breakage an d ,

la b or Th e re inforceme nt ru n n ing across th e doorway may be

.

u til iz ed as a l add er O n e o r two farm ers h ave r ecently i nstalle d

.

v ery ingen iou s el evators f o r getting u p an d down .

C HU T E

The ch ute al ong w ith th e roof can not b e classe d as essential

, , ,

b ut it i s extremely d esi rable The ch u t e i s a b oxl ike inclos ure i n .

front Of th e doors an d exten ds from th e top of the s il o downwar d

’
to a p oi nt j u st a co nven i ent d istan ce ab ove a man s head I t p re .

vents th e s catter ing an d bl owi ng Of th e s ilage wh en th row n o u t ,

an d a i ds i n protecting th e d oor an d preventing freez i ng Th e ch ute .

m ay be u se d a s a h ay ch ute wh en b u ilt between ba rn an d si lo an d

m ay als o b e util ize d as a con ven ient flu e f o r stabl e venti lati on I t .

a dds m u ch t o th e safety Of th e in d ivi dual wh o ascen ds an d descen ds

th e lad de r NO great exp ense n ee d b e i ncu rre d i n its constr u ction
.
,

bu t it i s V ery des irabl e that an occas ional w i n dow b e i nstall ed to

ai d i n l ighting both ch ute an d s il o M any types Of s i lo h ave a b u il t .

i n ch ute M any in expens ive ch utes are constr ucted of sh e et

.

m etal .

PRO T E C T I V E C O AT S FO R S I LO S
’
Farmers B u lleti n 7 4 4 on th e Preservative Tr eatm ent o f Farm
,
“
T i mb ers makes th e follow ing statem ent : A th oro treatment w ith
,

coal tar creos ote w il l make a wo oden s il o m or e r esistant t o d ecay

-

an d l es s s ubj ect to sh rinki ng an d swell ing I t w ill als o make pai nt .

i ng un n ecessary S om e man u factu rers are already d oing th i s

.
,

and i t i s n ow p oss ible to p urch ase a p ress u re tr eate d s il o all ready -

to s e t up O n e p oss ibl e Obj ecti on to th e u se o f creosote d l um

.

be r i n s il os i s that th e S ilage m ight b e contam in ated by creosote

bl eed ing from th e wood I n formati on obtaine d from th e F orest
.

S er v ice h owever i n d icates that th ere i s l ittl e danger o f th is if

, ,

pr op er care i s u se d I n order to prevent contam inati on th e treate d

.
,

wood Sh ou l d b e t h or o l yai r seas one d i n Open p il es after it i s treate d

-

an d befor e i t i s p ut i nto th e sil o O f th e woods i n general u se .

for s il o constru cti on th e p ines are as a class th e m ost eas il y

, , ,

treated ! h eml ock tamarack spru ce an d D ouglas fi r are s omewhat

, ,

m o r e d ifficult W ith p ressu r e treatm ent th e greatest saving can

.

13
u s u al ly be e ffec te d by u s ing th e c h eap er w oo ds as th e differen ce ,

i n d u rabi l ity of th e variou s specie s i s l ess afte r treatm e nt th an b e

fore I t i s questi onabl e if th e tr eatm ent O f su ch d ura b l e species a s
.

!
h eart r e dwood an d h eart cyp ress w oul d p ay .

T reatm e nt othe r th an cre osote f o r w o ode n s il os con s ists i n

pa inting th e exte ri or w ith a goo d l i nseed O i l p ai nt i n th e sam e m a n
n e r as w i t h an y oth e r exteri or w ood su rface Th e i n te ri or m ay .

be pai n te d w ith coal ta r th in n e d w ith gasol in e .

C oncre te an d m ason ry s i l os h ave be en treate d s u ccessfully

w ith a was h of cem ent an d water m ixe d to a creamy con s iste ncy .

Th i s w ash i s b est appl ied wh en th e stru ctu r e i s n ew Ta r t h i n ned .

w it h gas ol i n e or ben zin e h ot ta r o r asph altu m para ffi ne o r wate r

, , ,

glass are oth e r mate rials u sed fo r p rotecti v e c oatings T r eatm en t .

i s n ot always n ec essary .

