I am constructing a distillery I need to support a concert…

Question

I am constructing a distillery I need to support a concert floor 3 inches thick
and 3 extraction chambers 20,000 liters each, which will hold 5 ton of material.
My question is should I use wide flange I beam or H beam in the vertical and
horizontal structure?

StructuralEng · Accepted Answer

StructuralEng :

how are you doing today. I’ll be happy to help you. Please give me a few minutes
to read your question completely and I’ll let you know if I need additional
information.

Before we get started I’d like to point out that a Professional Engineer’s
standard of care typically includes a site visit to assess field conditions and
get an overall understanding of the structure. This can obviously not be
accomplished through the internet. The information provided here is meant for
informational purposes only (general sizing and budgeting) and is based on the
information provided by you. Only vertical gravity loads will be considered, no
lateral loads or analysis is looked at (this can be a big part of the design
that will need to be considered). The information should be verified by a
professional engineer who can visit the site to ensure that potentially
important information has not been overlooked or omitted.

This is not a private chat.

StructuralEng :

WF beams are the most efficient for floor beams

StructuralEng :

The columns could be WF or square tubes

StructuralEng :

3" seems very thin for the floor, though.

Customer:

the floor will be supported underneath with a steel structure the floor will not
be supporting the weight

StructuralEng :

Any load that isn't directly over the beams will be supported by the 3" floor
deck

StructuralEng :

Did you just want to know which section is best to use?

Customer:

My next question i want to have a clear span above the floor, I need to back
trucks in to un load in the extraction chambers, the chambers are 9 feet
diameter 10 feet deep a total of 4 chambers the span is 52 feet wall to wall. I
need a trolley track to support the hoist for unloading the material which beam
would be best for the trolley.

StructuralEng : What is the weight of each chamber
Customer:

The chambers are stainless steel 3/16 wall with a lid and swan neck coming of
the top, however the basket being raise out of the chamber will weigh about 4 to
5 ton depending on the material

StructuralEng : I will use a 6 ton load
Customer:

Okay

StructuralEng :

A W21x111 ASTM A992 Gr. 50 will work for strength and limit deflection to 1"

StructuralEng :

It's 21" deep x 12.3" wide and weighs 111 pounds per foot.

Customer:

Thank you, XXXXX XXXXX Also us a jack brace over head to suspend the trolly beam
I also can run 2 horizontal beams 10 feet apart with cross support between them
to hang the trolly on. What would I need then. My concern is ceiling height.

StructuralEng : What would be the span of the beam in that case?
Customer:

By using the two horizontal beams they would span the 52 foot that I would hang
the trolly on, the cross supports would be 13 feet centers.

StructuralEng :

I see. Two 52' beams instead of a single beam

StructuralEng :

Would the trolley move on the beam connecting the two parallel 52' beams? And
then that beam would, in turn, move along the length of the parallel 52' beams?

Customer:

I know this is hard to visualize, my request so I will try to help you with a
example, a railroad track up-side down, the rails 10 feet apart

Customer:

with railroad tie 13 foot center, then the trolly beam attached to the ties in
the center

StructuralEng : And the trolley can move in both directions?
Customer:

Yes

StructuralEng : That would actually be two of the same W21x111 beams. Because
the load could be all the way at the end of a "tie" (loading only one beam) and
at midspan of the 52' beam
Customer:

Okay would the trolly beam in the center still need to be W21x111

StructuralEng : No. Let me size that for you
Customer:

would I be better to build a steel trust for the 2 out side beams (rails)

StructuralEng :

W8x28 ASTM A992 Gr. 50 for the 10' long beams connecting the 52' long beams

StructuralEng :

I would not use trusses for the rails

Customer:

thank you, XXXXX XXXXX send you photo's so you under stand what I am doing from
a smaller structure

Customer:

with the cross beams now what size do I need to use for the trolly beam

StructuralEng :

The cross beams won't affect the size of the main 52' beams.

StructuralEng :

Yes, you can send photos

StructuralEng :

You can upload here with the paper clip icon or upload to mediafire.com and post
the URL here for me

Customer:

Okay I will give it a go I have not done this before so I may not be very good
to start.

StructuralEng :

No problem

Customer:

My question was with the 52 foot side beams ( rails) would the center beam
supporting the trolly lifting the weigh would it need to be also 21 inch

StructuralEng :

No, that would be the W8x28

Customer:

Okay thanks now I will see about getting photo's to you

StructuralEng :

Great

StructuralEng :

If you could rate my answer, I would appreciate it. I'll be happy to answer
additional questions on the topic.

I am constructing a distillery I need to support a concert…

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