Reference for Design Load for Hay Storage 4

[Kay1W1]

I need a reference for design live load for hay storage. I realize there are differences depending on type of hay and amount of compression when baling. I am looking for a range. Thanks, John aka Kay1W1

 

[kslee1000]

Give local farmers a call. They would know.

 

[jimzpe]

Baled Hay or Straw - 8 to 14 pcf
(source: Hall, Carl W. 1980. Drying and Storage of Agricultural Crops. AVI Publishing Co. Inc.)

 

[msquared48]

An 80# bale is roughly 18" square X 3' long. That equates to somewhere around 20 psf per stacked bale. That's what I have used in the past with no problems.

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Like M^2 said - it can get pretty heavy pretty fast

 

[civilperson]

A baler can be cranked up to produce heavier bales. I would use one hundred pound bales as an average, (80-120)Twenty bales is considered a ton when sold without a scale. Rolled big bales are denser but when stacked are the same overall weight due to gaps between bales.

 

[roncity]

Remember that the max live load may be a fork lift moving bales

 

[neffers]

Table C4-1 (pg. 274) of ASCE 7-05 lists "Storage, hay or grain = 300 psf" with a footnote to use the weight of actual equipment or stored material when greater. Not sure this is helpful or not...just thought I would share it.

 

[PEinc]

AISC's 9th Edition Manual of Steel Construction lists straw and hay bales at 20 PCF.

 

[SkiisAndBikes]

National Farm Building Code of Canada lists the bulk density of many materials including:

Hay (air dried)
- baled 160 kg/cu.m (10 pounds per cubic foot)
- chopped 160 kg/cu.m (10 pounds per cubic foot)
- long 80 kg/cu.m (5 pounds per cubic foot)
- wafered 325 kg/cu.m (20 pounds per cubic foot)

I'm not sure what they mean by long or wafered hay.

Also, there is a statement in the NFB that floor loading for stored products shall not be less than 5.0 kPa (105 psf) and for areas of the floor used by farm machinery traffic shall not be less than 7.0 kPa (145 psf). Also design for case of 23 kN (5167 lbs) point loads per wheel for farm equipment. There is another clause that the design live load shall be increased by 50% for areas where equipment is loaded or unloaded.