F R E E Z I NG O F S I LA G E

C orrespon dence w ith s om e 2 0 0 s il o u se rs i n Oh io b roug h t out

th e fact th at r egardl ess of typ e or make of s ilo S ilage w ou l d freeze ,

i n c ol d weath er M any a rgu ments are a dvan ce d i n favor o f th i s or

.

“ !
t hat s il o becau s e it wi l l n ot fre eze I t i s tru e th at c erta i n s il os
.
,

becau se Of do ubl e wal ls o r walls i ncl os in g an ai r sp ace w ill n ot ,

freez e qu i te a s read ily as a th in s in gle wal l S il o Th e rel ative c on

-
.

d u c t i v i tyO f th e m ateri al als o h as som e e ffect o n th e tim e i n w h ich

freez i ng wi ll occu r Freezin g i s n o t SO ser i ou s as frozen s ilage

.
,

m ay be fe d safely if fi rst thawe d I t is tru e th at it w ill d ete r i orate

.

mu ch s oone r th an othe r s ilage bu t it m ay b e fed as soon as th awe d

,

an d th u s avoi d l osse s Th e r oof an d c h ute w i ll d o m u c h to preve n t

.

“
freezi ng A farm er corresp on d ing wit h th e O h i o Farme r sta te s
.

that h e re duced freez ing to a m in im u m by keep in g t h e S ilage i n a

s om ewh at c on i cal sh ap e k eep ing th e s i des l ow e r t h an th e
,

c enter .

TH E S I LO AS A S U PPO R T FO R O T H E R S T R U C T U R E S

When pla nn in g to b u il d or p u rch as e a s il o d u e cons i derati on ,

mu s t be given t o its u s e for p u rposes oth er tha n a sil o Frequ ently .

,

feed or grai n b i ns are su pporte d betwe en th e s il o walls !water ta n ks

m ay be erected u s ing th e s il o as a base o r it m ay becom e th e cen
, ,

t ral su pporting membe r of a r ou n d o r octagon al bar n O b v i ou sly .

,

wh ere such h eavy l oads are th rown o n th e s il o walls th e wall s an d ,

fo und a t i on s m u st be d esi gn ed to ca rry th em I t i s general ly tr u e .

t h a t a mason ry s il o i s be tte r abl e to ta ke s uch load ing a w ood stave ,

s il o ord inar ily being too u nstable C on c r e te til e b ri ck a nd con

.
, , ,

c rete bl ock s il os h ave be en u sed s u ccessfu lly as tank suppo r ts .

14
Tanks h ave b een con str ucte d Of w ood ti le o r concrete Ta n k walls , , .

of ti le o r con crete are s om etimes ru n conti n u ously ab ove th e s ilo

wall s F ig 1 2 shows a ta n k of reinforced con crete desi gn e d to rest
. .

on e ith er a concrete o r a til e s il o U s ually wh ere th e s il o supp or ts .

an el evate d wate r ta n k th e ch ute is constru cted specially SO that

e n W i r e R e i n fo rc in
g
e n ti re ro o f

{ Pi pe ro

O ve r f lo w

'

93
.

No fe Pla c e Ve r I Ic Ic

r o
‘
d s ’
6 ve r
g 5 '
0
’
O r

S a m e a s I n Si lo

duc c d to I t P i p:

SE C TI O N O F TA N K w '
e ,"

{10 w
c u t le t o f \ o v cr

Fi g . 12 . A tan ! O f r i n fo r ced c o ncr et e

e

th e p ip es m ay b e r u n clear o f th e doorway w ith space en ough t o ,

al low of pack i n g to p re v ent freez ing S il o agen ts are n o t always .

i n a p os ition to give rel iable a dvi c e as to th e l oad ing th eir sil o wi ll

carry safely an d it i s th erefor e wel l to wr ite to th e man u facturer
,

directly o r get th e ai d Of a comp etent engi n eer or arch itect b efore

att empting to p ut l oads on th e S il o wall .

