Road salt, sand, gravel, fertilizer and grain all have the same basic storage problem. You have a lot of loose material that has to stay dry, and you need loaders and trucks to get in and out of it easily. That's why arch steel buildings are one of the most common choices for bulk storage, and why we sell many of our buildings for salt storage in particular.
Who Uses Bulk Storage Buildings
• City, county and township road departments storing de-icing salt and sand
• Snow removal and paving contractors
• Ag retailers and co-ops storing fertilizer and bulk inputs
• Farms storing grain, feed and bedding
• Landscape and aggregate yards storing mulch, stone and soil
Why the Arch Shape Works for Bulk Material
Clear span inside. There are no interior columns for a loader to hit or work around. The whole floor is usable, and equipment can move freely.
Height where you need it. Loose material piles into a cone, highest in the middle and sloping down toward the sides. The arch is tallest at the center and lower at the sides, so its shape naturally matches the shape of the pile. That puts the building's volume where the material actually goes.
Length you can add later. Duro Span buildings are built from arches bolted together with the same nut-and-bolt system throughout, so adding more arches for extra length later is straightforward if your storage needs grow.
Fast to put up. Pre-cut, pre-punched and pre-drilled parts mean many buildings can be assembled in days rather than weeks, which helps when you're racing to get a building up before winter.
Plan for Push Walls
Most bulk storage buildings sit on concrete walls rather than directly on a slab. Duro Span buildings can be set on concrete or wood sidewalls, and the base plate attaches the same way on top of the wall.
Concrete push walls do three jobs:
• They give loaders a solid surface to push material against.
• They raise the building's sidewall height, which adds usable volume.
• They keep the material against concrete instead of against the steel panels.
That last point is especially important for salt. Salt is corrosive to steel, and as with any steel building, you don't want a salt pile sitting directly against the panels. Designing the walls tall enough that the pile bears on concrete is the standard approach. Bulk material also pushes outward as it piles up, so the walls need to be designed for that pressure. Tell us your material and planned pile height when you request a quote so it's accounted for from the start. Our
foundation options article covers wall and footing choices.
Plan for Loader and Truck Access
Think about the tallest piece of equipment that has to get inside, including a dump body raised to unload. Many salt buildings use a fully open end so trucks can back in and dump. Others use a large door opening on the end wall. Either way, size the opening for your biggest truck with room to spare, and size the building's width so trucks can turn and loaders can work
Snow Loads Matter for Salt Buildings
Salt buildings are, almost by definition, in places that get snow. Every Duro Span building is engineered to the code for the state and area it's being delivered to, including snow and wind loads. In states like Missouri, Kansas and Tennessee, and in the higher elevations of Utah, Oregon and New Mexico, the right steel gauge for your local snow load is an important part of the quote. Our
wind and snow load guide explains how those ratings work.
Moisture and Ventilation
Salt pulls moisture from the air, which leads to clumping and caking. Fertilizer and grain also need to stay dry. Good ventilation keeps humidity down inside the building and helps keep material in usable condition. Duro Span offers gravity and turbine ventilators, which can be planned into your order.
Sizing for Tonnage
The right size depends on how much material you need to store, how high you can pile it and how much floor space your equipment needs to work. Start with your peak-season tonnage and the space you need for loading. Our
Quonset hut sizes article explains how width, height and length work together, and our team can help you size a building for your volume.
Ready to price a Duro Span building?
Request a free quote or call 888-848-2011 to talk with a Duro Span steel building specialist.