Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1898-01-15
BUILDING A |

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II. j.. Waters, dean and director {
the agricultural college in %eonneetio
with the University of Missouri, fun
nishes the following directions fo
building u silo. which is becoming n
important adjunct to every model farr
nowadays:
/. 1t SHOULD be as nearly alright a
possible.
.. The inside surface should be a
smooth as possible, to allow the Stag
to settle easily and uniformly, withou
leaving air pockets under the projec
tons, Us would be the case with rough
walls.
8. 1t should be of such form as TO OK
pose the smallest possible wall surface
in proportion to its capacity. Silagt
rarely rots except in the corners ano
along the walls, A square pit is
preferable to a rectangular one
for example, q rectangular silo l6x4s
and ~ feet deep, has 2,sl6 square
feet of wall surface exposed to the
silage. A square pit 32y32 and - feet
deep, holds o|ne-third more silage and
exposes the same wall area. round OF
cylindrical form is better than either
of the above, inasmuch as the wall sur
face is still further reduced in proper
ton to its storage capacity, and all
corners are dispensed with.
4, Its greatest dimension should be
its depth. Silage rarely keeps well i'll
a pit less than 20 feet deep. unless it is
heavily weighted with stones or some
such material. Artificial weighing is
expensive,
D. Under no circumstances put more
than 5or6feetof the founder ground.
If it is built all above ground except
the foundation 1t will answer quite as
well and be cheaper. The disadyan-
tage of having to raise the silage out
of a deep pit by hand as it is required
for feeding is so great us to render an
underground silo a nuisance. The fod-
der may be easily and cheaply elevat-
ed to any height, as the silo is filled by
means of Il carrier attached to the cut
ter.
TO BUILD A SQUARE slLo.
The foundation wall should be Of
stone laid in good lime mortar, below
freezing, and not less than Is inches
thick, The sills should be 2xl0 planis
thoroughly spiked together, and Sc
curely anchored 10 the foundation, and
laid in mortar. The studding should
be of 2Xl2, placed not over IL inches
apart. BY having the sills Z inches
narrower than the studding, an air
space on the outside is left for %ventila-
ton, which will greatly retard the
rotting of the walls and sills. The
plates rest on top of the sutdding, and
are of the same material and dimen-
slons as the stills.
The lining should be of two layers Of
good boards, white pine preferred, un-
less too expensive; in that case, use yell
low pine, The boards should be of uni
form thickness, all joints broken, and
h layer of tarred paper placed between
the Innings. Paint both layers of boards
ION one side only with hot coal tar,
boiled enough to be Sticky after cool
ng. Place the tarred sides face to face,
with the tarred paper between. The
eilo need not be sided, if built inside Of
IL warm barn. If outdoors or in Al
open barn, box with any suitable mate.
rial, with a layer of tarred paper next
to the studding, The space between
The lining and the siding should not be
filled, and openings should be left at
the top and bottom to allow a frea
movement of air between these walls
The doors for empting the siloshould
be made at convenient distances, no.
less than 3 feet wide by 4 feet high
When filling the silo, these openings
should be closed by inserting two
Ibicknesses of boards, cut to fit closely,
with tarred paper between and tarred
paper over the ends.
ROUND sILos.
In round silos, for the 2X10 stills and
plates and 2xl2 studding used ia the
square silo may be substituted 2x4
aills, plates and studding, and the
anchor bolts may be dispensed with
entirely. In this form of silo the sills,
plates and studding have no work to
10 beyond supporting the structure.
The lining acts as u hoop and sustains
all the outward pressure of the silage,
and prevents the sills from bullying or
spreading.
In II round silo the sill is a single
thickness of 2x4 stuff 3 or 4 feet long.
cut on the arc of the silo circle, bedded
in mortar, and the sections toe-nailed
together. The plate is made in the
same name and nailed to the top of
the studding. The studding should be
2x4 stuff, placed one foot apart and
toe-nailed to the sill. If the silo is
to be 80 feet deep, instead of paying a
high price for extra long timbers, use
two l6-foot studs Tapped and nailed
together. The lining is made of
good fencing boards, split in two,
making them one-half inch thick by
6 inches wide, tarred, and laid with
tarred faces together, with tarred pa
per between the same, as in the case
of the square silo. Special pains should
be taken to break all joints in both d.
rections. A line OF doors or openings
from bottom to top, one above the 9th.
er, 8 feet wide and 4 feet high, at in
tervals of about 4 feet, should be pro-
vided. These may be closed with pieces
of boards made to fit, or with swinp
doors. The studding on each side of
the doors should be doubled. The roof
may be conical or gabled, as preferred.
A gable roof is much easier to con-
struct, and very much cheaper than u
conical one.
sIL.o AT II COLLEGE FARM.
Two years ago we constructed a us.
ton silo of this form on the Missouri
agricultural college farm, and used
sheet steel for siding, painted inside
and out. This was cheaper in cost Of
material and in the labor of putting il
on than the drop siding, and really
cheaper than weather boarding or
clapboards. The ordinary siding used
for u round silo should be what il
known as German cut or drop siding.
The ordinary weathcr-board or clap
board will not answer, since it can not
be bent into a true circle without split
ting badly.