1 5
 K I NDS O F SI LO S

W O O DEN SI L O S

Wood has ever been a popu lar b u ild ing m aterial on acc ou nt of
i ts ava ilabil i t y easy w orki ng qu al iti es Its large ta nks .

Fi g
. 13 . Ho m e mad e
- w o d n
o e 8 1 10

n o d oubt led to i ts early u se as a s il o bu il d in g m aterial for th e s il o

-
,

i s essen t i ally a ta nk Wood is u se d i n b oth h ome made an d c om

.
-

m e r c i a l types of s ilos Th e comm ercial t y p e o f si lo o utn u mb e r s th e

.

16
B ulleti n 1 0 0 I owa Agr i cu ltu r a l E xperi ment S ta ti on th e r ela ti v e
, ,

d u r a b il ity of timbe r for s ilos ranks a s follows : 1 R e dwood 2 G y

5
. . .

p ress 3 O regon Fi r 4 Tamarack

. . . Wh ite Pin e 6 Lo n g L ea f
. . . . .

! el l ow Pi ne Native timbe r s u c h as p opla r o a ! m apl e gum e l m

.
, , , , ,

an d ash h as bee n u se d w it h v aryin g s u cc ess i n h om e m ade s ilos

,
-
,

b ut i t i s d ou b tful if any o f t h ese w oul d u n de r ordi n a r y con d iti o n s

, ,

give res ul ts equal to th e c on e b ea r i ng timbers l i ste d abo v e S om e

-
.

h ome m ad e s i los w ith ou t r oofs o r any p reser v ati v e treatm e n t h ave

-

gon e to p i eces s o bad ly i n 2 years as to b e u n se r vicea b l e O thers .

h a v e b ee n con st r u cte d in si d e of b arns an d h a v e give n se r vi c e fo r

2 0 o r m ore years For the m ost p a rt thes e latte r s il os were l i ned
.
,

with d u r abl e b oard ing wh i le th e fram es or h oops were m ade of

,

ch eape r n ative lum b er .

I t i s doubtful econ omy to bu il d a s il o w it h i n an oth e r stru ctu re ,

for it am ou n ts to p ayi ng fo r th e spac e tw i ce I t w oul d b e m ore .

econ omi cal i n t h e l o n g r u n to u se d u r a b l e m ater ial s pai nt o r tr eat ,

it w it h so m e good pr ese r vati v e a n d p ro v i d e a r oof for p rote cti on

,
.

O th e r tha n d ecay w h i ch ca n b e l esse n e d by p rope r ca re t h e

, ,

two gr eatest enemi es o f t h e w o o d s il o a re fir e an d w in d Agai nst .

fi re t h ere i s b ut l ittl e p rotection ot h e r than l ig h tn ing ro ds Aga i n st .

w i nd guy w i r es or an chors s h oul d b e p ro v i ded I t i s n ecessary al s o

, .

w ith m ost comme rci al w ooden s ilos t o ti gh te n th e h oops i n d ry

weathe r or whe n th e s ilo stan ds empty s o t h at it w ill n ot collaps e ,
.

We are all fam ili ar w ith what h app en s t o a w oo den p ail w h e n it

d ri es o u t Wh en th e s il o i s agai n fille d an d th e s taves be com e
.

swelled w it h th e s i lage j u ice i t i s necessary to adj u st th e h oops by

,

l oosen ing s o th at th e swell ing w il l ,

n ot cau se th e sta ves to b u ckl e .

T reatm ent of th e stav es w il l ten d .

to p revent both sh ri nkage an d

swell ing a s th e p ores of th e wo od ,

w ill b e n early fille d wi th th e p re

s e r v a t i ve Woo den h oo p s i l os are .

n ot s o troubl es ome as th e sta ves ,

a re gen eral ly n a il ed to th e h o op s
an d form a rathe r s ubsta n ti al
stru ctu r e .

