How Does a Trommel Screen Work?

People use screening equipment to separate different grades of material such as soil, gravel, mulch, and sand.  These machines work great when they are working with dry material, even if bits and pieces are large in size.  A notable weakness, however, is the difficulty that traditional screeners have with wet materials such as moist soil, wet sand, and compost.  These substances tend to clump together when they are wet, which reduces the efficiency of the machine.  In addition, moist material can clog up the machine and stick to the screen.  This can be difficult to dislodge and will cost a lot of time.  Fortunately, trommel screen sifters are available to make these tasks much simpler. 

A trommel is a screen that is curved into a cylinder.  The machine spins the cylindrical screen in order to sort through the material as it is fed through.  During this process, the wet material tumbles around.  Air is added and the soil, mulch, or sand becomes lighter and drier.  The tumbling action also allows maximum contact time with the screen so that the fine material gets through quickly.  A trommel screen can sort through dry substances quickly as well, even though it is designed with wet material specifically in mind. 

These sifters come in different sizes, but in general they are portable enough to be moved by truck.  This is very handy if you need to screen soil or mulch in more than one area of a homestead or if you need to move the machine to a different location entirely.  Due to the materials that trommel screens specialize in, they are particularly popular with landscapers and excavating contractors.  When things need to get done quickly, you cannot depend on your material being dry enough for a standard screening machine.  Every handyman knows the importance of bringing the right tool for the job. The bigger the job, the more important the tool. 

Cities can often find a lot of uses for screening machines.  Trommel machines are particularly useful because they can handle a variety of tasks with speed.  A quality screener pays for itself quickly when there are several tasks at hand.  They are a beast that can take on a lot of work, but be sure not to overfill the machine.  With a trommel, additional material beyond the designed capacity will only slow things down.  The surface area of the screen is the limiting factor, so clogging the center of the rotary with more dirt or mulch will not accomplish anything.  These machines are top notch quality, so it is important to remember that they should be allowed to work at their set pace.  Even if there is a lot of labor to be done, the trommel will cut through it at a healthy speed, so let it run its course. 

Like with many heavy duty machines, it is best to buy a trommel screen directly from a manufacturer.  Far and away, this will get you the best price.  By cutting out the middleman, you will also avoid all the overhead costs of a separate store and any salesman commissions.  You pay the freight costs, but you would be indirectly paying for that anyway.  The only issue with dealing directly with the manufacturer is that you need to do a bit of research.  Luckily, the internet has made this issue all but disappear.  Manufacturers that sell directly to customers have websites that explain the details of their products and provide informative videos and descriptions.  By comparing different screeners and companies, you can find the highest quality machines at the best possible prices.  If you are fairly good at performing online searches, the entire process will take less than an hour.  If you need to sift and sort wet materials, purchasing a trommel machine straight from the manufacturer is the way to go.