Oley Area Silo Topples
(Continued from Page A 1)
p.m. my younger son Chris heard
the staves breaking. We had time
to move the blower and a wagon
before the silo went over,” Elmer
Eyrich explained. “We moved the
family way back in case it
exploded. Then we watched it go.
Chris even got pictures of it,” he
added.
The Fickes silo, erected in
1976, was about 55 feet full of
com silage. “It had about 4 feet in
it from last year. We’ve been fill
ing for about two weeks and we
had about 45 acres of com silage
in it Normally if that silo has 70
feet in it that’s enough for the
year, Eyrich said.
No one is sure what caused the
accident. “Some of the lower
staves were -showing signs of
deterioration from the acid, so we
had them checked two years ago
by a reputable dealer but they
weren’t overly concerned about it
at that time,” Eyrich stated.
At this point the Eyrich family
is working to salvage as much as
they can from their loss. The silo,
complete with unloader, fell into a
harvested com field. Mangled
steel hopps were strewn in the area
amid spilled sillage. Concrete, in
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tlons of the collasped silo. They fell fortunate that the
80-foot structure fell Into a harvested com field instead of
their feeding area.
every size from slabs to bits, was
scattered in the wreckage. “I’m
grateful that it fell this way. Our
feed room is right next to it, and it
could have gone that way,” added
Eyrich.
By 4:30 that afternoon the fami
ly was contemplating what to do
with the mess. Chris and his older
brother Ty had the tractor and
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front-end loader out hauling away
some of the larger metal hoops
and the top of the silo. The bottom
of the silo was still intact even
though it was laying on its side,
silage packed within the concrete
and metal hoops measured more
than four times the height of a
grown man, “A new silo isn’t in
the financial picture. We hope to
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, October 7,1989-A27
cover it with black plastic. Then
we’ll load it in the chuck wagon
and feed it that way. I’m not sure
just yet how we’ll get all the con
crete out of it but I know it will
take a lot of work,” Eyrich said.
Eyrich’s wife, Cheryl, summed
up the situation neatly. “Elmer
says he’s not happy that it hap
pened, but he is going to try not to
lose a lot of sleep over it”
According to Penn State ag
engineering professor Harvey
Manbeck, who has a strong inter
est in-ag structures, there are a
number of reasons that silos can
fall down. Many of them are
related to the silo’s construction
and design. “Silos can fall for sev
eral reasons. Sometimes they are
blown over in extreme weather. In
the Berks County area, silos
should be constructed to withstand
70- to 80-mph winds even when
they are empty. A full silo can
withstand more wind because of
its increased mass,” he said.
“Another problem is the disin
tegration of hoops. Also, some
silos used for high-moisture
materials may have an insufficient
number of restraining hoops,”
Manbeck explained.
“Seepage creates problems as
well. If the inside of the silo wall
is not impervious to silage juices,
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the seepage can deteriorate a con
crete stave. I know many farmers
will disagree with me, but these
silos shouldn’t seep. Sometimes
poor - quality concrete or a
cracked liner can cause problems.
‘Tanners should be sure they
have an adequate foundation to
put their silo on. Silos have lots of
mass and no matter how you try,
you can’t fill them perfectly even
ly. Pick a well-drained site for
your silo. If it has to be on a wet
site your requirements for your
foundation are much more strin
gent. Take special care in these
situations.”
Manbeck urged farmers to use
good practices with their silos.
“Always try to fill from as near the
center as possible. Watch out for
even distribution of the load.”
Farmers also should frequently
inspect their silo including the
concrete, the liner and the steel
reinforcements. Normally a farm
er can do his own visual inspec
tion, but if the silo is five or 10
years old, and the farmer has
doubts a professional should be
called.
“If you change the material you
are putting in your silo, check the
specifications to see if it can carry
the load. If it was designed for
grass silage or haylage, it may not
be able to handle shelled ccm,”
said Manbeck. Finally pul your
material in at a moisture content
so that seepage doesn’t occur. I
know many farmers won’t agree
but silos aren’t designed to seep.”
Manbeck stressed that silo col
lapses have to be kept in perspec
tive. “For the number of silos we
have out there, there are very few
failures.”