Bringing Down The Silo

[Norm]

I need to drop the silo next to our old barn I'm tearing down. It's about 40' tall and made of clay tiles.



I have no desire to wear this thing and want to be at least 50' away when it comes down. Short of buying a case of 00 buckshot or getting UB to come down and push it over I'm stumped on how to do it. I thought about a cable to cut through it with but have none heavy enough and don't want to have to buy it just for this.

Any suggestions?

FROM JEFF:
Prologue: Google videos managed to lose the video clips we had uploaded for this. Norm was able to find another one to plug in here so you can see the silo adventure. I've posted it here in the first post, but by all means, don't let this stop you from reading the entire topic.

[EZ]

See if you can buy a $50 dollar car and lock the steering and set a brick on the gas peddle.
Be careful, Norm.
EZ

[scsmith42]

Norm, thinking out loud here...

If you can knock out a circle of blocks around the base, it will collapse onto it self.

What I'm thinking of is to knock out several blocks around the base, ( for discussion sake let's say every 4'), run a 40' chain through the holes and attach it to a 4' piece of an old railroad rail.

Repeat this all around the base.

Attach these individually to a large tractor (and I know that Iowa has some biggies), and yank the railroad rail through the blocks - knocking out a 4' section.  Repeat all the way around until enough are gone to bring it down.

I think that I'd move around a bit so that I was pulling secctions out all around the base until it finally collapsed, rather than starting in one point and taking out adjacent sections.

Obviously, attach all of the rails and chains before you start yanking on them!  With 40' of chain or cable, you should be far enough away from the silo so that no blocks rain down on your tractor (not a good thing...).

I'm sure that others will have better ideas - this is just a starting point.

Just thought of another one - knock three or four holes in the base, and run some long i-beams through them (kinda the same way that you'd pin a name tag to your shirt) so that the i-beam is routed just behind the wall in-between the two holes.  Attach chains to one end of the i-beam and yank on it - it should tear out the blocks in between.

Good luck.

Scott

[Engineer]

Do you know someone with a large (30 ton+) hydraulic excavator?  You can be quite a ways away and scratch at it until it comes down.  That's about the only relatively safe way to do it.  Or, you could find someone with a crane and a large wrecking ball and have at it.   The cable is the budget way, but if you don't have the cable, do you know someone you could borrow one from?  A local crane and rigging outfit or earthmoving company?   A big log chain might work too.

Personally, if the clay tiles could be broken with a well-placed gunshot, I'd invite the neighbors over for target practice and blow that sucker off the ground.   Then whatever ain't broken could be taken away by the shooters for future target practice.

One other option.  If you're anywhere near Amish communities, I have HEARD    that there are groups that will come in and disassemble a concrete or block silo and haul it away for re-use.  Doesn't cost you anything, just the silo.  Maybe worth checking around.

That's a nice looking silo, a lot better than the rotting towers of Pisa we have around here.  Why you gotta drop it?    

Hey one more thought.   You could sell that critter to a swimming pool or landscaping company for the disassembly, and they could make a bunch of curved retaining walls or pools with it.

[mikeandike]

Think I would try to attach a wire rope around it about 3/4 up and see if it would pull over.
Or maybe some of the top would pull off and be at a less formitable height . At least
that would give an idea of the wall strength.

[Fla._Deadheader]

  Norm, there's a video I watched on TV. Guy used a D6 and it fell on him 

  Make a wedge shaped opening. The one on TV had knockouts 2/3rds of the way around, it the silo just sat down on it's foundation. 
Make it fall one way. Oh yeah, the one on TV had a tree growing inside, holding it from leaning. This is a job I would LOVE to help on 

[Gary_C]

That silo appears to be in very good shape for as old as it is. Those silos cannot be disassembled, only the stave silos with the bands around are taken apart.

The way most people take those silos down is to tip them to one side by knocking blocks out with a maul or even a dozer around in a semi circle. You will have to get at least half way around before it will tip over and then you will be working on the side and can escape away from the fall. However if the blocks in the lower rings are severely deteriorated, it can come straight down. You could also knock out half the ring and then take slugs and shoot the remainder out until it falls.

If you do not want to do it yourself, I think there are people that you can hire to do it. Check with a local farm equipment dealer  that sells feeding equipment, they may know of someone.

[sawguy21]

How thick are the walls? Would a cutoff saw disc reach through? Whatever you do, please be safe. We would much rather talk to you than about you.

