Build me a silage clamp.

[Insane Ubolt]

Have you the space to put a large asphalt slab, no walls, just concrete edging?

A clamp with no walls takes alot more sheeting up than one with walls.

 

[D14]

Hello
Looking for recommendations for silage clamp construction contractors to correct ssafo wales regulations.

Anyone had one build recently for anything between 500 and1000 tons.

I have seen a quote for a 3375 m3 clamp for less than 80k

Remarkable!

Any others out there ARK ag .. need not apply thanks as i have received your quote.

My neighbour had stupid quotes for a clamp for his AD plant so he just put a concrete pad down that drains to one point and now doesn’t use sides like they do the states and Canada. Just one massive heap. At the highest point I genuinely think it’s got to be 20m up. He doesn’t sheet it either but instead blows barley all over it which germinates and protects it. He has grass on one side and maize on the other.

 

[grass man]

What makes a great silage loader driver on YouTube is a great demonstration of a wall less silo. They have a drain at the edge of the silo to collect effluent and then run the cover over the drain to guide the clean rain water away. Problem with walls in silos is all ways the waste at the shoulders because of not being compacted properly and then water getting in at this low point no matter how good the intentions are with gradient etc. Also I'd imagine it's easy to retighten a cover in this slab type of silo

 

[Will Wilson]

I wish there was more independent UK research on this topic. We have tried Rothamsted to get some funding but no luck. Happy to share the independent research including costing, waste etc on clamp vs flat pad vs cover vs no cover that we have found. The economics are enormous on an AD plant buying £1m of silage and losing 15% DM over a 20 year- lifespan.

I really want to get everyone storing silage better- at the moment bad silage is costing the industry a fortune (unless you sell alternatives to good silage of course;-))

 

[Headless chicken]

No, just a lip you can drive over, just to contain runoff. I think it may be more economic than walls, you’re making a mushroom shaped clamp. Seems to work ok for the guy farming Withybush aerodrome. I think @Headless chicken knows a farm where they do similar.

indeed and it’s worked well enough to accommodate an increase from circa 250 cows for which it was designed for I believe to nearing on 1000.

 

[Headless chicken]

@Foregoneconclusion we are having to do our silage clamps this year. 3m panel walls around one large pad. Intention to add dividing walls when costs allow.

 

[tommytractor]

Hello
Looking for recommendations for silage clamp construction contractors to correct ssafo wales regulations.

Anyone had one build recently for anything between 500 and1000 tons.

I have seen a quote for a 3375 m3 clamp for less than 80k

Remarkable!

Any others out there ARK ag .. need not apply thanks as i have received your quote.

Earth bank pit with 1m concrete panel wall, asphalt floor. 2500t

 

[Foregoneconclusion]

Earth bank pit with 1m concrete panel wall, asphalt floor. 2500t View attachment 945559

Nice, very nice...

Thankyou for sharing that with us.

Is that fully compliant with regs?

How high is that wall?

What depth of asphalt?

And being extra nosey what was approx cost?

 

[Lofty1984]

Earth bank pit with 1m concrete panel wall, asphalt floor. 2500t View attachment 945559

What are the benefits of the asphalt over concrete?

 

[tommytractor]

Nice, very nice...

Thankyou for sharing that with us.

Is that fully compliant with regs?

How high is that wall?

What depth of asphalt?

And being extra nosey what was approx cost?

Yes, it is compliant with scottish regs anyway.
The wall would be around 4m high in total.
The asphalt is in two layers, 60mm binder course and 40mm top smooth layer, so 100mm thick. Slopes to front.
ACO drain at front leading to 36000 litre underground effluent tank.
Total cost including tank was around £55000, that was 6 years ago though.
Works really well, like the earth walls as I can store tyres and gravel bags on the sides at the top.
Put a 8 x 50 sheet around walls before filling, makes a great seal with top sheets.

 

[tommytractor]

What are the benefits of the asphalt over concrete?

We have a pit that was built in 1988 with asphalt floor and another with concrete floor late 70's, the asphalt floor one is still in super condition where as the concrete one is a bit rough now. Although maybe you can get an additive to add to concrete now to protect against effluent, i'm not sure.

 

[Lofty1984]

We have a pit that was built in 1988 with asphalt floor and another with concrete floor late 70's, the asphalt floor one is still in super condition where as the concrete one is a bit rough now. Although maybe you can get an additive to add to concrete now to protect against effluent, i'm not sure.

I always thought asphalt wouldn’t stand up to the effluent like concrete would or is it a special type of asphalt ?

 

[tommytractor]

Not too sure, its called HRA 35/14 surface course, whatever that means! I would say the asphalt would be more vulnerable to a bent buckrake tine etc but certainly seems to be less affected by the silage effluent. Try and be quite fussy and make high DM silage here, hardly ever have effluent. I'm sure someday we won't be so lucky though!

 

[mar]

I always thought asphalt wouldn’t stand up to the effluent like concrete would or is it a special type of asphalt ?

It's the concrete that doesn't stand up to the effluent, it's just ordinary asphalt, the only weakness with asphalt would be a bent tine on a grab would dig into the asphalt

 

[mar]

I always thought asphalt wouldn’t stand up to the effluent like concrete would or is it a special type of asphalt ?

I just remembered something this morning, spilling oil, diesel or petrol on asphalt would have the same effect as effluent would have on concrete. That's why the area around fuel pumps in petrol stations are done with concrete