Cordless-Drill Feed Dispenser

Carl Baldwin of Clarksville, TN, uses a cordless drill equipped with a bulb-planting attachment to auger chicken feed-a cracked corn/wheat/millet/sorghum mixture-out of a large industrial bulk container (IBC) into 5-gallon buckets. Up on cement blocks, the IBC, which was originally designed to store liquids, has a 6-inch-diameter intake opening at the top and a 2-inch-diameter outlet opening with flapper valve at the bottom, into which Baldwin inserts the bulb-planting auger. Remaining with the IBC, the auger is held in place by a 2-foot length of 1-inch-square tubing bolted vertically to the IBC’s holding frame. The auger shaft is inserted through a 3/8-inch-diameter hole Baldwin drilled through the tubing. A piece of rubber hose that he slipped over the shaft then clamped in place keeps the auger from drilling itself into the tank and acts as a thrust bearing. This idea could be used to extract almost any dry material, such as sand.

Cost: $125 ($25 for the auger, $100 for a used IBC)

Impairment Category: Back, Lower extremity, Strength/endurance, Upper extremity