# Hay elevators any one still use them?



## The saint (Oct 4, 2015)

I am working on restoring an old hay elevator I got for free it is the type with the chain up the center. For my purpose I would like to use a gas power plant. Any ideas on horse power and rpm it is 20 foot long. I was thinking I could use a wheel line mover engine.


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

I still use 3 elevators to get hay to various places. 2 are PTO driven and I have a short (14' or so) one that is electric.
The electric one is driven by a 1 hoss-pressure 1750 RPM 120V electric motor. The reduction is via sprockets, chains, and jack-shafts. I speculate that the speed of each elevator is @ 20 FPM. The PTO ones are driven at slowest idle at which the tractor will run. (At or about 230 PTO RPMs)
The "general rule of thumb" is 2:1 for gas engine v electric motor HP requirement, therefore a 2hp gasoline engine would be the minimum requirement to replace a 1hp electric motor.

The RPM question depends. If you are replacing an electric motor (or where an electric motor was designed to work) typical electric motors are 1750 RPMs where Gasoline engines are generally governed at 3600 RPMs, and therefore would need a drive of @ ½ the size of the electric motor to maintain same smeed.
If starting from scratch, gearing would be a fairly-simple math exercise.

If your drive chain has links of 1-1/2 inches and the drive sprocket has 9 teeth, there would be 13 ½ inches of travel per revolution of the drive sprocket. To get 20 FPM, you would need the driving sprocket to spin at or about 17 ¾ RPM. Gear reduction (pulleys and belts or chains and sprockets) of the input would be needed and the ratio is easily calculable.

The HP requirement would also depend on how fast you like to work or how much help you have on hand. Dad loads the elevator from the bottom and I stack in the mow...therefore, only 1 bale on the elevator at any given time (we're both old, we work slow and "We" time it so that I am moving all the time). If you have a bunch of young bucks that want to get the hay into the barn before going out sparking with their girlfriends :wub:, they may have the incentive to work faster and find the need to have 2 or 3 bales on the elevator at any given time .

73, Mark


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## Grateful11 (Apr 5, 2009)

Yep. We just put a new motor from Harbor Freight on it last year. $95 for the engine, runs like a champ, last year and this year.


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## Wethay (Jul 17, 2015)

Just a thought. If you're a bit slow on your chain speed you can always put a bale on before the first one is off. If your running fast you have less time to get it stopped if the bales are backing up on the other end. When we have the elevator on a steeper angle it is more likely to stall the chain, of course we are running an electric motor with a length of cord between it and the plug in.


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## FCF (Apr 23, 2010)

Use a 24 foot elevator for haying. The paddles are 5-6 feet apart and we can run it with a bale on each paddle if there is enough help in the mow. It is powered with a 1/2 horse electric 1725 RPM motor, has a 2 1/2 inch pulley on the motor driving a 16 inch pulley then a slight reduction roller chain drive before reaching the elevator chain. You mentioned that it has a chain up the center, is this the one and only chain moving the load? Had an old Case elevator that was that way went first starting farming, IIRC it was also power with a 1/2 horse electric motor.


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## The saint (Oct 4, 2015)

Thanks for the input guys I will they to get some pics of the drive system


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## Rodney R (Jun 11, 2008)

I'm betting that is what is called a skeleton conveyor. We have several and they have a 3/4 or 1 horse motor, and they can move as many bales as you load at one shot. I assume it's going to be stationary with that gas motor on it? I would guess that would add quite a bit of weight.

Rodney


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## endrow (Dec 15, 2011)

Grateful11 said:


> Yep. We just put a new motor from Harbor Freight on it last year. $95 for the engine, runs like a champ, last year and this year.


 There was a time we picked about 400 acres of corn annually I see your picker shelled a lot which is not uncommon. We always separated the shelled corn at the elevator and did not let it go on the pile it caused heating and mold.


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## Grateful11 (Apr 5, 2009)

They only pick 6 to 8 acres here now, it's only used for grinding with Oats and Pellet feed for the cows. The shelled corn isn't problem now that the plastic pallets and plywood are down and not drawing moisture out of the concrete of the old ground silo with a cover. This was taken last year and an unusual amount of corn did come off the cob last year. Wife and son just bought 6200 lbs. of ear corn from a neighbor and he said his was coming off the cob more than he likes this year too. Son just shovels into bushel baskets and dumps it into the Grinder Mixer.


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## glasswrongsize (Sep 15, 2015)

I went to an auction today and saw an elevator which was fitted with an electric motor. It was a 1 hp motor which had a short 10/3 cord. The motor drive pulley was ½ belt 3" diameter. The driven pulley was 8" and was attached where the pto would have driven. The elevator was the type which was commonly used for hay and/or ear corn as pictured in the above post.
73, Mark


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## Farmineer95 (Aug 11, 2014)

I run an 18 ft single chain hay elevator. Think it has a 1/2hp motor. Kinda old tho. Need to "kick start" it. Can get 3 bales and thats about it before it wants to take a break. For the few loads of small bales I make it's good enough. Big bales are nicer in that the elevator resembles a skidsteer.


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## The saint (Oct 4, 2015)

Yeah I would love a skid but sort of hard to justify with only 6 acres and just a few cows to feed.


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## Farmineer95 (Aug 11, 2014)

Was just thinking about the one we use. I think the chain on backwards. If you look at the forks or claws on the chain make sure the "ramp" part of the claw faces direction on travel. Mine will catch strings if you're not there to catch it.

Don't get me wrong I like small squares but can't do it all that way. I keep telling myself: some people pay money to work out.

Crap, now I have something else to do.


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## rjmoses (Apr 4, 2010)

I have a 24' and a 32'. Depending on what I am doing, I will have the two working together to save having to carry the bales across the barn floor. E.g., I use the 32' to get to the hay mow, drop the bales on to the 24' to allow the help to just pick them up and stack them as they go. Typically, two guys on the ground and two in the hay mow can move about 8-10 bales/minute and hardly break a sweat.

Ralph


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## The saint (Oct 4, 2015)

It is very nice to get a work out for free and I can do any all day long where I run out of motivation when working out at the gym.


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