Coal Bin Woes

I made a coal bin last fall in the only place where I thought it would work out--under my porch deck. I'm no spring chickie, but I made it with boards that can be pulled out to meet different levels, and also put down a wood base so the coal wouldn't sit on the ground. It's about 4 ft high and wide and deep enough to fit two ton. Problem is that the coal guy thinks it takes too long to fill it. He claims an hour, but I was there--20 min to a half hour tops. He's an old-timer, but it was obvious to me that he wasn't doing it right. He filled the middle then we had to go under the porch and pull the coal back toward the far end. All he had to do was to get his chute in farther the first time and gradually ease back till it was full.
My opinion. Anyhow, he wanted me to have my son make a trapdoor in the walking surface, but I didn't see how he'd get his chute there anyhow--there's a built-in bench and rail it would have to go over.

Anyhow, this time he just wants to dump it in front of my garage. Not exactly my idea of a plan. I think maybe he just doesn't want to go out my way as even the first time he had several excuses and I had to wait weeks.

Maybe I'm wrong? My garage takes up the entire end of the driveway, and I honestly don't know where else I could put a coal bin. I don't know if it would cause problems in the cellar. The pipe from my well runs right under the only window on that side and the electric box is right next to it. A large part of that side of the cellar is rock ledge with only a few feet to the ceiling, so I only have that window as the only spot where the chute could come in. I feel lost and frustrated! Any ideas, or do I just need a new coal delivery guy?

Fish wrote:I made a coal bin last fall in the only place where I thought it would work out--under my porch deck. I'm no spring chickie, but I made it with boards that can be pulled out to meet different levels, and also put down a wood base so the coal wouldn't sit on the ground. It's about 4 ft high and wide and deep enough to fit two ton. Problem is that the coal guy thinks it takes too long to fill it. He claims an hour, but I was there--20 min to a half hour tops. He's an old-timer, but it was obvious to me that he wasn't doing it right. He filled the middle then we had to go under the porch and pull the coal back toward the far end. All he had to do was to get his chute in farther the first time and gradually ease back till it was full.
My opinion. Anyhow, he wanted me to have my son make a trapdoor in the walking surface, but I didn't see how he'd get his chute there anyhow--there's a built-in bench and rail it would have to go over.

Anyhow, this time he just wants to dump it in front of my garage. Not exactly my idea of a plan. I think maybe he just doesn't want to go out my way as even the first time he had several excuses and I had to wait weeks.

Maybe I'm wrong? My garage takes up the entire end of the driveway, and I honestly don't know where else I could put a coal bin. I don't know if it would cause problems in the cellar. The pipe from my well runs right under the only window on that side and the electric box is right next to it. A large part of that side of the cellar is rock ledge with only a few feet to the ceiling, so I only have that window as the only spot where the chute could come in. I feel lost and frustrated! Any ideas, or do I just need a new coal delivery guy?

Call around and find another coal man maybe a younger one

Fish,if it were me I might look around for a coal delivery person with a little more patience.Is this guy the only one available from that company? If you cannot get another driver you might look around for another supplier of your coal.Afterall you did not build the bin to have to play "put and take" with a 2 ton pile in your driveway.Don't saw off your branch until you are sure where things will fall however,my guy will not even deliver anything less than 3 ton. Good Luck , Mike

Geesh, takes my coal guy 45mins to and hour to Auger 4.75 tons into my basement, he just stands there and raises the dump up a bit more.

if you can give up a couple of feet inside of your garage on the side, it would be a real handy place to have a coal bin.
check out my set up I have room for 7 tons
6 Ton Rice Coal Delivery Thru Garage Door to Bin

It would be easier to help you if you post pictures.

Offer the guy a $20 tip to hang around, many times that's all it takes. Or, $20 if you can run the chute, tell him it's a life long fantasy or something. Then show him how it's done!

I have an older home with the coal bin under the porch. When I get coal there is no problem for the guy that does it. He lifts the dump way up and then tilts it back. The coal comes down the chute like its going out of style. I would just get someone that knows what they are doing.

Post a pic and I'll give you my opinion, I delivered coal for 15 years and I can truthfully say I was the best in the business without blinking.

Although you have the right idea about moving the coal keep in mind you need pitch, for example you probably need about 40 degrees for rice coal to run down a chute without any assistance. You can chute it into bin by filling up the front of the bin and then laying another flat chute on top of that pile however this flat chute adds a lot of resistance and you need a lot of momentum to get it to go across it. The longer the flat chute is the less momentum you have and it will eventually not run at all.

In any event a trap door for bins under porches is the best alternative. Not only do you get more coal in the bin before if it has to be shoveled you also have a higher pile to shovel from which makes huge amount of difference in the work involved.

ut I didn't see how he'd get his chute there anyhow--there's a built-in bench and rail it would have to go over.

Does he have a coal truck? A 7 foot high railing is not a problem in that case, even 8 foot if he can back right up to it.

I REPLIED TO THIS BUT APPARENTLY IT DIDN'T "TAKE." I was surprised to see it not there today! Sorry if it looked like I dropped the ball, but I didn't.

I wanted to thank everyone for their responses, which were entertaining as well as helpful. Unfortunately, I can't post a picture. In the meantime, someone at work referred me to her coal guy and hopefully, he'll get to me by the end of this week. I guess I'll just have to wait and see whether he runs into any problems with it. The original guy had a dump truck fitted with a chute, and I think this new guy does, too. That's why I couldn't figure how he'd be able to get the chute over the rail. He's the owner-operator, so there aren't any other delivery people in his company. I wish my garage had ample side room to put a bin in there, but the door is too wide. Love yours, though, synchmaster.

I also had another question. My brother-in-law brought me a large plastic tank used to hold paper-making chemicals. He did clean it out very well, and the chemicals aren't toxic. It's encased with a metal cage and lots of the people he works with use them as their coal bins. I suspect, though, that they haul their own coal in pickups, asit would hold only about 3/4 to 1 ton. Is it worthwhile for me to go through all the work of cutting an opening in the top and another at the bottom to remove the coal? The coal guy would have to fill two different bins , and I don't know if that would just be a pain in the neck for him.

Well, just in case this one doesn't take either, I'm keeping it short. Thanks again. You really were all very helpful.