6 replies to this topic

[Mortartube]

I found this old film about what happens inside a ball mill at various speeds and loading, with or without grinding media added. It is interesting to note that the addition of powdered media seems to cause the balls to fly more violently as they leave the higher edge of the milling mass. I wonder if the same happens with BP?

http://www.youtube.c...feature=related

[Arthur Brown]

If only there was a volume indicator! Is there a way of making a mill run quietly?

[seymour]

Sure is! Over charge it... ...problem is, that stops it being efficient. To keep a mill efficient and quiet you are going to have to contain the noise. Some people have dug pits, placed their mill in the pit, placed a sheet of plywood over it and placed sandbags over the top, quite effectively blocking the noise. as I'm sure you can imagine there are many other structures which could work effectively to make things quiet in your neighborhood.

One thing to be aware of is the possibility of a motor overheating if placed in a confined mistake, potentially leading to a catastrophic failure. If you are going to make a sound reduction construction, ventilation should be your consideration.

Good luck Arthur!

[Arthur Brown]

With my "yard" being a solid six inch slab or concrete, I'll miss on the dig holes bit!

[seymour]

A very understandable decision Arthur!

You could however build an above ground sound reduction structure. I have found that even old carpet draped over a frame surrounding my mill reduced the sound considerably. I'm not familiar with your ball mill, but if there are any loose bits which can rattle, tightening/securing them should also reduce the sound. You really only want the cascading of the media to be producing sound.

Is this pad of concrete pristine, or does it have the signature burn marks and stains of the firework builder adorning its surface?

[Mumbles]

I've seen some pretty nice designs where the motor is separated from the milling area. The entire thing is in a cabinet, with a lid only over the milling area. Lining it with styrofoam insulation I have heard did a good job at containing the noise. You still get air circulation around the motor. There should be little more noise than the hum of the motor. You could probably just make a styrofoam box and put it over the jar if your mill is low to the ground. Heck, even a styrofoam cooler could work in a pinch.

[dr thrust]

ive made one in an insulted box with the milling jar only slightly warm after four hours of milling, once youve made the box you can place sand bags ect around the box for extra sound insulation, i had mine running last night at 10 pm! with only a slight humming, check out the video in the" noise reduction post" on the vid its a work in progress but now its finished and sand bagged