Two typ es o f w ood co nstructe d -

s il os are sh own i n Figs 1 3 an d 1 4 . .

Thes e a re essentia l ly h om e m ad e -

s ilo s A comm ercia l typ e of

.

5
wood s ta v e s ilo i s ill u st r ated in
Fi g 1 6
. W ood s ta e silo
. v
Fi g 1

18
 C omm e r cia l w o o d s i l os a r e m ade e ith er i n o n e p i ece or tw o -

p i ece s tav es u s u al l y O n e p i ece staves a r e p r eferabl e i n som e r e

.
-

s p e c t s a s t h e r e a r e fewe r j o ints
, H ow e v e r th e h eight o f th e s ilo i s
.
,

l imite d b y t h e lengt h of th e sta v e an d therefore for tal l s ilos tw o , , ,

p iece s tav es ar e u s ed T h e tw o p i eces are j oi n e d w ith a b u tt j oi nt

.
,

wh i c h s h ou l d b e to n gu e d an d gr o o v e d or secu r ed w ith a steel spl ine .

Th i s i s a p oi nt of w eakn ess u n less carefully made Th ese j oints .

s h oul d b e p ainted or ot h e r wi s e t r eate d before b ein g s e t togeth er .

T h e tongu es a n d grooves m ay b e paint ed if d esired .

Care s h oul d b e tak en to s e e th at t h e anch or eyes are welded as ,

t h ey are occasio n ally u n d er con si d era b l e strai n O n e farm er reports .

th at i t cost $87 to r eer ect h i s stav e s il o b ecau s e the eye b olt -

an ch ors stra ighten ed o u t f r om t h e effects o f h igh w i n d pressu re

o n th e s il o .

Fo r furth er i n form ati on o n h om e m ad e sil o constru ction -

,

write t o th e U n ite d S tates D epa r tm ent of Agricultu re D ivi sion o f ,

Publication s Wash ington D C

5
5
, o r to you r Congres sm an for
, . .
, ,

’ “
Farm ers B ull eti n 8 entitl ed Hom emad e S ilos
, Th es e bull e
, .
!

tins m ay b e obtain ed fre e of cost .

C O NC R ETE SI L OS
C on crete is u s ed f or sil o constru cti on in s everal d ifferent ways .

M onol ith i c con crete a s i ts n am e in dicat es i s a conti n u ou s stru e

, ,

tu re practical ly o n e ston e ( S e e i ll ustration o n cover ) C on crete

, . .

bl ocks are u s ed w ith good s u ccess i n s il o constr ucti on wh il e c o n ,

c r ete staves ar e a l ater d e v el opment o f th e c o n crete bl ock An othe r .

u s e of con crete i s i n con n ecti on wit h m etal l ath or expan de d m etal .

Th e m etal i s s e t u p an d th en pl astered w ith s everal coats of con

crete m ortar u nti l th e desi re d th ickn e ss i s obtai ned .

C on crete s il os h ave b een s u ccessful ly constr u cted by farmers

as well as contra ctors A go o d u n d erstan d ing of cement concrete
.
,

an d good m ateri als are all th at ar e n ecessary to secu re a good

stru ctu re As h as b een explai ned a concrete sil o m u st b e wel l r e
.
,

i nforced I n a dd iti on th e con cr ete m u st b e well m ixed an d wel l

.
,

spade d i nto th e forms G ood con cr ete cann ot b e mad e w ith out
.

u sing a goodly p rop ortion of cem ent A prop orti on of o n e part .

Portlan d ceme nt parts cl ean san d an d 3 to 4 parts good qu al

, ,

i tycru sh e d r ock o r p ebbl es w ill b e fou n d to b e a sati sfactory m ix

tu r e
.

5
5
Th e forms f o r su ch s i los m ay b e p u rch ased rented or m ay be , ,

’
b u ilt Farm ers B ulleti n 8
. contain s di rection s f o r th e c on s t r u c
t ion of forms I n orde r to cut dow n exp ense it is desirabl e fo r
.
,

thr ee o r fou r farmers to go togeth e r i n m ak ing o r re nting fo rm s ,

as th e cost w ill the n b e d i st r ib ute d o v e r se v e r al s i los .

