Road Salt Storage Building: What to Look for Before Winter
A fabric salt storage building from Covermore Buildings has to handle corrosion, loader traffic and wet weather. Here is what to check before you buy.
Covermore Buildings makes tension fabric buildings, and a fabric salt storage building is a practical way to keep a road salt pile dry and ready to load when the first storm hits. The job is harder than it looks, because salt is rough on almost everything around it.
Whether you run a county yard, a township barn or a private plowing outfit, here is how we would think about the decision.
How does road salt damage a storage building?
Road salt damages a building when it gets wet: wet salt turns to brine, and brine eats bare steel, fasteners and concrete edges. A PVC-coated fabric cover does not corrode the way sheet metal can. Dry salt sits quietly, but wind carries fine salt dust, so even the parts of a structure you never touch stay coated.
Because of that, the materials matter more than the shape. Look at three things:
- The covering. It should not rot, rust or soak up moisture.
- The frame finish. Ask how the steel is coated and what happens where a loader bucket scratches the coating.
- The floor and walls. Salt pushes outward as it piles. The walls or push barrier have to be built for that weight, and they are usually concrete or heavy block, not the building skin.
How big should a salt storage building be?
Size a salt storage building for the pile you will want after a hard winter, plus the turning room a loader needs, not just the pile you have this year. Work out these numbers before you call anyone:
- How much salt you take delivery of at a time.
- How tall the pile gets, since the pile shape sets the height you need at the walls and at the peak.
- How wide the loader bucket swings and how big a turn the machine needs.
- Whether trucks will back inside to be loaded, or you load them at the door.
A building that is a few feet too narrow will slow you down every storm. A door that is too low for a dump truck with its bed raised a little is worse. If the same space might hold sand, gravel or equipment in summer, pick the size and door height with that in mind too.
Should a salt storage building be fabric or permanent?
A fabric building is usually a good fit for salt storage, because the cover shrugs off moisture instead of corroding and the frame goes up faster than a poured or block building. A permanent building can still be the right call. If your site already has a slab and walls, or your town requires a certain type of structure, follow that. We would rather tell you a fabric building is the wrong fit than sell you one that is.
How do you prepare a site for a salt storage building?
A salt storage building site needs drainage away from water, a hard level base, proper anchoring and truck access that works in bad weather:
- Drainage. Runoff from a salt pile should not head toward a creek, a well or a neighbor. Grade the ground so water leaves the pad away from the door.
- A solid base. A loader working a heavy pile will chew up gravel. Plan for a hard, level surface.
- Anchoring. The structure needs to be tied down to the wall or slab per the plans you are given.
- Access. A truck has to reach the door in bad weather without getting stuck.
How do you cut wear on the building and the loader?
How you work the pile matters as much as what covers it. Load from the face of the pile so it does not build up into a steep, unstable slope. Sweep spilled salt back inside instead of leaving it at the door, where it gets wet and runs off. Rinse and grease equipment that works in the pile, since brine finds every pivot and pin. A few minutes after each storm saves wear on the machines and the structure.
When you talk to Covermore Buildings, have your pile size, your loader model and your site layout ready. Then we can talk about what fits and what does not.
Questions on the right machine for the job?
Straight answers on stock, freight, and what actually fits — no pressure.