Portable walking floors
Portable walking floor bins
Set it down. Fill it. It feeds the boiler.
A covered walking floor fuel bin on its own legs. 35, 42 and 45 ft, single-wide or double-wide. No fuel building needed.
Rendering from our 3D model: the 45 ft bin with its roof closed.
35 to 45 ft
three lengths, single-wide or double-wide
Up to 140 m³
about 183 yd³ in the BioStore double-wide
Flip roof
hydraulic, sheds the snow, opens either side
Headingley, MB
built in our shop, serviced from it
Try it yourself
Spin it. Open the roof. Run the floor.
This is our 45 ft bin, straight from the 3D model we build it from. Turn it around, open the roof over either side, let it shed the snow and watch the push floor move the fuel.
On a computer: drag to turn it, scroll to zoom. On a phone: drag with one finger, pinch to zoom.
Pick your size
Which portable floor fits you?
Pick the length by how much you burn and how often you can get fuel. Need more? The BioStore double-wide holds more than twice as much as a 45 ft bin.
35 ft
Single-wide
| Holds | about 46 m³ (60 yd³) |
| Green chips | about 15 tonnes |
| Lasts* | about 2 days |
42 ft
Single-wide
| Holds | about 56 m³ (73 yd³) |
| Green chips | about 18 tonnes |
| Lasts* | about 2 days |
45 ft
Single-wide, flip roof
| Holds | about 60 m³ (78 yd³) |
| Green chips | about 19 tonnes |
| Lasts* | about 2½ days |
BioStore
Double-wide, open top
| Holds | about 140 m³ (183 yd³) |
| Green chips | about 45 tonnes |
| Lasts* | about 6 days |
*Lasts = a 5 million BTU boiler on green wood chips on an average winter day. Rule of thumb only: chips at about 320 kg per m³ and about 10 million BTU per tonne, boiler at about 75%. 35 and 42 ft numbers are scaled from the 45 ft. Send us your numbers and we’ll size it. Card pictures: renderings from our 3D models, same camera, so the sizes compare.
BioStore double-wide
Twice the floor. More than twice the fuel.
The BioStore is our double-wide portable walking floor: two floors side by side in one bin. It holds about 140 m³ of chips, more than twice a 45 ft bin, so you fill less often. Built for big boilers, long cold spells and sites where deliveries are hard to get in winter.
Rendering from our 3D model: the BioStore double-wide, full of chips, in a winter yard.
about 140 m³
183 yd³, level full
about 45 tonnes
of green wood chips
about 6 days*
for a 5 million BTU boiler
47′-10″ × 12′-7″
bin box, 14.6 × 3.84 m
Rendering from our 3D model: one half pushed out toward the discharge end, the other still full.
Two floors. One bin.
Each half of the floor has its own hydraulic drive. Both push the fuel to one discharge auger.
- ✓Two floor halves, each with its own hydraulic cylinder
- ✓The halves run separately: one keeps feeding while you fill or service the other
- ✓Both halves push to one discharge auger
- ✓Open top: fill it with a loader from either long side
- ✓Ships in pieces and is set up on your site
45 ft single-wide vs BioStore
Holds
about 60 m³
about 140 m³
Green chips
about 19 t
about 45 t
Lasts*
about 2½ days
about 6 days
Bin box width
8′-6″
12′-7″
*Rule of thumb: green chips on an average winter day. Your numbers decide the real size.
Built for winter
The roof sheds the snow first
Snow on the roof? The hydraulic roof tips a little, the snow slides off to the side, and your loader pushes it away. Then the roof opens all the way over whichever side your loader is on. Close it and the fuel stays dry.
Drawn from our 3D model: the roof tips, the snow slides off, then it opens and the push floor moves the fuel.
Sheds the snow
No shovelling the roof, and no snow in your fuel.
Opens either side
Load from the side your yard works best.
Latches shut
Hooks lock the roof down when it closes.
Lids
Three ways to cover it
Our single-wide bins come covered. Pick the lid for your winters and how often you fill. The BioStore double-wide is open-top.
Tarp
The simplest cover. Roll it back, fill the bin, pull it over.
Best for: Sites that fill often, in light snow.
Hinged steel lid
A hard steel cover that swings open for loading and keeps rain and snow out.
Best for: Year-round use without a lot of snow.
Hydraulic flip roof
Tips first to shed the snow, then opens all the way over either side. Hooks latch it shut.
Best for: Prairie winters. On our 45 ft bin.
How it works
Fill it once. It feeds the boiler for days.
Fill it
Open the roof and fill the bin with a loader or a dump trailer. Wet, stringy or mixed chips are fine.
The floor walks
One hydraulic cylinder drives the push floor. The bars walk the whole pile toward the discharge end, a little at a time.
Out to the boiler
A discharge auger with its own gear motor carries the fuel out to your boiler’s feed, as fast as the heat is needed.