19
 S om e si los h ave b ee n m ade s o carel essly e ithe r i n th e p ropor ,

t i o n i n g o r placi ng o f the co n crete t h at th ey a re p orou s an d are ,

l ikely t o cau se large l osses of s ilage Th is cond ition h as bee n rem .

e d i e d by wash in g th e i nter i o r o f t h e s il o w ith a creamy cement

wash e i t h er on e o r tw o coats H ot ta r o r ta r th i nn ed w ith gas ol i ne

,
.

h ave als o be en u sed w i t h s u ccess I n any cas e th e wal l m ust be .

clean o r th e wash o r c oati n g wi ll n o t stick o r p en etrate The c on .

c rete s il o i n the m ai n i s very su ccess ful th er e b eing b ut l ittl e trou ,

bl e d u e to sp oil ed s ilage Pe rm an en ce i s a featu re worthy of con

.

s id erati on i n any stru ctu re an d especial ly i n a s il o E v i d en ce .

,

based largely on th eory an d a few l ab ora tory tests m ad e w ith ou t

c on s id erati on of th e practi cal s i de of s ilage m ak in g i s a dvan ce d to ,

sh ow that s ilage aci d attacks concrete s ilos an d th e m ortar j o i n ts

of o t h e r m as on ry s i los O bservati on of actu al s il os u n de r actual
.

work i ng con d ition s sh ow that afte r m any years t h e re , ,

Fi g . 16 . S ec t io na l ie w
v of c o ncre t e 8 1 10 o n e xpand e d m e ta l l a t h
t l e if any acti on ten d in g to crumbl e th e m ason ry wh ere a reas on
, ,

ably good m ortar o r c on crete was u sed I n any event i f s uch a c .

,

t i on sh oul d tak e p lac e th e wall s m ay b e trea te d a s ou t li ned ab ove

fo r porosi ty Th e w r ite r h as observe d o n e silo for a pe ri o d of 1 8
.

yea rs wh ich stil l has original trowel m arks on t h e i n te ri or s u rfac e

a f t e r c ontin u ou s u se A n eighborin g s il o b u ilt of stone an d l in e d
.

w ith cem en t m orta r h as been i n u s e f o r n ear l y 3 0 years an d i s

s t ill being u sed th e walls bei ng i n excellen t c on d iti on
, .

C onc re t e bl ocks an d concrete s ta ves a r e a m an u factu re d prod

u c t d esigned to cu t th e c os t of forms Th e c onc rete bl ock si lo i s .

a s uccess wh ere t h e bl ocks a re p roperly con structe d an d cu red I n .

s ome types th e re in forcement i s b u ilt i nto th e blocks and ad d iti onal

rein forc em en t i n th e form o f h oops an d d owel pi n s i s place d be
tween th e bl ocks I n oth e r types h oop re i n forcem ent i s lai d i n the
.

m orta r j oin t betwee n t ie rs of bl ocks T he cem ent sta ve i s a mo d i .

20
fi c at i on o f t h e b lock s ilo .

Th e h o op s a re a pp l ied t o
t h e o ut s ide , a s i n t h e
woo d stav e s il o U s u ally
.

th e cem e n t stav es a r e th i n
n e r than th e b l ocks w h ic h ,

p r oba b ly accou nts fo r th e

placi n g of r e inforcem ent
on the exte r i or wh e r e i t i s
exp ose d to th e weat h e r I t .

i s d oubtfu l wh et h e r th e
h oop s i mp ro v e t h e ap p ea r
an ce of th e si lo Th es e si l os
.

sh o u l d b e e r ecte d b y c o m
petent w orkme n E s p ec ial .

ca r e shou l d b e ta ke n to s ee
t ha t al l j oi nts a r e ca r ef u lly
fil led w it h a g ood q u a l ity of
m o r ta r .

