It's not that difficult to build a roller screen. In addition to a wheelbarrow, you need wooden slats, a mesh screen and some manual skills for the construction.
Rectangular screens are easier to build yourself
The base
Required material:
- two slats measuring 1.8 cm high x 5 cm wide x 100 cm long
- four slats measuring 1.8 cm high x 5 cm wide x 40 cm long
- countersunk screws
- a wheelbarrow
The slats create a rectangular frame that is placed over the wheelbarrow. The two longer wooden slats will later lie on the wheelbarrow. Two of the four 40 cm long slats are placed on top of each other and screwed. They serve as a support surface for the two 100 cm long wooden slats. To prevent the frame from slipping up and down, the slats must protrude beyond the wheelbarrow and be screwed to the shorter slats at the top and bottom. The shorter slats are screwed to the long wooden slats from below at a 45-degree angle, creating a frame construction.
The screen drum frame
Required material:
- two bike rims
- four wooden slats measuring 1.8 cm x 5 cm x 100 cm
- countersunk screws
The frame for the screening drum consists of four wooden slats that are attached to the bicycle rims. A cylinder should be created, which is limited at the top and bottom by the rims. Attach the wooden slats to the outside of the rims. Use the spoke holes to attach the battens with the countersunk screws. Distribute the wooden slats evenly so that two slats face each other on the rims.
The screening device
Required material:
- Expanded metal, 2 meters x 1 meter
- cable ties
- four casters that fit into the rims
- countersunk screws
Lay the expanded metal around the drum frame and connect the grille to the slats and rims with cable ties. The four rollers are screwed to the wooden frame for the wheelbarrow so that the screening drum can be placed on the rollers.
The operation
The drum screen is filled with compost and rotated by hand. The fine material falls through the mesh openings into the wheelbarrow, while coarse particles slide over the screen through the incline and fall into a collection bucket at the bottom of the wheelbarrow.