[twoodward15]

 
Get a big cable, Wrap it around the house an to a dozer or that JD.  Go to the other side and start knocking out some of the blocks/tiles, like every few or every other one.  When you get a bunch knocked out, go back and get on that deere.  You did give yourself 50 feet of extra cable, didn't you?  Start pulling on it.  Just put it in low low and let it idle away.  It should come down away from you.

[Jeff]

Norm, this reminds me of somebody else thats very special to the forum. I remember seeing a silo video on T.V. as well where it came down on the tractor. I do know they used to have parties around here to take them down and it did involve firearms and lots of ammo.

Norm, I hope da wife doesn’t get lost in dat DanG snow storm! By the way dats the biggest outhouse I ever did see just off da end of ur barn in dat pitcher. I see da wind musta blowed roof clean off that crapper?

[sawguy21]

Jeff, I was thinking I had seen that silo before. I about rolled off the chair when I read Mark's post.

[Gary_C]

If all the other ideas don't interest you, a couple boxes of 12 gauge slugs will probably bring it down.

Don't forget to take pictures.   

There is a big slug gun that is used (or at least was used) in cement plants to knock built up rings out of those big rotary kilns while they were operating. Sat on a tripod on the floor and they would open a small door at the lower end and shoot away until the ring was gone. Seems like it was a four or six gauge slug.  That made a big bang.   

[Bro. Noble]

There was another thread awhile back about lookout towers.  Some of us were wishing we had an observation tower,  perhaps with a little cabin on top.  DanG it, Norm,  you've got the makings of one already and are wanting to destroy it.  Maybe what we should be doing is helping you come up with ideas of how to best use that historical old treasure that you have.  Picture sitting on a platform up there with a cold drink or a cup of coffee,  a tape player with your favorite music,  and a good varmit rifle

[Jeff]

Tape player? 

[Patty]

Good idea Noble, but up here in Iowa we are still using LP's.    I'll have norm haul up the record player for some good tunes!

A bachelor guy rented the place for 20 or so years before we bought the farm, he told us that he and his buddy would crawl up there and drink beer in the evenins.       Quite a view I suppose, but I think I would be too preoccupied with hanging on, to much enjoy the sights. 

[beenthere]

Norm
Remember the tree falling technique as has been mentioned several times. With whatever means, take the notch out on the side you want it to fall.  The disasters that I've seen were where someone ended up breaking the support tiles on the side they didn't want it to fall towards. Most were using cables to try to cut through the tile, only the side that broke first, made the notch that caused it to fall in the wrong direction.  One I witnessed was a charge of dynamite like on the 'barn' side of yours, with the thought that the blast would raise that side of the silo and tip it over. The blast just blew out the 'notch' on the barn side, and the silo fell onto the barn. Not according to the plan.  
I'd use dynamite to get the 'notch' on the side you want it to fall, just like falling a tree. Next, if dynamite isn't available to you, I'd use the cable through to a timber on the inside to pull out tile to make the notch.
Looking forward to the pictures  

[Norm]

Hey some great ideas guys thanks but I must say EZ's has a certain appeal to it. Right away Patty hid the keys to her big SUV from me....Kiljoy.



While I was waiting for your help I went out and took the old barn down. First I ripped the one side out I wanted it to fall towards.



Then I go on the other side and pushed it that way getting it to lean.



Finally after getting it to lean the way I wanted I took out the front supports and it pretty much just rested down on it's haunches.



Now it's just a matter of ripping it up to throw in the hole I dug. I'll burn it in there but not until we have at least two days of north winds forcast. Today it's in the 90's and I don't mind not being out of the heat. Link has AC and fm radio so I'm not roughing it. Patty commented that it looked like I was having fun.

Darn right I am, I can't believe people actually get paid to do this.

[Patty]

And some folks think living on the farm is boring.        Never a dull moment here when Norm is on a demolition kick. I have marked the house as "out of bounds" , but I am afraid to leave the place in fear that I'll come home and it will be in a pile and Norm will be in his Link grinning from ear to ear. 

[Corley5]

Whatever method you decide on will be fun    I like the idea of explosives.  What about filling up the "notch tiles" with black powder  12 gauge slugs would be fun too but the sore shoulder wouldn't be

[RichlandSawyer]

Norm and Patty, Dont take it down!!!! It looks like it is pretty sound, I would use some sawmilled lumber and build stairs a deck on top and a nice railing. That would be a great place to watch the sunset over the rolling iowa hills.