CONSTRUCTION OF SILOS
Year: 1884

page_text: I THOMAS POTTER of Alresford in the County of Hants Clerk of Works do
hereby declare the nature of my Invention for THE CONSTRUCTION OF SILOS to be
as follows:-
The object of my invention is the construction of portable silos which may be
readily taken to pieces and removed elsewhere, but shall be made with materials
of a durable and permanent character.
In the carrying out of my invention I employ a series of rolled or malleable iron
standards of the following section--and commonly known as girder iron.
I slot or cut out a portion of the web of each standard at the bottom thereof,
and the flanges thus form tenons which are fixed into oak, or other wood, or
concrete cill pieces at regular distances apart, by means of mortices. made therein,
and secured by means of bolts or driving pins. At the angles of the silo I form
corner posts or standards with two channel or angle irons rivetted together, or
made in one piece, and secured into the cills as previously described.
At the top of each iron standard I attach an iron bracket,-by means of a wedge
key, or bolt and nut,-projecting outwards. These brackets are arranged for and
intended to support a timber beam or plate the full length and width of the
building, and secured at the angles by iron bands. The timber plates connect the
iron standards firmly together at top, and serve also to carry the roof, which may
be of any ordinary description. In the grooves of the girder iron and angle or
channel iron I drop in from the top, after the silo frame is complete, concrete slabs,
which complete the walls of the silo, and the latter can thus be readily taken to
pieces and re erected elsewhere if required.
When the ground on which the silo is to be erected is of a soft or yielding
character and unable to support the weight of concrete slabs, or from other reasons
the latter are unapplicable I fix wood bearers, or boards between the iron standards
by means of the grooves, and attach to the two former, galvanized iron, or sheet
zinc, to protect the wood from decay and from contact with the ensilage.

page_text: I THOMAS POTTER of Alresford in the County of Hants Clerk of Works do
hereby declare the nature of my Invention for THE CONSTRUCTION OF SILOS and
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
The object of my invention is the construction of portable silos which may be
readily taken to pieces and removed elsewhere but shall be made with materials of
a durable and permanent character.
In the carrying out of my invention I employ a series of rolled or malleable iron
standards of the following section I, and commonly known as girder iron. I slot
or cut out a portion of the web of each standard at the bottom thereof, and the
flanges thus form tenons which are fixed into oak, or other wood, or concrete or
other artificial or natural stone cill pieces, at regular distances apart, by means of
mortices made therein, and secured by means of bolts or driving pins, or by any of
At the angles
the ordinary methods practised in fixing iron into concrete or stone.
of the silos I form corner posts or standards with two channel or angle irons
rivetted together, or made in one piece and secured into the cills as previously
described.
At the top of each iron standard I attach an iron bracket by means of a wedge,
key, or bolt and nut, projecting outwards. These brackets are arranged for and
intended to support a timber beam or plate the full length and width of the
building, and secured at the angles by iron bands. The timber plates serve to
connect the iron standards firmly together at 'top, and serve also to carry the roof,
which may be of any ordinary description. In the grooves of the girder iron and of
the angle or channel iron I drop in from the top after the silo frame is complete,
concrete slabs, which complete the walls of the silo, and the latter can thus be
readily taken to pieces and re-erected elsewhere if required.
:
When the ground on which the silo is to be erected is of a soft or yielding
character, and unable to support the weight of concrete slabs or from other reasons
the latter are inapplicable, I fix wood bearers or boards between the iron standards
by means of the grooves, and attach to the two former, galvanized iron either plain
or corrugated, or sheet zinc to protect the wood from decay and from contact with
the ensilage.
Fig. 1 is a plan of a silo to a quarter inch scale, the standards A being let into
concrete cill pieces B. It being impracticable to move these cill pieces in long
lengths, they are cast or made in short lengths, and fixed at regular intervals
apart as previously described. These standards may be fixed at bottom with a
bolt or pin, passing through each cill and also through the flanges of the standards,
the web of latter being cut away for the purpose, or otherwise fixed in any of the
ways more commonly known and practised viz.-by running hot lead, sulphur, or

page_text: cement into the mortices made to receive the standards, and after the latter are
fixed in position.
Fig. 2 is a similar plan and arrangement to a quarter inch scale except that the
cills C are of wood and secured together at the angles or mitres by means of angle
iron cleats D. or bolts and nuts, and the standards are fixed at bottom by means of
bolts or pins F. Fig 5. E being the wood cill section.
Fig 3 is an elevation of one side of a silo, showing the standards A. A fixed into
the concrete or stone cill pieces B. B to keep the former rigid at bottom, and the
wood plate H fixed as previously described to keep the silo frame rigid at top.
G. G. Figs 1-2-3-5-7-and 8, are the concrete slabs.
Fig 4 is a vertical section half full size of a portion of a H or girder iron
standard, and shows the way in which the timber plate H is supported by the iron
brackets J, which latter pass through mortices made in the webs and flanges of the
standards and are held rigid by means of the bevilled or counter sunk heads, and
driving wedges.
The wood plate H forms the ordinary wall plate for any usual description of
roof. By the disposition of the brackets and wood plates, it will be seen that the
silo frame or skeleton can be put together complete, and the concrete slabs G. G
dropped in from the top between the grooves of the standards. When however
the silo is intended to be of a more permanent character I then simplyfy the
arrangement on top by fixing an angle or channel iron bar to the standards, to
keep the said standards rigid, and provide a ready means of fixing the roof plates
thereto as shown by Fig 5 which is a part vertical section of the H, or girder iron
standard, one half full size.
Fig 5 also shows the method of attaching the standards to wood cills E, when
the latter are used in place of concrete or stone.
Fig 6 is a full size section of the H or girder iron standard and a portion of the
concrete slabs, showing how the latter are held in position without nails, pins, or
hooks, and inade water tight by luting the crevices with clay or cement.
Figs 7 and 8 show different systems of forming the angles or corners of the silos
by means of angle and channel iron rivetted together, or bolted, or fixed singly and
secured at top to the plates, in a similar way to the H standards.
Fig 9, is an elevation of a portion of the H standard Fig. 4.
The edges of the concrete slabs may be formed similar to any of the various
sections adopted in an ordinary way for making water tight joints, viz V joints,―
groove and tongue,-hollow and round &c but in practice the square edge joint
with a strip of felt rubber, or canvass is preferable.
Although I have shown sections to scale of the various portions of my invention
I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself absolutely to those
dimensions, but claim a right to vary such dimensions generally, according to the
size of the silo, or the strength required.
I do not claim any right to the manufacture or use of concrete slabs-except so
far as their use in conjunction with any portion of my invention as previously
described is concerned.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what
I claim is
1st The use of wrought or rolled iron standards of the section known as H or
girder iron, fixed at certain distances apart for the purpose of forming grooves, in
which cement, or wood panels, or concrete slabs, of any ordinary kind are
introduced.
2nd The use of angle or channel irons arranged so as to form grooves at right
angles to each other to receive the said slabs, and also to form the angles or corners
of the silo.

page_text: 3rd The use of wood, concrete, or stone cill pieces to which, or into which the
said standards are fixed at bottom in the way described.
4. The use of concrete, cement, or wood or iron lined wood panels, made so as
to slide into the grooves provided for the purpose in the manner described, in
conjunction with certain other parts of my invention.
THOMAS POTTER.