Quick attach sander

[LouNY]

One problem with using brine on dirt or gravel driveways is that they will thaw and be muddy,
I use a sand / salt mix thru my sander and it will pull some of the frost out at times.

 

[truckdiagnostics]

yup, I just want to come up with a way to keep the sand or gavel that I spread from freezing together. If bought it in the summer left it to dry out then piled and tarp it....? only reason I would put salt in it is to keep it from freezing together. Ideally I would use the same gravel that is on the drive. Which is a 3/4 limestone screening mix. then if to much goes down it is not an issue.
Then the question becomes how does one spread it. I could shake it out of the bucket. Once it is in the bucket spreading by hand with a shovel would be easier than the way I am doing it now, but not by much.

The solution would be to pave the hill, then i could spread all the salt I want, but the cost for that is outa site and I can buy a lot of gravel for that. I do need to come up with something because at time I just physically can't do it.

 

[LouNY]

Well what I have done is use a commercial sander mounted in my old pickup.
My driveway is a quarter mile and quite steep, sanding it adds to the fines and seems to help it.
View attachment IMG_20180205_123232794.jpg
I get a tri-axle load of coarse sand and salt mix every 2-3 years, I store this under plastic with the black side up to soak up sun.
Most years I will get minor freezing in 3-5 inches, my loader will push right thru that and I will save out a lot of the crusted froze material and run over or crush it with the bucket to use.
I can understand not being able to physically do it quite well.
I got my first sander over 20years ago after hand shoveling sand into the back of a pickup and hand spreading it while I had one of my daughters driving the truck, interesting times.
The commercial sander will also make it possible for your material to go much further, hand sanding I used between 2-3 times the amount of material that I do with a sander.
One thing I had contemplated was buying one of the tailgate spreaders that are the width of your dump bed and adapting it to a loader bucket.
Lou

 

[truckdiagnostics]

Lou,
Sounds familiar. Does give me something to think about thanks for posting. The pick up box spreaders used appear to be cost effective used. I too have thought about adapting a tail gate spreader. I just can't come up with a way to get the material into the spreader. Wonder if I could pick up the pick up box spreader with the forks on the skid loader and run it off the aux hydraulics. Issue there spinner would be on one side. Then there is weight but I think I might be ok with that. Steve

 

[LouNY]

This style is what I had thought about using with my loader, if a person mounted it on arms fastened to the bucket,
raise it out of the way load the bucket, lower it down to the edge of the bucket or below, run it and gently dump the bucket into it, not sure how it would work but there was one that had a rotating drum the material would fall into and be slung out.
SALTDOGG(R) Carbon Steel Under Tailgate Salt Spreader #9242A

A person could probably pick up one of the shorter pickup ones long way with fork extensions and have the spinner on the front to spread with.
More then one way to skin that cat.
Lou

 

[truckdiagnostics]

Mmm, that idea is ingenious. It won't take up a lot of space I think it could be done cost effectively. Like it. Use a hydraulic cylinder to lift it out of the way. I have a large area in front of the shop that lends itself for using a bucket. Do that last, plow the road use the blower, do the bucket work, spread the salt. It might be a little wide for my current bucket, I think I could work with it though.

On fork extensions the pick up truck spreader would end up being to heavy to pick up length wise. I think. My loader has 1,700 lbs lift. It would be the easiest way to go. I think I would end up having to cut it and shorten it. Not out of the question and do able in my skill set. Issue there would be, it is a used salt spreader that is going to be rusted. Not the best material to be welding back together.

 

[Tomtint]

I have a 2 yard spreader in my dump truck for the winter. The thing is constant maintenance, ..you get about 2 years with them before things start corroding or rusting.. or somehow falling apart. They are subject to harsh, foul environments and it's just inevitable. I had a skidsteer mounted spreader on my Cat 246. Basically you would tip it down, drive into the pile of salt, tip it back..then hit the button and lit it fly. It worked well, but the salt was brutal on it. Corrosion started after 1 season and I would not expect it to last more than 3-4 years. I simply don't have the time to wash and oil the equipment after very use, doing so ould help, but it's just not feasible. For a small driveway, I would just get a rear spreader and a pallet of bagged straight salt. It won't freeze if kept dry, even down to -10-15.

 

[LouNY]

My sander gets hosed out good in the spring and the apron chain gets used motor oil poured to while it's running.
My first one had a SS box and mild steel wear plate and rear housing it was used when I purchased it and I replaced the apron chain and wear plate and used it for about 15 years. My new one is all SS except the apron chain and shafts and sprockets I hope it will provide the same service.
On top of that if you use straight salt on gravel or dirt roads and driveways you get a sloppy muddy mess.
My mix has just enough salt that it doesn't freeze solid I get some freezing on the outer "skin" of the pile.

 

[truckdiagnostics]

I am getting smarter on how this works. When the rock salt melts, it melts through the ice then forms a brine layer between the roadway and the ice, it is this brine layer that melts the ice. That explains why spraying brine directly on ice does not work as well. It can not eat through the ice and form the brine layer. In the case of gravel road straight salt eats through the ice and keeps on going softening up the gravel. Have used it and it does help break up ice on gravel, but you have to plow it off and if you catch it in time, you won't plow off as much gravel. A slit chunk of sch 40 pipe over you cutting edge helps too.

I am still curious if you can spray a brine solution on too the aggregate that you want to spread. Spraying and mixing, allowing the use of less rock salt also allowing for a more even coating of the aggregate. The sole purpose of the brine being to keep it from freezing in clumps.
Yup, mixing rock salt in with the aggregate has worked forever, it is just a thought.

I'm trying to make it simpler and easier. For me anyway the two just some how don't seem to go together. Like Lou I would have to order large load of premixed sand and salt. Pile it and tarp it. I really don't want to have to do that, I can but. I order a load of road gravel once the weight limits come off every spring to make up for what was plowed off. It would be nice if i could set some aside to use in the winter. I am trying to come up with a way to keep it from freezing into clumps and a way to spread it.

For example we hit -27 here I needed to sand the hill, don't know if I will keep it from freezing at that temp, but like Lou said when it gets real cold if i can get away with scraping off the top layer. I can live with that.

Even after the sun came up it was -18 and I was hand shoveling salt sand mix out of bins I have set on the side of the hill. And that was after breaking a lot of it up. I don't want to do that anymore. When it gets real cold i could bring one inside, but I still have to shovel it out when it is -18. :mur: I can't wait until it warms up UPS needs to get in and out and they are not breaking the bank on what they are spending on new tires. If anyone of the delivery drivers does not see sand on the hill the will not stop. Or worse they put it in a bag and leave it at the side of the road!