1987 - Volume #11, Issue #5, Page #11

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Slippery Plastic

Slippery Plastic WAGONS/TRAILERS Accessories 11-5-11 Slippery plastic linings inside gravity boxes, manure spreaders, barn cleaners and gutters, mangers, and any other high-wear chutes decreases wear, reduces maintenance and smooths out performance, according to Miles Meng and Richard Cox, plastic experts who use a variety of plastic materials to make farming easier. Cox told FARM SHOW that new high-wear plastic sheets let you cover up rusting or rotted out steel or wood equipment, or deterioration in concrete bunkers or gutters. "If you've got a rusted grain cart, grain is going to stick to the sides. We can completely cover the inside of the box with slippery plastic so nothing will ever stick. In manure spreaders we cover the sides and bottom with 1/8 in. to 3/16-in. plastic sheets to eliminate apron stretching and breaking due to freeze-ups, saving on expensive repairs and down time, and making the spreader function more smoothly thanks to the slipperiness of the plastic. When installed in barn cleaner chutes and gutters, users have reported 90% savings on chain replacement and stretching due to fewer freeze-ups and smoother operation. It also decreases the electrical cost of operation. Covering the insides of feedbunks with plastic, says Cox, causes cows to eat more because the plastic doesn't hurt their tongues like rough concrete, and because feed doesn't sour so quickly. "It's a great way to restore deteriorated mangers," he notes. Other uses include covering chopper boxes, the inside of auger troughs, elevator bottoms and sides, feed carts and mixers, silo chutes, moldboard plows, and snowplow blades. Each application requires a different thickness or hardness of plastic. For example, the plastic used to cover bottoms on moldboard plows is 100 times stronger than that used inside a grain cart. Cox and Meng rework most equipment on a custom basis in their shop in Osseo, Wis., or onthefarm. Most of the plasdcs can be cut with utility knives or skill saws and can be bent to fitcornersby applying heat. It costs about $200 to reline a gravity box. Plastic is also available in large sheets for do-it-yourself installation. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Osseo Plastic and Supply, Inc., 408 Caroline Street, Box 314, Osseo, Wis. 54758 (ph 715 597-2210 or 597-2558).