Lister Engine Forum

Lister Engines => Listeroid Engines => Topic started by: cujet on October 02, 2017, 12:11:59 PM

Title: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: cujet on October 02, 2017, 12:11:59 PM
I will be purchasing a 20x12 steel shed (really a portable building on skids) with a wooden floor for storage of my accumulated stuff and lawn/yard equipment.

My lister generator is currently sitting outside under a tarp, where my fabric garage used to be prior to the hurricane. Can't have it sitting in the rain..... ugh. As it really is a very nice machine.

Here is the issue, these sheds have a 3/4 inch plywood floor. The lister is heavy and violent enough that the floor is clearly insufficiently strong, even for temporary storage of the generator. Yet, it would be nice to have that thing inside the shed even for temporary storage until I finish the generator shack. I had considered putting some sonotubes full of concrete in the ground, and using that to support the lister. Eventually, I'd like to have the lister in it's own dedicated small building, behind the house, on a concrete slab.

I'd love to pour a slab and construct a real garage, but I don't have the funds for that. The portable building is 1/6th the cost of a real garage.

Thoughts?
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: 38ac on October 02, 2017, 02:12:01 PM
If you think there will be a need to run it in it's temporary home a member once posted that he buried railroad ties with the tops  at ground level to mount his engine and head and then built his shed over it.  With a twin and head tied together on a frame like your unit I would think that four ties cross ways and buried would keep it from moving around. Move the shed over top of them and then tie the floor to the ties, maybe add an extra sheet of 3/4 plywood over the floor and tie it all together with long lags?
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: BruceM on October 02, 2017, 03:21:39 PM
What is the floor construction on the portable building?  Plywood over floor joists?  That will make it more difficult to implement something like 38ac's suggestion, but it still might be possible.  Filling in the area where the engine will go with more joists, and another layer of plywood, perhaps.   A lean to added outside the building also comes to mind...with same buried RR ties perhaps.

Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: Tom on October 02, 2017, 05:48:20 PM
Just cut a hole of the desired size in the floor, form it in and pour a concrete block to mount the generator on. It's really not that big a deal to hand mix a yard or so of concrete by hand. The block preferably should not touch the floor of the shed.
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: dieselspanner on October 03, 2017, 07:13:58 AM
For what my 6 eggs are worth........

I'm a lazy sod, I learned years back, from a particularly evil sergeant called Robinson, do it once, do it right, so, taking the best of points from the previous posts

Work out where you want the CS to end up permanently, then knock up a concrete base, a cube or yard in your case!, ain't too hard and is cheap enough if you can get the gear in in bulk with a trailer, so you only have to move it once.

Put the conduit for the cables, exhuast fuel supply, as required in the base before you pour it.

Cover the cs with what ever it's under now

Whilst sorting out the new shed save, scrounge, steal the makings for an engine shed and build it around the CS as time and finance allow.

Easy on paper, ain't it!!

Cheers Stef

Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: cujet on October 04, 2017, 12:19:15 AM
A yard of concrete is 62ea, 60 pound bags. WELL beyond my physical capability. I can mix 3 or 5 bags, but that's about it. And a concrete truck is not really that expensive.

The idea of putting some pilings down is interesting. That is something I can do.
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: cujet on October 07, 2017, 05:35:51 PM
So these sheds use 2ea. 4x6 pressure treated skids, that sit on top of 4 inch thick 16x16 concrete footers. My thought was to pay for 1 or 2 additional skids and and get more footers. The lister location would have 2 skids directly underneath. With additional footers or poured sonotubes for the thing to rest on. That would support the weight without issue I think. The entire thing might resonate with the lister, rather than be quiet. But it is inexpensive.

Thoughts?

Addl skids and support directly under the lister should be strong enough. An example of how the floor is built:

(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_b94N237ubqI/RhHZfGqx-ZI/AAAAAAAAAFE/KOcg-l8ajPM/s320/storage+shed-barn-band+boards+and+joist+nailed+together.jpg)
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: LowGear on October 07, 2017, 07:03:16 PM
I'm with Tom - - - Kinda.  But then I think the railroad ties are interesting too.  Oh - oh.  How about a hybrid.  I've attached a photo of my barely mobile engine mounting system.  Wittes are pretty well balance up to about 1000 RPM.  I'm think that you should isolate the engine from the building too.

I just did the photos so they're still blurry.  The wheels are to facilitate moving.  The plan is to put it up on blocks whilst operating.

Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: Hugh Conway on October 07, 2017, 09:20:36 PM
@Cujet.....my $.02. No recommendation, just my experience.
We have a 6/1 Starto on an original steel base. The base is IIRC is about 20" wide and 48" long. The whole thing sat in a shed floor made of 2X6s on 16" centres with two layers of 1/2 ply on top as the floor surface. The 2X6 base sat on a bed of compacted sand. The engine was not intended to be operated there, it was there for a rebuild/reassembly.
Of course, when finished, I could not forego starting and running it. The steel base was oriented across the floor joists. It got about 20 hours of run time in that location. All it took to keep it in place was a bit of blocking to keep it in place, it was never bolted down. The upshot was that it was OK running on that floor. Made the shed vibrate and drum, but seemed happy enough to remain in that location if it were actually bolted down.

My Listeroid is sitting on 6X8 fir timbers that are in turn bolted to a block of concrete.........a different matter entirely

Cheers,
Hugh
Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: 32 coupe on October 08, 2017, 12:56:48 AM

2x10 for the beams....3 of them
2x8 for the floor joist.

2 layers 3/4" floor...
another sheet od 3/4" under the engine area....
spread the engine across 2 of the joist and install
some sort of isolation. I use rubber pads used under
a/c equipment. They are  about 2x2x 3/4 inch rubber that
comes in sheets and can be cut to size. I use 4 blocks of 4
under my engines when running.

Title: Re: installing 20/2 listeroid generator in shed
Post by: vdubnut62 on December 17, 2017, 01:27:18 AM
I'm sorta kinda with 32coupe, I think just double the floor and have at it.
Ron.