Ktwo trailers design their muck spreaders with twin floor chains to ensure increased longevity, exceptional reliability, and a better product spread, among other advantages over a single chain design.
The floor chains in muck spreaders transfer the material to the rotors and require a constant feed to ensure that the load is evenly distributed. Industry-leading manufacturers now use heavy-duty mining conveyor chain systems that outperform the early lightweight, flat-link agricultural chain systems.
Historically, the market saw larger “trailer type” 2m wide muck spreaders designed with single floor chain systems, but when a large amount of material was tipped into them, the floor would bow and eventually stove in, impinging the conveyor system. The twin floor chain system naturally provides a more robust floor slat and allows support to the spreader floor’s centre.
Ktwo’s muck spreaders have a flared body throughout, allowing a higher volume capacity and a stronger floor design. The innovative design acts as a funnel to help move materials down to the chains, increasing volume and allowing for easier emptying with less bridging by beginning to taper from the floor. Despite the central gap between the two chain systems, the nature of the manure ensures that the spreader is completely empty.
“A single chain is a simple system that allows for easier slat bending but demands a larger and more clumsy chain to achieve the necessary pulling capacity.” Ashley Knibb, Senior Design Engineer at Ktwo, explains. “And suffers from inherently more chain wear on the gearbox drive side,” as Stewart Freeman, Ktwo Service and Parts Manager, has observed over the years.
“Spreading the load” across a twin system with four chains and two runs of slats means that the slats are not subjected to such a large load, a smaller, more compact chain can be used, and the floor is better supported.
Ktwo’s models, with the exception of Ktwo’s Bio, have staggered chains to help feed the rotors and ensure consistent output and accurate coverage of the looser, lighter product, which is especially noticeable when spreading high-value materials such as lime with the use of the slurry door to metre the load.
Ktwo muck spreaders have a sprocketed front roller and cleaning scrapers built in. This ensures that the chains remain timed and aligned with a consistent flow of material and that the chain does not derail if a foreign object gets into the drive roller, resulting in every slat bending if one fails.
Another factor to consider is whether to use a bearing or a composite bush. We’ve always used high-quality ball flange bearings that self-align, allowing for precise individual chain tension and high-pressure bearings that are much more resistant to wear. The composite bush generates resistance when under heavy load due to its thin wall and friction contact, whereas the ball flange bearing does not.
Terry Kelloway, Ktwo Group Managing Director, says, “We have had great feedback from customers moving from a single slat spreader to our twin floor chain spreaders. Not only does it help spread the load better, but it also allows for easy maintenance.”
“A single slat system has a no tool change design. These are a loose fit and then wear and become covered in product and corrode. This system also eventually corrodes solid. We often have customers comment on our four-chain design, on its ease of maintenance because they can get their tools in and around it, and it is simple to remove bolts and slats no matter how worn and embedded they get.”
Ktwo’s muck spreader range includes vertical and horizontal beaters designed to give maximum output with consistent and accurate spreading. Get in touch for more info on pricing and availability of the Ktwo muck spreader range.