Round bale feeders are expensive, so it is significantly less expensive to
repair if the only problem is rust. On the hay ring shown at left, rust ate
through the three feet that keep the ring off the ground. Left to sit directly
on the ground, the hay ring itself would soon begin to rust.
So, with the work of our expert welder Joel Ort from Miller Electric
Manufacturing, we set out to recycle this hay ring. The entire job took less
than an hour.
Ort used scraps of 1/4-inch standard flat steel bar with a 11/2-inch width to
replace the rusted tube steel originally used to create the feet.
Not including time, the work cost less than $25, compared to the cost of a new
ring for about $125.
Ort emphasizes preparation. That is about 80% of the total job, he says.
The steel bar also has two advantages over tube steel. First, it is a solid
1/4-inch thick. Typical tube steel is very thin.
Second, steel bar can be cut more accurately—and more quickly—to the tube steel
making up the rest of the ring.
One tip: Set your welder to weld on 1/4-inch stock. If you turn it down to the
tubing thickness, you won't get penetration on the bar.
Once the new leg adheres to the bale feeder, pull the tip of the welder away
from the ring. This helps you avoid burning through the hay ring itself.
See next page for detailed images and instructions.
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Ort begins the
repair job by using a grinder with a cutting wheel to remove the rusted
legs. Then he removes rust to create a good connection for the welder's
ground clamp. |
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Ort bent the
1/4-inch bar to create the feet. The inset photo shows how to cut a
semicircle in the ends of the bar so the new feet will be in contact
with the bottom of the ring. |
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The repair is
finished. All three feet on this ring were replaced with scraps of steel
bar Ort had around his shop. The total cost was less than $25.
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