Recently Almond Woodward and his family have retired from Dairy Farming on a full time basis. Over the years the family farm has accumulated several old pieces of farm equipment that had been retired to the family gravel pit. Additionally when the barn roof fell in due to severe snow load there were several pieces of tin roofing that needed disposal. Early this summer Almond decided that it would be best if the used up equipment were recycled rather than left cast aside to waste away.
On Friday morning under heavy rain the cleanup of old equipment began. Using a large Volvo Excavator with a thumb on it Paul Rawson of All Metals Recycling of Hardwick Vermont fishes the steel farm equipment from it's resting place and piles it up prior to being loaded. Once the metal is piled, it is loaded in large roll off dumpsters. The full dumpsters are then transported directly to Montreal where the material is ground up by an immense shredding machine and later distributed to buyers from around the world.
It is comforting to know that the metal in these otherwise useless pieces of farm machinery will have a new life. The metal could be part of your next car, washing machine, toaster or the girders in the new Freedom Center that will soon be built in NYC where the former World Trade Center once stood.
I will be posted some photos on the Photo Gallery and Henry will help me to insert them in the text of this message later today.
Paul is reaching into the underbrush to discover what is hidden.
Paul is grabbing onto an old forage box. Later on he will remove the metal from the wooden box with the thumb of the excavator. Paul has been doing this type of work for over 10 years and is very skilled when at the controls of a machine.
Dropping the flail chopper on the metal pile
Picking up the flail chopper with the thumb.
He discovered an old flail chopper.
A neatly stacked pile of old roofing tin that was never reused.
The tin is in the clutches of the excavator being loaded into the large open top dumpster.
When we have finished the metal removal, all other items are neatly sorted and piled for later use or disposal.
The job was started on Friday morning and by 6:00 am on Monday the first load of material had already be trucked to Montreal for processing. Monday was our final day at Almond's farm all of the metal scrap has been picked up. We recycled a total of 4 1/4 large containers of old machinery and tin roofing. On to the next job in Lamoille county.
If you should know of other metal in need of recycling, please give me a call.
802-782-2409
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