Sack Hoist | ||
The
Sack Hoist, located on the Garner floor, is driven by the Diesel Engine. The hoist control rope, seen in the
left picture, is attached to the top lever of two connected wooden
levers. The free end of the rope extends down to the Ground Floor to
enable the hoist to be operated from all floors. The sack chain, lying
slack in the right picture, has one end attached to the chain drum and
the second end free. The free end can be lowered through the trap doors,
down to the Ground Floor, where it can be attached to a sack of grain.
Pulling the hoist control rope will, via the two levers, push a friction
wheel on the chain drum shaft into contact with a smaller friction wheel
being constantly driven through a series of belts from the diesel
engine. The chain drum starts rotating, winding on the chain to pull the
sack up through the trap doors. The miller knew when the sack had
reached the Garner by counting the number of 'bangs' as the trap doors
closed after the sack had passed. Releasing the control rope stopped the
chain drum and the sack would rest on the Garner floor trap door. If the miller was working alone, he would then have to climb up the narrow stairways, remove the chain from the sack, move the sack off the trap door, lower the chain through the trap doors to the ground floor and then go down the stairways to attach the next sack. During our Open Days, grain lifted up to the Garner is tipped into a hopper for initial cleaning by the Aspirator as it falls through to the small storage bin feeding the Winnower on the Stone Floor. |