Posted by Dennis Blauser, May 6, 2021
Finding a Long-Term Silo Roof Coating
Silo roof coatings protect both stored materials and the silo itself. Silos experience roof movement cycling and heavy vibration during loading and unloading. This constant movement makes it important to ensure that your silo coating can move with the structure. One of the most common coatings selected by facilities is a membrane coating. While these can be made from rubbers or urethanes, they have several limitations that result in higher long-term expenses.
- Membrane roofs are not designed for any foot traffic as they are easily torn or punctured.
- Ultraviolet light and heat dry out membranes, leaving them brittle.
- Regular frosts and thaws can lead to cracking.
- A short life span necessitates frequent replacements.
- Membranes 'float' above the surface, allowing moisture to spread under the coating and cause unseen damage.
When looking for a silo roof-top coating, high elasticity, direct bond coating products, and resistance to foot traffic provide the greatest ROI with minimal maintenance. Our environmentally-friendly
roof-top silo coating adheres directly to the silo surface with a rubberized bond that moves with the silo surface during vibration from loading and unloading and vibrating equipment. This prevents chipping of the roof-top and silo coating and ensures a water-tight seal. In addition, we cover all cracks, holes, equipment attachment points, and penetrations during application to ensure water tightness of your silo.
We start with a base coat that adheres directly to the roofing surface and acts as a filler for small imperfections that could lead to moisture penetration and result in roof failure. We then use a rubberized top coat, which adds durability, resistance to foot traffic, and UV protection. The unique coating can be used on both concrete surfaces and steel.
Take steps today to implement our proven industrial roof coating system.
Request a quote from us today.
December 7, 2020
Steel silo construction is widely applicable to both industry and agricultural uses. Whether storing grain or fly ash, steel silos — like all storage silos — must keep stored materials safe until they are needed for use. As with other silo designs and stored materials, steel silos are likewise susceptible to material flow issues, leaking or other failure and require regular, routine maintenance.
When it comes to maintaining your bolted steel silo, it's essential to check for corrosion and leaking issues. Over time, all steel silos are susceptible to corrosion. When evaluating your steel silo, it's important to check the amount of corrosion on the wall at the joints to identify potential leaking. Because moisture can accelerate corrosion, it's also important to examine the silo foundation or base for signs of stagnant, sitting water.
Leaking steel silo joints can also be caused by weak spots in the seam as a result of an aging gasket. The gasket, located between the flanges on bolted steel silos, tanks or vessels can become dry and brittle over time, allowing moisture in or stored material out. Temperature and pressure differential from pneumatic loading or negative pressure from dust collection systems can also compromise the integrity of the seam.
Our Solution
When you have corrosion and leaking issues present, it's essential to have the bolted seams professionally repaired. Following inspection, Marietta Silos' repair consists of caulking all the seams, both vertical and horizontal. Once the caulking has dried, a rubberized coating material is sprayed over the caulking at the joints. This resilient coating bonds directly to the steel to restore the efficacy of your storage silo. Unlike other coatings that act as a floating membrane, the rubberized coating withstands the normal fluctuations encountered at silo seams, protects against corrosion and withstands temperature and weather extremes. The repair process offered by Marietta Silos reduces or eliminates leaks in bolted panel seams.
To learn more, be sure to check out our full library of
silo videos on silo maintenance, inspection and repair on
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Posted by Dennis Blauser, April 1, 2020
Concrete stave silos are constructed using precast concrete blocks, or staves, that interlock. Stave silos are reinforced with exterior, galvanized steel hoops which help compress walls and provide the necessary tension for structural integrity.
When it comes to the structural integrity of your concrete stave silo, it’s important to look at the condition of the exterior wall and the exterior steel hoops. When inspecting your stave silo, you want to look specifically for cracks in the staves or bulges in the wall.
If you see cracks in the staves, you need to decide what kind of crack you’re seeing. Here are the types to look for – horizontal, vertical, or diagonal cracks – or more severely, when you see an offset and it appears the wall is starting to move. The upper wall is pushing out over the lower wall above a horizontal crack.
If you have a crack and it’s starting to move and expand, this is a sign of silo failure and it’s time to call in the experts.
It’s equally essential to look at the exterior steel hoops because they maintain the structural integrity of the silo; their stability is vital to the health and safety of the silo. The exterior hoops shouldn’t be bent, broken, falling off or lying on the ground. It’s also important to make sure the hoops aren’t heavily corroded. Hoops are bolted together with a lug and the lug can be problematic if it beings to corrode. The hoops are tensioned to a specific rating and pressure so it’s essential that the hoop has not been welded to and stands independently.
One of our recent case studies examines a cracking stave silo and provides further proof on the importance of keeping a proactive maintenance schedule which includes inspecting your silo regularly. Silo inspection is the most effective, preventative method to ensure the integrity of your concrete stave silo.
To learn more, be sure to check out our full library of silo inspection videos on silo maintenance, inspection and repair on 
