Spreader Painting wasteoil on manure spreaders

[Ozarker]

You may have done it that way, but I don't believe you had to. I really can't imagine any trailer manufacturer that would install the wood before the welding and priming was completed. That would create two serious problems for them. All the metal covered by wood would be unprimered and there would be a real fire hazard in the shop from sparks landing on the wood. Kind of like welding in a shop with a wood floor.

Of course that isn't to say that there might not actually be a manufacturer who is that silly.

 

[Hillbilly]

Ozark,
I have a 1993 model International 16' trailer manufactured in Ohio and that is how it is made.I am in the same situation the floor is rotting and a metal strap is going to have to be cut and rewelded after the new planking is installed.

 

[Ozarker]

Listen up guys. Your boards are not in there tight against both ends. They can't be....no matter how it looks at first glance. Wood and metal expand and contract at different rates and a tight board would bow up in the middle and pop the deck screws or push the ends of the trailer out into a bow depending on how thick the metal is.

Did you see the picture of the roof posted a couple of weeks ago? Joints pushed up because no allowance for expansion.

Your boards are not tight in there..............period. There is room to remove all the deck screws, force the board forward and pry it out at the rear. You may have to clean all the dirt and debris that has accumulated between the end of the board and the metal before you can move it. You may even have to cut the old boards out because you can't clean between the end of the board enough to move it. But you DO NOT have to cut the metal and reweld it.

When you put the new boards in, cut them 1/2" to 3/4' longer (depending on the width of the front and back lips) than the distance from lip to lip. Put one end in under the lip at the front and push it all the way forward. Set the other end down then move the board back so that 1/4 inch of the board is under both the front and back lip. Reinstall the deck screws and you are finished.

 

[Hillbilly]

You listen up Ozark...
I just said they had straps welded across the end and they would have to be cut to get them out....you can't be right about everything...I know what I have,have you seen my trailer?I know how the thing is made.....anyway why do I have to prove anything to you...Geeezh....

 

[bgott]

My small lowboy doesn't use screws, the line on screws around here is that they give rot one more place to start. The angle iron on the ends is the only thing holding the boards in and it looks like it would be easier to cut the angle iron out of the way, change the boards and weld it back. I just walked outside and looked at my big lowboy...it is built the same way. Welded at the ends and a two inch weld in the middle. Five minutes with a grinder and the boards are out. Two minutes welding and they're secured. You could probably bend the boards to get the in but it looks like it would be a PITA. You could cut them short to get them in but I'd sure hate to hit a big pothole and watch 20' lumber fly out in traffic behind me.

 

[Ozarker]

You don't have to prove anything to me. And I really don't care if you cut your trailer up. It is your trailer and won't cost me a dime.

I am just telling folks that they don't have to cut their trailers up. Manufacturers don't weld their wood floors into place. The wood is replaceable, one of the advantages of wood, so there is a way to replace it without cutting the trailer up, even if it isn't obvious when you look at it.

Those of you who really think that a manufacturer would open himself up to the liability of producing something for use on the highway that some amateur has to cut and reweld on the frame for a simple repair can continue to think that way.

And I don't care how many strips they have welded across the end. You don't have to cut the strips to get the old wood out. If you can't slide it one way enough to pop it out, you can cut the old wood and take it out in two pieces. Then you can cut the new pieces to slip in. Why exactly is that such a difficult thing for you to grasp? But you go ahead and cut away. I really don't care.

As for what I know, I know that for three years before I went into the Army I worked for a shop that specalized in repairing and rebuilding wrecked trucks, trailers and campers. I have replaced broken decking on dozens of trailers of different manufacture or pulled the deck so I could replace broken crossmembers. In the process, never cut anything but wood. Only welded on frames when they were broken or needed to be repaired with a "fish plate".

 

[lens12]

I wouldn't worry about it a bit. The bacteria in the soil will eat the oil. A local farm coop had a couple hundred gallon fuel oil spill when a hose broke while filling a storage tank. The Illinois EPA let them spread the contaminated soil on 80 acres and monitor it. There was no runoff & after a couple years no oil was found in the soil.

 

[wasabi]

<font color=blue>I am still leaning on painting it with marine polyurethane. </font color=blue>

RichZ - I've enjoyed reading (most of) this thread, but I'm knd of surprised that no one seems to have mentioned the obvious. Polyurethane, though a great sealer, is just that....it seals the surface and does not generally hold up well to UV rays. Oils, on the other hand, will penetrate, filling the wood's cell voids and help stabilize the wood, thereby protecting against sun's rays, moisture, etc.

Alternatives to motor oil if you choose, abound....Linseed oil is probably the most common...there are several commercial blends of so called penetrating oils such as "watco" that claim to be better and supposedly go deeper. A lindseed oil and tung oil blend will serve you well, but is a bit expensive.

I try to be as sensitive to environmental issues as the next guy, but personally would not hesitate to use motor oil on old dry wood in an application such as this....it will act as a sponge and soak most of it up It is arguably a better way to get more "life" out of the oil, extend the useful life of the wood and beats most alternative disposal techniques for the otherwise spent oil.

I'm don't claim expert status, but I did spend fifteen years making my living working with wood....for all those years I swore by oil finishes and would not go any other way for furniture or especially for wood floors. Re-coat every year or so...

 

[looch]

<font color=blue>...for all those years I swore by oil finishes...</font color=blue>

The poly finish on my rifles has never lasted longer than a season without getting dinged, chipped, scratched. Much easier to care for an oil finish. I usually heat up the linseed oil for the first couple of coats - it sinks in much more readily.

I like the idea of reusing waste. I don't think oil on the manure spreader would be a problem. I use waste oil on my plow to keep it from rusting between uses.

 

[stovepoker]

Hey Guys, wood and poop are both recyclables. In this kind
of service, Mother Nature will eventually claim the wood in that manure
spreader no matter what kind of goo you put on it. If you coat it with
Polyurethane or any other impervious
material, be sure to totally encapsulate the wood an all 6 sides
or the wood will warp, the coating will pop off, and the whole
thing wil rot from the inside out. Ask the wooden boat people
what happens when you glass over and old wooden boat.
Don't be afraid of that oil. It ain't going to hurt you. Just
think, many rural road departments still spread oil on dirt
roads to keep the dust down, and some county blacktop crews
still use diesel fuel/oil. Follow the lead of your elected officials,
they must know more than us or they wouldn't be
running the system.