Safety first! Cotton picker fire.

[Fixastuff]

My neighbor almost got killed harvested our field!

 

[fatjay]

I usually put safety 3rd, behind progress and laziness. Seems this guy did too. I like to think that I have a net overall gain in progress vs setbacks. I hope this guy does too.

 

[Fixastuff]

I usually put safety 3rd, behind progress and laziness. Seems this guy did too. I like to think that I have a net overall gain in progress vs setbacks. I hope this guy does too.

Machine was running and he was under the head cleaning it with out blocking it up. A hydraulic line or fitting gave out dropping the head and he barely rolled out before it pinned him! Hydraulic fluid sprayed on hot exhaust then ignited is the best hypothesis of how blaze started.

I

 

[fatjay]

Machine was running and he was under the head cleaning it with out blocking it up. A hydraulic line or fitting gave out dropping the head and he barely rolled out before it pinned him! Hydraulic fluid sprayed on hot exhaust then ignited is the best hypothesis of how blaze started.

I

I'm pretty free and loose with safety, but I won't go under anything suspended by hydraulics. I've had hoses go and it's scary even from the drivers seat.

 

[jaxs]

That's scary,it's a miracle he escaped. Some trivia about burning cotton (nothing related to oil fire as in this case). I worked at a gin in the 60s and witnessed cotton catching fire on the way through. Protocol demanded all cotton in the process at time of fire be cleared,sprayed with water then foam and be segregated on open ground at least 150 yards from gin and any combustable material,basiclly sitting in a plowed field with other cotton having been involved in a fire. Cotton in the works was finished processing, baled,and sprayed before moved to field. It wasn't uncommon to sit for weeks without a hint of smoke then re-ignite.

 

[cqaigy2]

Wow, glad he survived. Amazing how fast things fall when the hydraulics fail.

 

[newbury]

Machine was running

Is this common? To work on a running machine is a "better not do that" flag to me.

 

[Fixastuff]

Is this common? To work on a running machine is a "better not do that" flag to me.

I'll ask him about the machine running. I mentioned not blocking the head to go under he his reply was, "I have to do this 10 or 15 times a day, don't have time for that"

 

[groundcover]

Wow ! He came real close to not having time for anything !

 

[K5lwq]

Looks like that cotton was stripped. Was that a cotton picker or cotton stripper? We always raised tall cotton so never ran a stripper before but would think they would stop up more often.

Glad he was not hurt.

 

[Creamer]

Machine was running and he was under the head cleaning it with out blocking it up. A hydraulic line or fitting gave out dropping the head and he barely rolled out before it pinned him! Hydraulic fluid sprayed on hot exhaust then ignited is the best hypothesis of how blaze started.

I

Was the machine running or just the engine on? I sure hope he was not trying to clean with it running although I have seen people do that as well.

I have to agree that it is very easy to begin to trust the hydraulics after thousands of times of them doing exactly what they are supposed to. But that is when they are going to give out - after the thousands of times. A simple cylinder block is well worth it.

 

[LouNY]

I'll ask him about the machine running. I mentioned not blocking the head to go under he his reply was, "I have to do this 10 or 15 times a day, don't have time for that"

Hard to second guess the man doing the work.

 

[newbury]

Wow ! He came real close to not having time for anything !

My thoughts exactly.

 

[Fixastuff]

Looks like that cotton was stripped. Was that a cotton picker or cotton stripper? We always raised tall cotton so never ran a stripper before but would think they would stop up more often.

Glad he was not hurt.

I've always heard it called a cotton picker or cotton combine. It's dumped from this into the compactor which turns it into big "modules". Most of the other farmers around here have gone to John deere machines that spit out wrapped round bales as it goes.

Was the machine running or just the engine on? I sure hope he was not trying to clean with it running although I have seen people do that as well.

I have to agree that it is very easy to begin to trust the hydraulics after thousands of times of them doing exactly what they are supposed to. But that is when they are going to give out - after the thousands of times. A simple cylinder block is well worth it.

Engine running not head running.

Hard to second guess the man doing the work.

I was just asking questions. He should be second guessing himself after this. I know of a couple people hurt while working on these machines. One used plastic buckets to block it up which were crushed when he took the hoses loose.

 

[K5lwq]

I've always heard it called a cotton picker or cotton combine. It's dumped from this into the compactor which turns it into big "modules". Most of the other farmers around here have gone to John deere machines that spit out wrapped round bales as it goes.

Normally it depends on the type of cotton grown. Some cotton is a tall plant and the fibers are longer. It is better to use a picker on this type as it will be cleaner and bring more money at the gin.

Stripper cotton is shorter and has shorter fibers. The bowls will be closer to the ground and some even laying on the ground. A picker will leave a lot of cotton on the stalks with this type. A stripper will get most of it, even stuff that is on the ground. However the cotton will have more trash in it and normally brings less money at the gin because it is not clean.

 

[Hay Dude]

I'll ask him about the machine running. I mentioned not blocking the head to go under he his reply was, "I have to do this 10 or 15 times a day, don't have time for that"

I know what he means.
People like to virtue signal about doing something safely until that have to do it 10x/day.

 

[WinterDeere]

I'm pretty free and loose with safety, but I won't go under anything suspended by hydraulics. I've had hoses go and it's scary even from the drivers seat.

I used to work under and around my loader all the time, always believing that any hydraulic failure would bleed down slow enough for my young and nimble self to jump clear if something happened. Then one day while lifting a brush hog (Woods PTO "rotary mower") up to pressure wash the underside and look for a leak, I had a hydraulic hose failure on my loader.

Hydraulic fluid shot 30-40 feet into the air, covering everything in a 50 foot radius, but more importantly, the loader with mower crashed down like a brick dropped from a building. There was nearly ZERO resistance due the expected hydraulic bleed-down, it literally fell with gravity. Woke me up to the possibility of what could really go wrong, and I haven't put any part of myself under anything supported with hydraulics, in the several years since.

 

[MTGreen]

I'll ask him about the machine running. I mentioned not blocking the head to go under he his reply was, "I have to do this 10 or 15 times a day, don't have time for that"

Bet he just found time for that now...

 

[fatjay]

I used to work under and around my loader all the time, always believing that any hydraulic failure would bleed down slow enough for my young and nimble self to jump clear if something happened. Then one day while lifting a brush hog (Woods PTO "rotary mower") up to pressure wash the underside and look for a leak, I had a hydraulic hose failure on my loader.

Hydraulic fluid shot 30-40 feet into the air, covering everything in a 50 foot radius, but more importantly, the loader with mower crashed down like a brick dropped from a building. There was nearly ZERO resistance due the expected hydraulic bleed-down, it literally fell with gravity. Woke me up to the possibility of what could really go wrong, and I haven't put any part of myself under anything supported with hydraulics, in the several years since.

I was lifting a full load of dirt out of the dirt pile when a line burst, covering everything, including me, with quite hot hydraulic oil, and the bucket fell like a rock. The hose failure wasn't a pin hole, it was more like what you see a water balloon look like after it's popped. Never saw it coming, no warning, just running, running, POP!

 

[cqaigy2]

I know what he means.
People like to virtue signal about doing something safely until that have to do it 10x/day.

Interesting. I'm probably more likely to get caught out by something i don't do on a regular basis. If it's something i deal with routinely, I'm more likely to figure out a way to do it more safely, and hopefully just as quick.

I grew up in a farming community and saw the impact on the families. I don't want to put that on mine.