Sand Towers

[tetters]

I'm looking for information on Sand Towers. Specifically, older wood sand towers. i.e. how the locos were filled, where the hatches were/are located on locos, that kind of stuff.

Echoing complaints about the almighty Google and its endless supply of useless links, (perhaps we ask the wrong questions???) I'm hoping that some of the fine folks here can post some useful info and especially decent photos of these structures.

The plan in the near future for me is to build one of these structures as part of my loco facility on my layout. Weather it, show some of the old boards replaced with new ones to give it that "used" look.

The earliest set of plans I have are dated for 1945 so I could, I suppose, justify the presence of one on my 1950-60's layout era. I have not been able to come across any real detail on the construction of the sand pocket at the top nor the sway pipe which I could really use some design help on. Unfortunately while the CP Historical site tells me what plans I need, they do not have them in their data base.

Even if this is all just for my own interest and understanding on how it all fits together.

Also, I understand that the wet sand needed to be dried by a furnace in a small building underneath the tower, but how exactly did it get to the top? The plans I'm working from show a 2 1/2" pipe going up to the pocket, and a baffle on the ceiling directly over top of the pipe, so I am assuming that the dried sand was blown up there and stored until needed by a loco and fed to one via the sway pipe.

Thanks in advance!

[Will_Annand]

Tetters, they say a photo is worth 1000 words, have you tried doing a google search of Images.
I just tried using "Railroad Sand Tower" as my search, lots of photos showing them working.

[MasonJar]

Depending on the era you want, the description you gave is good. You describe a steam or early transition era installation, with "wet" sand delivered in open hoppers or gondolas, off-loaded into a storage facility (covered bin), then dried (usually in an attached closed building) on site and piped to a small elevated bin using the engine's own air pressure. From there, the sand is gravity fed to the sand dome on the engine. Road engines generally had one sand dome feeding sand in front of the drivers. Switchers sometimes had two domes, or at least piping to both the front and rear of the drivers.

Sometimes these facilities were integrated with a coaling tower, sometimes a stand alone.

More modern facilities have minimal equipment, as the sand is delivered dry in covered hoppers, and piped directly to the engine from the hopper spotted on an adjacent track.

Andrew

[tetters]

Tetters, they say a photo is worth 1000 words, have you tried doing a google search of Images.
I just tried using "Railroad Sand Tower" as my search, lots of photos showing them working.

I have to laugh. I typed in Sand Tower, Wood Sand Tower, Sand Tower Locomotive, Engine but not "railroad"... :oops: Even though the later did give me better results.

[Sumpter250]

If you can find a December 1958 Model Railroader, there's a construction article on a CP prototype wood sandhouse,and tower by Jack Work. This is a variation I did about 40 years ago:    
The original had the tower built on top of the drying shed/storage bin.

[tetters]

That is EXACTLY what I am looking for!!! Any chance you have a copy of that article? Perhaps send it to me??? Pretty PLEASE???!!!

BTW - That model is FANTASTIC!

[e-paw]

There are 3 books packed with pics and info :::
freight terminals & trains by John a. Droege Isbn #0-9647050-2-8
steam locomotive coaling stations and diesel locomotive fueling facilities by Thomas W. dixon, Jr. Isbn # 1-883089-77-8
locomotive terminals & railroad structures (carstens publications) Isbn# 911868-98-4
Tuns of info, I own them and think they're great.