E x p ande d m eta l a n d co n Fi g 1 7 Co ncr e te blo c ! si l o

. .

crete s ilos are co n str u cted

b y e r ecti n g s tu ddi n g to w h i c h t h e expa n ded m etal i s f a s
te n ed t h e m eta l hav i n g b ee n b ent to th e pr o p er radiu s
, A .

h ea vy coat of cement mo r tar i s

th en appl ied to bot h s i des of th e
m etal Th e temp orary stu ddin g
.

i s t h en r emo v e d from t h e i nsid e ,

a n d a fi n is h coat of plast e r ap p li ed .

T h e wall i s from 3 to 4 i nch es i n

th ickn ess reinforced qu it e t h o r ol y
,

by th e m etal wh ich i s very well ,

distribu ted over th e entire s t r u c

ture Alth o form s ar e n ot r equ i r ed
.

fo r th is typ e of silo c o n sid era bl e ,

m ore stagin g i s necessary M o r e .

h ighly skille d lab o r is n ecessa r y

f o r th e appl i cati on o f th e plaster
than woul d b e em p l oye d i n t h e
constru ction of a m onolith i c s il o ,

b ut is balan ce d by th e u se of less
material i n th e forms A sectio n al .

view of t h is s il o i s shown i n
Fi 18 Cem e n t s ta e s i l o
Fig 1 6 . .

g . . v

21
 B R I CK AND TI LE S I LO S

B ri ck i s one of ou r ol dest an d most rel iabl e b u ild ing m ate

ri als P ractically fi re proof an d w eather res ista nt b ri ck h as been
.
-
,

sati sfactory in al l m an n er of stru ctu res S ome of th e earl iest s il os

.

w ere cons t ru cte d of b r ick

an d are stil l giving excel
l ent se rvice Th e h a r d .

b u rne d or vit r i fie d br i ck
a r e b est f o r s il o con str u e
ti on as t h ey a r e l ess p oro us
,

Or absorb e n t th an co m m on
b r i ck A s omewh at h ig h .

d eg r ee of ski ll i s n ecessa r y
to h an dl e th em s u cce ssfu l
ly i n b u il di ng c ircul ar
wal ls an d th e r e is some dif
fi c u l tyi n p l ac i n g re i n f o r ce
m ent H owe v er h ea vy w i r e .
,

m ay be u s ed be tw ee n
c ou rses w ith good r es ults .

G oo d m o r ta r sh oul d b e
u sed as t h e j oints wi ll ,

oth erwi se p ro v e w a ste ful

of si lage B r ick s il os ha v e .

been b u il t i n both s i ngle

an d d oubl e cou r s e w all
th ickn esses Th e latte r i s .

r ecomm en de d as b e i n g sa f e r
Fig 1 9 V i tr i fi ed t ile silo
. .

an d b ette r .

H oll ow til e are m an ufactu red by m u c h th e same p rocess as

b rick Th ey h ave th e ad ded advan ta ge of a dea d a i r space a n a i d
. ,

i n i nsul ati on Fo r a give n b ulk they ar e m uc h l igh te r t h an br ick

.
,

an d h enc e e asie r to h an dle They l ay u p m uch faster th an br i ck

.
,

o n e til e repl ac ing f r om fou r to ei ght b rick d epen d i ng u pon th e ,

s i ze S om e tile ar e mad e wi th a rad i u s to fit a d es ire d d iam ete r of

.

s il o an d m ake a v ery fi n e w al l As w ith any type of m as on r y s il o

.
,

re in forcem ent an d good m or ta r j oin ts are essential s .

METAL Sl L O S

M eta l s il os are a c omparatively r ece n t d evelopm ent G a l .

v a n i ze d i ro n an d steel were first u sed b ut c on d iti ons brought abou t

,

shor t ly after th e openi ng of th e great wa r i n 1 9 1 4 made gal v a ni zing

materials v e r y costly an d s te el a n d i ron s ilos were th en
,

22
en amel ed or p ainted so as to
keep th e cost w ithi n s u itabl e
l im its M eta l s ilos are v ery
.

good keep ers of silage an d

seem to b e giving excellent
satisfaction S ilage freezes to
.

a con s i derabl e depth du ring

severe weath er as th e th i n
,

sh eet of metal h as b ut l ittl e

i nsu lating effect agai nst col d .

