Can you move a silo?

[Still Learning]

I have a weird (perhaps dumb) question...

Can you move an old silo?

There are lots of farms around here being torn down for big subdivisions. I know 2 smaller sized silos right now that will be torn down soon. I was thinking about trying to see if ,instead of tearing down the silo, we could move it (dismantle it??) to our land and new house.

I just love the old silos -- and really hate to see them (along with the big beautiful barns) being torn down for cruddy new overly populated development.

Any thoughts on this? Is it a crazy idea?

Thanks!
~Ashley

[catahoula]

Depends on the silo, metal ones can be taken apart from the bottom using a series of jacks to lower them while disassembling them. Wooden cribbed silos and cast concrete silos might be too heavy to move.

[Jalopy]

As stated before it depends on the type. An old wood stave silo is possible to disassemble ,move and reassemble.Dirty work and may not be useable after the work. The concrete stave silos are usually plasterd on the inside so it would probably be pretty hard to take apart and move and each stave would probably weigh 50-75 pounds and you can't just drop them from the top or they will break. The big blue "harvestore silos" are sometimes possible to move by a construction crew by laying them sideways on a semi and moving then setting back up but it is an expensive operation and pretty specialized crews. As for metal grain bins with the corrugated sheet metal sides they can be jacked up remove a layer of steel let down and remove another layer until done. then reverse the process after moving. If a grain bin is moved use new bolts when reassemblying if you are to fill with grain so it can withstand the pressure. Sometimes on small diameter grain bins that are not to tall they can be braced and laid on their sides and transported a small distance.(10-15 miles).Also for any of these structures don't forget to make a real strudy foundation, preferably poured cement. Good luck

[Still Learning]

Sorry, I should have added that these 2 are both metal. And atleast at this point, I don't think we'd use them... but that could always change.

Thank you both for your replies. I really appreciate it.

~Ashley

[Red Dog Farms]

Amish in SW Wisconsin move and resuse the concrete stave silos, they build up a pile of saw dust next to the silo to drop the staves onto to stop them from breaking. They do lose a few to breaking. Hard and back breaking work.

[Jan in CO]

I love those silos, too! At least the tall ones with conical tops. I've seen a couple ads here for free ones, to be moved, but couldn't interest my hubby in doing the necessary work! Those were shorter, fat, metal ones, and I'd thought about making them into small animal shelters, with doors and windows cut out. I thought we could move them in half circles, but he told me they would be WAY too heavy to move, blah blah blah. Sigh. Jan in CO

[Jennifer L.]

Originally Posted by Red Dog Farms

Amish in SW Wisconsin move and resuse the concrete stave silos, they build up a pile of saw dust next to the silo to drop the staves onto to stop them from breaking. They do lose a few to breaking. Hard and back breaking work.

They also can get killed at it. An Amish farmer was killed near here a year or two ago when a piece of concrete dropped by his son bounced and got him in the head.

Jennifer

[Nomad]

After working for a rigging company I know that anything can be moved. Of course the cost may be prohibitive. Not sure about a do it yourself job. I guess it would depend on how big the silos are and how they come apart.


Nomad

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

A friend of mine salvages stave silos. There is a special curved scaffold that is used just for silos. Around here, people drop the staves, 80-120 lbs each, onto a pile of sand. The Mennonites in my area are always looking to buy silos. The best staves are the solid core...lesser demand for the air core.

RF

[rambler]

You said metal silo. So I won't talk about wood or concrete or block versions...

Now, is this a silo - used to store fermenting corn & hay like pickles in a jar? Are they blue?

Or are these grain bins, which are ribbed corrigated glavanised metal & store bulk grain?

They can be moved, smaller ones some companies have rigging that straps on the side, tilts & lowers then, and hauls them to the new location. Harder to do that if over 18 feet or so wide.

In good condition, the blue silos or the galvinised grain bins can be reused. Of late there is less & less use/need for the blue silos, too small. The grain bins smaller ones can become hopper bottoms, bigger ones xan just have a new floor poured.

--->Paul

[Walt K. in SW PA]

Saw something in Farm Show magazine a couple months ago about an outfit that dismantled and moved silos, they were in Mich. or Wisconsin I believe. It only took them a couple days at most, and if I remember right it was a father/son operation.

[Ross]

I was offered a 60 foot blue silo for $5000 once. The foundation was pretty prohibitive, 15 k or so