Help on Salt Mine

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

I am looking for information on how to build a conveyer system to bring salt up from the mine and into the processing plant.
I have taken a Walthers # 933-3022 Cornerstone ADM Grain Elevator for the processing plant. I have elemitated the silos and I am using just the building.
The conveyor will be covered but will be open on the sides for visibality. The conveyer will come out of the mine shaft at an angle and enter the processing plant about 1/2 way up the back side, or where the silos were designed to go.
Any help on this will be greatly appreciated.
Neal Melancon[8D]

2

The one salt operation I am familiar with refers to the old Azio (Spelling??) facility at the edge of Seneca Lake in NW New York.

In that place, you backed your trailer into the dock where forklifts came up from underground with pallets laden with large bags of salt in all different kinds.

I was told that they do recieve machinery related to mining salt from time to time. But once that equiptment is deemed obselete or worn out, it is left to rot forever in a corner of the mine where the salt is all played out.

Hope this helps.

3

Thanks for the reply.
In the late 60’s there was a salt mine west of Winnfield, Louisiana. They breached an underground river and the mine was flooded. Shortly thereafter the mine was concreded over and abandoned. My Father-in-Law was night super at the time.Water broke in at night and no one was in the mine. He was incharge of processing and shipping the salt.
I live in Lafayette, LA. and we have a Cargill mine about five miles from my house. This Mine is the one I am modeling. The processing plant looks similar to the Cornerstone Grain Elivator building. With a little modifications it will pass for their processing building.
What I am looking for is help on what I need to build the conveyor system that brings the salt out of the mine and into the processing plant.

4

I guess you can take a conveyer right out of a ground building to wherever you want the salt to go. Make sure it is covered very well.

The only conveyors I recall are those old ones that run along shafts carrying coal to the hoist. I dont know if they did that for salt.

I will dive into my pile of past issues and salt this question some more.

Best of luck!

5

There’s quite a bit of stuff about saltmining on the web.

http://www.lgsweb.org/fieldtripSalt.html

Pretty interesting.

6

I am familier with the salt mines here in South Louisiana. What I need is information on some type of materials to construct an conveyor to get the salt out of the ground.If someone could give me some ideas on how to build a conveyor I shur would appreciate it.

Thanks for you’all imput.
Sincerely,
Neal Melancon

7

Thanks Jim,
For the maps of the areas of some of the mines here in Louisians.
The Map of Avery Island brings back historical memories. Jefferson Island , named after a stage actor that became famous for playing the charactor Rip Van Winkle on stage. His home there on Avery Island is named the Rip Van Winkle Gardens and is open to the public.
But what this place is best known for is the oil rig drilling through the salt dome and draining Lake Peigneur back in the mid 1980’s. The Lake was drained in just a few hours and as it drained every thing that was on the lake was sucked down the hole.
That included large work boats, the drilling rig, other smaller boats, and part of the house on Jefferson Island.

8

Complete architectural and engineering plans for the Avery Island salt mine, and other salt mines, and other industrial facilities with conveyors, are available free and immediately over the internew from Library of Congress.

got to
www.loc.gov
then click on “American Memory”
then select Architecture/Landscape
and then
Historic American Buildings Survey/Historic American Engineering Record

from there search for “salt mine” or whatever. Lots of stuff available. You have already paid for it with your taxes.

9

Thanks leighant,
Never would have though of LOC. And you are right WE did pay for it. I now have the architechuel drawings saved in favorites.[:)][tup]

10

With drawings in hand, it seems like you could fabricate most of what you need, except maybe for the belts. Old Tonka trucks and other tracked vehicle toys might be a source of raw material to be trimmed down to scale size.

11

Great suggestion. Hadn’t though of tracks from a toy. That will work just fine. Thanks again. Happy Railroading!

12

One other thought on salt mines generally - some of them don’t use conveyers at all, they are ‘solution’ mines that pump water down into the mine that dissolves the salt and then bring the salt solution back up to the surface for processing. In that case, you have a pair or more of wellheads, and extensive piping, rather than conveyer belts. The processing buildings are similar though.

Jim
Ottawa

13

Neal, I live in Covington, La. and I think your salt mine project is very interesting, both historicaly and aestheticaly. I like yourself am retired and once again getting involved back into the hobby. Am I safe to assume your are modeling in HO[?] Would like to see your work someday. Keep us posted on the progress of your salt mine, (pictures if possible)[8D][:D]

14

Have you looked at the Walthers Modern Conveyors 3 pack? Or Sheepscot Scale Products 60’ Materials Conveyor? Or did you want one that actually operates?

15

Jim in Ottawa,
I live about 30 miles from the Gulf and down her they don’t do injection wells except in the oil fields. I know of 4 salt mines within a 30 minute drive from my house and they all have both elevator shafts and conveyors. I wanted to stay with what they are heve. Thanks for the feed.
Neal

16

Bill in Covington,
Will be glad to share my hobby with you any time. I don’t have any photos at this time but should have in the near future. I am modeling in HO and also G Scale. HO for the winter and Garden Railroad for the summer.
E-Mail me any tiime.
Happy Railroading.

17

Gary in Dearborn,
Gary, I checked with Walthers and with the people he has supplied the conveyor to and they all are out of stock. I looked at the picture of Sheepscot’s conveyor and I don’t think that is quit what I am looking for. I now have a picture of the conveyor and shaft pulleys for the Avery Island salt mine and I think I will go that route. I also have a suggestion of using the tracks off a tracked vehicle.
Thanks for the help.
Neal

18

Neal, take a look at Cog Belts and see if that may work, turned inside out, as the conveyor belt.

I did a google search for 933-3518. Have you checked with Train World, Model Train Stuff or Internet Trains?

19

Thanks Gary,
That is just what the Doctor ordered.
I will call them Saturday and see if I can have one on the way.
Thanks again.
Happy Railroading[8D]
Neal