What would be the kind of thickness that would be used for, say, a hopper or lightweight tank? 2.0mm, 3.0mm? Some Ive found at even less: 1.6mm and 1.8mm. At those kind of differences I cant really "visualise" how they'd behave.
2 to 3 mm is getting pretty thick, imo. Although a lot of the rigidity will depend on the geometry of the structure, obviously.
Get yerself an IBC crate and clad it - job done!
The structural performance is a bit of an odd one as it's going to be just a 250mm square sheet mounted over a 200mm square hole in an 18mm plywood tank. In the middle of the sheet will be a 100mm hole and through that will mount a hose adaptor for bulk pellet deliveries. The hose is heavy so there will be some "twisting" load through the plane of the sheet, but no more than youd get on a commercial hopper.
If you put a crease diagonal from corner to corner using a folder that will stiffen your flat sheet. Get your galv from a local sheet metal company, askem to do this to the heaviest galv they have available. What hose fitting are you using? you could get them to weld you a spigot that fits the hose. that give you a fairly stiff set up. Personaly I'd knock it up out of a 5mm ms plate with 2mm spigot welded on. Slap a few layers air drying enamel on there. Cost you bugger all.
Sounds to me like you need a 200 x 200 to 100 diameter square to round with a 25mm flange on the square end and a 50mm collar on the round end. When you decide how long you want it, any sheet metal shop will be able to knock you one up pretty quick but as it's only sitting in the bottom of a plywood tank, I'd say it doesn't need to be thicker than 1mm
If you are cutting, bending, drilling or welding the sheet then everywhere you've done that its going to rust. I'd make what you're going to make in regular mild steel then get it hot dipped.
all good points.
Getting galv not necc because it's weatherproof (will be out of the weather), I know that hot treatment will bugger up the galv, just that its common to find.
Anyway, now ordered a 250mm square x 3mm piece from ebay. I reckon I can work it myself with the pillar drill, hacksaw and cold chisel as neccesary.
Spigot welding wont work I think as the Storx connector is forged Al.
It's going to be clamped on with a 4" back nut.
The hose is a 4" heavy rubber thing that you get on tanker lorries. The Storz fitting will be about 2m off the deck. So a bit of weight from the hose that will be lying on the floor.
I reckon I can work it myself with the pillar drill, hacksaw and cold chisel as neccesary.
A jigsaw (with the scroll turned off) and a bit of oil along the line you're cutting will work just fine
cheers macc.
I guess I'll need to go and find a higher tpi blade for it than my normal wood munching one though 😉
aye, you won't have trouble finding the ones for steel though. Worth buying a few, if you don't put weight behind the blade they last quite well, but if you're a bit clumsy its easy to have the blade kick back a bit and snap
cheers mac. Just going to head off to the toolshop now to get a blade (or three). A sheet of 3mm galv has just arrived in the post. Its a mighty meaty bit of steel 😉
eBay is great for amateurs like me to get hold of materials that previously have needed to have been trade only or bulk orders.