FEL for sand spreading

[k0ua]

It is not going to hurt the L3200.

 

[dave1949]

I don't use sand because it does freeze, instead I use what is called "stone dust",
I do mix a couple of bags of salt in with it, just to draw the moisture out.
I'll even throw some wood stove ashes in the mix, works great on ice,
right now it's in a 4X8 box with lid but this summer I'll be making some type of shelter just for this.
Can also use it to fill in the ruts on our gravel road, it's about $200 for a 5 ton load.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

Two years ago we bought a piece of property that abuts ours and it has a sand esker on it that has easy access. They tell me that years ago the town sand trucks used to load there, and there was some salt mixed in with the sand. The saltiness is about all gone now, there is just one small area remaining where not much grows.

So, I have sand but need to figure out the best and easiest way to use it. If I could handle it with the FEL--haul it home (it's about 1/4 mile from our driveway) and pile it up in the summer and sprinkle it out in winter--that would be the easiest. I just wondered how hard it would freeze if in an enclosed shed with a door. I know sand likes to stay damp. Sounds like adding salt is what I have to do to avoid it turning into a frozen lump.

I have used stone dust for patio paver projects, that's good stuff too but I would have to buy it.

 

[GolfAddict]

I store sand in 5 gallon buckets in an enclosed and unheated shed for winter spreading. It does not freeze up in lumps or anything. It is very dry to start with though...

 

[dave1949]

I store sand in 5 gallon buckets in an enclosed and unheated shed for winter spreading. It does not freeze up in lumps or anything. It is very dry to start with though...

I've been using sand bags--like are used for floods--for the past 5-6 years. I had a load of "reject sand" and regular sand leftover from building that I worked off of. Reject sand has some dirt dust in it, enough to get a little muddy when wet. Like you I store the bags inside, but that building stays above freezing.

That works and I could order another bunch of bags and fill them with the sand. The filled bags do eat up some floor space, plus they get heavier every year somehow. :laughing: I would like to get the sand out of that building. I never know how bags many a winter will use. I've had a couple winters where I used none. Last winter it was around 50 bags and I was hoping I would not run out.

 

[skyhook]

I hear ya Dave, I don't know what it is about sand, but it just seems to soak up the humidity.
I suppose if you got it "dry" and kept it dry, "sheltered", you could be alright, I don't know.
I know, stone, as in stone dust will not retain water.
Try it out and if you find the secret to it, let us know, sand is much cheaper.

 

[RDrancher]

It is not going to hurt the L3200.

Once again, I agree. 3000 hrs of commercial work on my tractor. I've hurt it doing a lot of things it was never designed for, but this isn't one of them.

 

[dave1949]

I hear ya Dave, I don't know what it is about sand, but it just seems to soak up the humidity.
I suppose if you got it "dry" and kept it dry, "sheltered", you could be alright, I don't know.
I know, stone, as in stone dust will not retain water.
Try it out and if you find the secret to it, let us know, sand is much cheaper.

I've been working on shed designs for a next summer project. I'm thinking of a combined wood and sand shed, those two things ought to co-exist okay. The sand area is going to need a 10' ceiling to get any depth in the sand pile dumping from the FEL bucket, and the interior walls will need to built like a horse stall for stiffness and retaining the sand.

I don't think salt bothers PT lumber. I know it would eat concrete so I think a vapor barrier like 6 mil plastic on the ground would be the floor for the sand pile.

 

[skyhook]

I've been working on shed designs for a next summer project. I'm thinking of a combined wood and sand shed, those two things ought to co-exist okay. The sand area is going to need a 10' ceiling to get any depth in the sand pile dumping from the FEL bucket, and the interior walls will need to built like a horse stall for stiffness and retaining the sand.

I don't think salt bothers PT lumber. I know it would eat concrete so I think a vapor barrier like 6 mil plastic on the ground would be the floor for the sand pile.

You know, that sounds like a great idea, I just may use it.....
I also have a wood shed, it's not really high enough but having them "both" together sounds good.
I'll have to think on modifying the existing one to get that 10 feet and widening it for gravel.
I don't know about the plastic flooring, going in and out with the loader, I'm thinking it may not last too long. I know in my tempo "garage" I have a crushed stone floor, on top of that, I made a floor out of 2X4's, cross piece's set evenly embedded in the stone and then the other 2X4"s screwed in on those.

 

[dave1949]

You know, that sounds like a great idea, I just may use it.....
I also have a wood shed, it's not really high enough but having them "both" together sounds good.
I'll have to think on modifying the existing one to get that 10 feet and widening it for gravel.
I don't know about the plastic flooring, going in and out with the loader, I'm thinking it may not last too long. I know in my tempo "garage" I have a crushed stone floor, on top of that, I made a floor out of 2X4's, cross piece's set evenly embedded in the stone and then the other 2X4"s screwed in on those.

The idea of the vapor barrier was to prevent the sand from drawing moisture up out of the ground. I'm not real certain how much of that would happen. But, moisture constantly evaporating off the top of the pile could have a decent amount of wick effect. I think if the plastic was under 4-5 inches of stone or sand, and I don't crank or spin the front wheels too much, it will probably stay put. If not, well I haven't lost much.

I've wanted a wood shed for years and it seems like every summer it gets pushed down the priority list. A 20x20x10H shed with the gable peak running east-west, 8x20 "room" on the south side for wood, 12x20 room on the north side with a door at each end for a pile of sand and room to store a log splitter. That's what I'm thinking at this point.

I have a collection of flat rocks to make a floor for the wood shed side. I shouldn't need to pour concrete if I use pole barn construction.

The only weak spot I have thought of is mice might like to build nests in the splitter engine housing.

 

[ksluy]

When making my sons drive way we had a load of base brought in and the driver dumped it all in one spot instead of spreading it. I just used the bucket to drag it back a little at a time when it was done it looked great, and the driving back and forth set it in nicely.