How to make a household feed granulator with your own hands and what is the price of a new one
To convert a free-flowing combined mixture into granules, household feed granulators are used, the price of which depends on the engine power. The higher its value, the more pallets are produced in 1 hour. Pellets can be stored much longer than usual and are easier to transport. It is also easier to give the required portion of food to livestock or poultry, depending on their age and needs. This device can be made with your own hands, especially since the price of a household feed granulator is quite high. So, for example, equipment with a capacity of 150 kg / hour costs 65,000 rubles, and a model that produces 1,000 kg / hour of feed costs 255,000 rubles.
The principle of operation and device of the granulator
The device works in the following way: from above, raw material is poured into the container, which, falling on the matrix, is pressed by rollers into its holes. Finished granules spill out through a special window in the body.
There are models of household feed granulators made by hand from a meat grinder. They use an auger instead of rollers for punching, but for such a device, finely ground material is needed. Such a device can only be used for mixing soft raw materials, for example, herbs or combined mixtures.
The following parts are required to assemble the granulator:
- base (frame);
- die and rollers with a toothed surface;
- body;
- electric motor;
- reducer;
- shaft.
The frame must be welded from strong steel, as it must withstand heavy loads and vibration during operation. The housing of a granulator for compound feed can be cut with your own hands from a wide pipe, or you can make a cylinder from a metal sheet. It is best to make it collapsible so that you can service the device if necessary. A window should be provided in the lower part for the exit of the finished granules of the combined mixture.
The body diameter is selected so that the die can rotate in it with a minimum clearance.
Matrices are produced in two types: flat and cylindrical. The first looks like a round disc with holes. It is most often used to create granular compound feed, since it is capable of processing raw materials of any hardness, and its speed of operation is higher.
A cylindrical die is a drum with holes inside which rollers rotate.
It is better to buy a matrix ready-made, since special machines will be required to create it. The holes in it should have a tapered shape, tapering towards the bottom, so that the granules are compressed more.
Granulator assembly
In order to avoid gross mistakes, it is recommended that you first make detailed drawings of the location of all parts of a household feed granulator with your own hands.
After the body is ready, a gearbox is installed in its lower part. It will transmit rotation from the electric motor to the shaft of the granulator, so that the matrix or roller can rotate.
In the upper part, a matrix and rollers are installed, which are fixed to the shaft. The rollers are mounted on the shaft using rolling bearings, and they are also mounted on the rotating axle through the same bearing. Their clamping to the matrix is regulated by a threaded nut.This entire unit is installed in the lugs of the body and remains stationary during operation. The rollers are selected in such a way that their width completely covers all the holes in the matrix.
An electric motor is mounted next to the housing. Using a belt or chain drive, it is connected to a gearbox. A cone-shaped container is placed on top of the body, through which raw materials will be fed into the granulator.
The video shows a drawing and device of a granulator for compound feed, which you can do yourself:
To assemble an apparatus for granulating feed from a meat grinder, you will need the following parts:
- frame;
- meat grinder;
- electric motor;
- the matrix;
- belt, 2 pulleys.
The matrix is made of the same diameter as that of a standard grinder grill. Protruding ribs are removed inside the body to fit it as tightly as possible (leaving only a minimal gap). The cover for the device is made with free space inside. So that you do not have to make a new one, if you need to install a matrix of greater thickness. Outside, knives are fixed on it, which will cut the granules of the required length. Both pulleys are mounted, the electric motor and the belt tensioned.
The belt is installed without teeth, so that in case of something it could slip. As a result, the electric motor will not overheat or burn out.
Even in the case of buying some parts, such as pressing rollers, bearings, the price of a domestic feed pellet mill made by yourself will be lower than that of a ready-made one in a store. In addition, it is possible to assemble a device that works by hand without an electric motor. But before you buy or assemble a granulator yourself, it should be noted that in addition to it, you will need a crusher and dryer.