Renderings and a cutaway drawing from our 3D model. Want the whole system? See fuel handling and how it works.
Specs
The numbers
Sizes, weights and what drives the floor, side by side.
| 35 ft | 42 ft | 45 ft | BioStore double-wide | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bin body length | 35 ft (10.7 m)* | 42 ft (12.8 m)* | 45′-3″ (13.79 m) | 47′-10″ (14.6 m) |
| Overall length, with discharge | about 38′-6″ (11.7 m)* | about 45′-6″ (13.9 m)* | 48′-9″ (14.87 m) | 58′-4″ (17.8 m) |
| Bin body width | 8′-6″ (2.60 m)* | 8′-6″ (2.60 m)* | 8′-6″ (2.60 m) | 12′-7″ (3.84 m) |
| Overall width, with drive | 13′-2″ (4.03 m)* | 13′-2″ (4.03 m)* | 13′-2″ (4.03 m) | 16′-7″ (5.05 m) |
| Height, roof closed / top of walls | 9′-8″ (2.95 m)* | 9′-8″ (2.95 m)* | 9′-8″ (2.95 m) | 12′-0″ (3.66 m) |
| Height, flip roof open | — | — | about 18′-4″ (5.6 m) | — |
| Holding volume, level full | about 46 m³ (60 yd³)* | about 56 m³ (73 yd³)* | about 60 m³ (78 yd³) | about 140 m³ (183 yd³) |
| Steel weight | about 17,000 lb (7.7 t)* | about 20,000 lb (9.1 t)* | about 21,600 lb (9.8 t) | about 26,000 lb (12 t) |
| Floor drive | Hydraulic | Hydraulic | One hydraulic cylinder | Two cylinders, one per floor half |
| Discharge | Auger with its own gear motor | Auger with its own gear motor | Auger with its own gear motor | One discharge auger |
Measured from our 3D models and rounded. * = scaled from the 45 ft. Weights are steel only and approximate. Heights are from the ground. Your quote has the final sizes for your bin.
Your site
What your site needs
Most sites already have most of this. We go over it with you before we quote.
- ✓A level, packed gravel pad a bit bigger than the bin
- ✓Room for your loader along the loading side
- ✓Clear overhead: about 18′-4″ with the flip roof open. Look up for power lines
- ✓Power to the bin for the hydraulics and the auger motor
- ✓A path for the auger into your boiler building
- ✓A truck route in for the flatbed, and for your fuel deliveries
Good fit if
- ✓You have no fuel building, or don’t want to build one
- ✓You burn wood chips, sawmill waste or mixed fuel that won’t flow out of a silo
- ✓You want to feed a grain dryer heat source or a boiler beside a bin yard
- ✓You may move the system later
- ✓You already have a boiler and need fuel feeding to it
About half of our systems are sold with a grant or tax credit
Most programs need approval before you order equipment, so ask us early. We’ll tell you which programs fit your province or state.
Questions
What people ask us
Something else? Call us at (204) 694-2398. You’ll talk to someone who builds these.
How does the BioStore get to my site?
In pieces. The double-wide is too wide to ship as one load, so it comes in sections and is set up on your site. We plan the loads with you at quote.
Can one half of the BioStore run on its own?
Yes. Each floor half has its own hydraulic drive, so one half keeps feeding the boiler while the other is being filled or serviced.
Is it a trailer?
No. It’s a bin on its own legs. It comes to your site on a flatbed and sets down on a level pad. We tell you at quote what ships separately and what the load needs.
How often do I fill it?
It depends on your boiler size and the weather. As a rough guide, the 45 ft bin holds about 2½ days of green chips for a 5 million BTU boiler on an average winter day. Send us your numbers and we’ll work it out for your site.
Which lid should I pick?
A tarp is the simplest. A hinged steel lid is a hard cover for year-round use. If you get real winters, the hydraulic flip roof sheds the snow before it opens, so nobody is up on the roof with a shovel. The BioStore double-wide is open-top, with no cover.
What about snow on the roof?
The flip roof tips first, so the snow slides off to the side where a loader can push it away. Then it opens all the way for loading. No shovelling the roof, and no snow in your fuel.
Can it feed a boiler you didn't build?
Yes. We sell fuel handling on its own too. Send us your boiler’s make and size and how it’s fed now.
Can I move it later?
Yes. Empty it and it goes back on a flatbed. That’s the point of a portable floor.
What fuel can go in it?
Wood chips, wet or dry, sawmill waste, bark and mixed fuel. That’s what walking floors are for: fuel that won’t flow out of a silo on its own.
Are there grants?
Often, yes, when it’s part of a biomass system. About half of our systems are sold with a grant or tax credit. Most programs need approval before you order, so ask us early.
Get a portable walking floor quote
Tell us your boiler size, your fuel and how it arrives, and the space you have. We’ll pick the size and send a quote.