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Branch Line Creameries


Seanem44
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I tend to agree with John - the only photo i have seen  of this, is one at St Erth, where the creamery worker is seen standing on the access catwalk of a tanker and is holding  a thin vertical flexible white pipe connecting to what appears to be a run of stainless steel pipework routed into the building.There seems to be some sort of cover over the open tank filler, with the white pipe inserted through a small aperture in it.

Regards

SIGTECH

Steve.

St. Erth Creamery..jpg

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Lovely shot of St Erth. I am quite prepared to be mistaken but the fact that pipe is going in through the manhole suggests to me that this tanks is being washed out rather than filled. I don't think that the manholes were used for filling.

 

However it does show the kind of pipework the previous poster was interested in. So white and lightweight seems to be in order.

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11 minutes ago, Joseph_Pestell said:

Semley had a pipe running overhead across Station Road (an unadopted road back then) from the dairy to the tanker loading siding.

 

Well remembered.

 

05bdbc_544fce4da6c54b5e92218010ccfab692.

 

Uttoxeter had a similar arrangement with a lightweight trellis supporting the pipework across both the road and a brook to reach the railway siding.

 

800px-Uttoxeter_railway_station_geograph

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You could be correct Karhedron. There is evidence of water all around the wheels of this tanker (which is also chocked at its wheels) and it is standing on a concrete apron, so obviously has had a washout.

Regards,

sigtech

Steve.

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19 minutes ago, Karhedron said:

Lovely shot of St Erth. I am quite prepared to be mistaken but the fact that pipe is going in through the manhole suggests to me that this tanks is being washed out rather than filled. I don't think that the manholes were used for filling.

 

This would make sense; the inlet pipe probably turned through 90deg (or fed a deflector like a sprinkler system) just inside to direct the flow onto the inner surface of the tank, so most of it would cling by surface tension and run down to the bottom.  Directing a jet straight into the tank would froth the milk uncontrollably and way before hitting full capacity would be overflowing everywhere.  You would also risk curdling the milk, meaning the whole tank would be rejected.

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Thanks for posting those pics Karhedron.  I found the last picture earlier today and it seems to about the best one so far.  It is still hard to get a feel for the overall layout.  A schematic drawing would be ideal I think.

 

I am not frantic about this and at some point I will put my leetle grey cells to work to come up with something plausible.  Such a lot to do in the meantime.

 

John

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On 21/09/2020 at 18:32, brossard said:

Some marvellous pictures in this thread.  However, I have never seen any sort of discussion about the piping layout for dairies/creameries to get the milk into the tanks.  There are tantalizing hints here and there but not enough info for me to work out how it looked.

 

This may answer your question, this is a photo of the MMB creamery at Green Grove near Felin Fach on Aberaeron branch in 1963. There are 4 sets of slim pipes poking out over the line from the loading point.

 

Grove Green Siding (MMB Depot), 13 Nov 1963

 

Now I can't say for sure they were for milk rather water for rinsing out. They are also over the concrete apron so possibly that is the cleaning point. However it is the clearest photo I have seen showing the pipework on a creamery similar to one you have constructed. This photo shows the view west.

 

The photo below shows the view east where there was another door. However there is no pipework visible here and no concrete apron.  I think this second entrance at the eastern end was for goods coming in by rail. Notably it is right next the boiler house which would make sense if coal was brought in by rail to provide power. So I think goods came in the eastern end, milk was pumped out at the western end and raw milk in churns came to the front of the creamery on the other side from the line.

 

Grove Green Siding (MMB Depot), 13 Nov 1963

 

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It looks like there  is also some kind of capstan arrangement for hauling individual tanks along. I see four bollards equally spaced between the running line and the siding, with a larger, possibly motorised drive between the second and third.

Regards

Sigtech

Steve.

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3 hours ago, Karhedron said:

This may answer your question, this is a photo of the MMB creamery at Green Grove near Felin Fach on Aberaeron branch in 1963. There are 4 sets of slim pipes poking out over the line from the loading point.

 

Grove Green Siding (MMB Depot), 13 Nov 1963

 

Now I can't say for sure they were for milk rather water for rinsing out. They are also over the concrete apron so possibly that is the cleaning point. However it is the clearest photo I have seen showing the pipework on a creamery similar to one you have constructed. This photo shows the view west.

 

I remember the (lorry) tank rinsing apron at Whitland being on concrete, but then the whole area was.  It is just as likely that the tank filling area at Golden Grove had such a pad; even back then the MMB probably tried to avoid spilled milk entering watercourses so that pad will drain to the water treatment plant.

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Could they have used the same pipes for both filling and rinsing? It would be cheaper, require less space for wagons and no need to move wagons between operations. I cannot off hand think of a reason not to at a small creamery (at larger ones you might want to be rinsing one set of wagon whilst filling another).

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4 hours ago, F2Andy said:

Could they have used the same pipes for both filling and rinsing? It would be cheaper, require less space for wagons and no need to move wagons between operations. I cannot off hand think of a reason not to at a small creamery (at larger ones you might want to be rinsing one set of wagon whilst filling another).

And presumably the pipes themselves would get an automatic rinse from their dual use. 

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  • 1 month later...

Fascinating stuff ....I ought to know the answers to it ,as I worked in the MMB Movements dept 1972 to 1994 and was the person who sold the last Milk Tankers for scrap . Im researching a dairy layout for my coarse scale 0 gauge layout .

 

 

The trouble is that it was a long time ago and memories are fuzzy !    Bruce

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Don't worry Bruce. It is one thing to work in movements, it is quite another to remember the minutia of how tanks were filled at individual facilities.

 

Having said that, if you do recall any interesting details, there are plenty of us who would love to hear them. :)

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  • 3 weeks later...

Just came across this nice shot. Definitely showing top-filling in progress rather than just washing out. Once more, there are slim pipes over the tanks that look like they might be retractable.

 

I am not completely sure but I think it is the United Dairies creamery at Ecton on the Leek and Manifold line.

 

http://www.bpodmore.co.uk/images/milk_tank1.jpg

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6 hours ago, Karhedron said:

Just came across this nice shot. Definitely showing top-filling in progress rather than just washing out. Once more, there are slim pipes over the tanks that look like they might be retractable.

 

I am not completely sure but I think it is the United Dairies creamery at Ecton on the Leek and Manifold line.

 

http://www.bpodmore.co.uk/images/milk_tank1.jpg

Definitely Ecton, if you look carefully you can see that the tankers are on transporter wagons.

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