The l ife of the m etal s ilo has

not yet bee n determ i ned as ,

s u ch si los h ave n ot been i n

gen eral us e lon g en ough to
warrant c oncl us ions . S om e
metal s i los ar e i n good sh ape
after several seasons of u se .

There seems t o b e a deci ded

ten den cy towar d c orros io n
about t h e do o r ways wh er e
th e s ilage i s t h rown agai ns t Fig 2 0 M ta l silo
. . e

t h e walls at feeding tim e B oil .

e r pai n t appli ed to th e i n ter ior walls at these p oi nts wi ll h elp to pr e

vent r u st fr om form ing wh ile th e s il o is empty M etal si l o m a n u f a c
.

t u r e r s sh oul d b e c o n su lte d a s to th e paint they r ecommen d for th eir

produ ct .

Working drawings of th e silos describe d in thi s bulletin may

b e obtain ed by writing to th e D epartment of Agricultural E ngine er
ing o f t h e O h io S tate U ni v ersity Columbu s , .

Arran g e m e n t of t w s i los w i t h o n e c h u te
o
eco n o m y of co n s tr uc ti o n d of l ab o r
an
i n fee d i n g

23
 TH E CO ST O F A SI LO
I n c ompari ng c osts of v ario u s m akes o f s il os t h e only fa i r ,

c omparison i s based o n t h e cost p e r to n of cap a c ity of t h e co m

p l e t e d si lo Th
.
e capacity o f any s il o s h ou l d b e co m pa r e d wi t h a
sta n dard tab le o f s il o ca p acitie s s o th at t h e r esul ts wil l b e equi ta

5
bl e Th e c ost pe r year is al s o imp orta nt T h i s i s ba se d o n i n te r est
.
.

o n th e i nves tm ent and th e l ife o f t h e s il o I f a s il o costs $2 0 a n d

.

lasts bu t 4 years th e an n u al ch arge f o r dep r eci a ti o n i s n ot

c ou n ti n g p oss ible repai rs i n th e m eantim e I f o n t h e ot h e r h an d a
5
.
, ,

5
s il o cos ts $ 0 0 an d lasts 2 0 years t h e a n n u a l dep r eciati o n c h a r ge
,

is b u t $2 p l u s r e p airs w h i c h a r e l ikely to b e extr em ely s m al l

, ,
.

Th e foll ow ing i tem s m u st b e ta k en i n to acc o u n t i n fi n di n g t h e fir st

c ost o f a sil o
1 . E xca v ati on . Man an d h d r s e l a b o r .

2 . Fo un dati on . Man an d h ors e l a b o r . M a t e r i als

.

3 . S il o p r ope r . Ma n an d h orse l a bo r . M ate r i al s .

5
4 . R oof . M an an d h ors e l a b o r . M a te r ial s .

. Ch u te . Man an d h ors e la b o r . M a teri als .

6 . Al l stagi ng .

7 . Fre ight o r oth e r t r an sp orta ti on .

L umbe r o b ta i ned from the fa rm s h oul d b e ch a r ged at cu rr ent

prices Man l ab or an d h orse lab or s h oul d b e ch a r ge d at c u rr e n t
.

p r ices Pr ices on m ater ial s m ay b e obta i n e d f r o m age n ts c o n

.
,

5 5
tractors o r d eal ers A record of s il os in the S ta te of O h i o b u i lt pr e
.

vi ou s to 1 9 1 sh ows a fi rst cost of f r o m 7 cents to p e r to n

o f capacity Th e a v e rage fo r al l m an ufactu re d o r p ate n te d t y p e s
.

i s v ery cl ose to pe r to n of capaci ty I t m u st b e s a i d i n all.

fa ir n ess t h at th e m an u factu r ed o r pate nted typ es gen e r ally r e p re

sent t h e greate st uti l ity .

24