Chip crushers: types, prices and application features

Wood chips are a highly sought after material that is suitable for a variety of applications.

It is obtained mainly as waste from wood processing.

The types of wood chips for different applications, which are determined by the shape, size and type of wood, can vary greatly.

In this article we will talk about the various equipment that is used to produce wood chips.

We will also talk about the influence of the type and configuration of equipment on the characteristics of chips.

Application of chippers, wood crushers

Drum and disk crushers are used for processing substandard wood, large branches, organic waste and other waste generated during economic activities. The resulting fine-grained material is a valuable raw material and can be used in the production of fuel briquettes, particle boards, and building blocks. An additional advantage is the absence of the need for constant waste combustion, as well as the ability to work even in a limited space, for example, within a dense forest or woodworking workshop.

What to look for when choosing?

Here are some important points to consider when choosing a wood chipper:

• Purpose of use . When purchasing equipment for a summer cottage or personal plot, there is no need to purchase professional crushers. They are very expensive, and their power is excessive. A regular household wood chipper will suffice.
• Engine's type . Please note that gasoline and diesel crushers are much more autonomous than electric ones. You can work with them anywhere, including away from home. But electrical equipment requires a connection to a household power supply. However, if you do not plan to use the unit outside your garden plot, you can limit yourself to an electric one.
• Principle of operation . It is believed that a screw crusher is most suitable for a summer residence. It is capable of processing thicker branches and functions more stably, unlike a knife one.
• Build quality . All parts and components of the unit must be tightly fitted to each other, their fastening must be reliable. This is very important because the crusher has parts that rotate at high speed and can cause injury if broken.
• Manufacturer . Today, crushers from a variety of manufacturers are available on the market. There are both expensive devices from world-famous brands and cheap Chinese devices. Obviously, the former are more expensive than the latter, but they are distinguished by higher quality, reliability, and maintainability.

The price range among crushers is very high. But we do not recommend saving on equipment. Everyone knows the proverb that says: “the miser pays twice.” A cheap Chinese device most likely will not last long and will not be stable. However, this does not mean that you have to overpay. If you do not have the opportunity to buy an expensive unit, it is better to purchase equipment in the mid-price category. It will not require overpayment for the brand, but at the same time it will be of high quality and reliable.

Disc crusher (chipper) for wood

The design of a wood disc crusher is relatively simple. Used for crushing branches, wood trunks with an average diameter of 16 to 25 cm, and slabs. For work, a single or double disk with a diameter of up to 100 cm made of steel is used. In different models, from 2 to 4 knives are installed in special pockets. Raw materials are supplied using manual or hydraulic feeding. When feeding manually, the raw materials fall directly under the knife. This type of machine is considered budgetary, but it has lower productivity compared to other types of crushers.

There are disc wood crushers either using a tractor power take-off shaft (the most affordable option) or with their own engine.

Equipment for the production of

Equipment that is suitable for producing wood chips includes :

• drum chipper;
• rotary chopper;
• hammer crusher;
• shredder

Drum chipper

This is a multifunctional unit that is used both for producing wood chips and for producing various types of shavings.
The basis of this machine is a drum with a diameter of 30–150 cm, on which 4–8 cutting and 4–20 separating knives are installed .

In addition, the machine is equipped with a drive that feeds the wood to the drum and prevents it from flying out.

If, after separation from the total mass of wood, the chips are too large in size, then the knives drag them along the sieve until they either split or are cut by additional knives mounted on the body.

The size of the finished product depends on:

• drum diameter;
• number of knives;
• wood feed speed;
• drum rotation speed;
• angle of entry of knives into wood.

The larger the diameter of the drum, the more time passes between cuts at the same rotation speed, which means the thicker the cut material will be.

In the same way, the thickness of the material is also affected by the number of knives , so if it is necessary to obtain thick chips, half of the knives are removed (every other one, so as not to upset the balance).

feed speed and drum rotation speed on cheap machines are not adjustable , but on homemade or expensive devices this is possible, thanks to which you can change the size of the chopped wood within a wide range.

The angle of entry of the knives into the wood determines the size and shape of the finished product. When it is 90 degrees, that is, the wood fits right in the center of the drum, then the cut occurs strictly along the grain.

Moreover, first, separating knives act on the wood, cutting deep vertical stripes in it, then cutting, separating a thin layer , which immediately falls apart into strips , the width of which is equal to the distance between the separating knives.

Due to their small thickness, these strips break into narrow fragments corresponding to annual rings, because the strength of the connection of the wheels to each other is much lower than the strength of the wood inside one ring.

As the angle of entry of the knives into the wood decreases, the shape of the final product also changes.

After all, the smaller the entry angle, the greater the length of the annual layer caught in the cut fragment, which means the greater the width of the piece separated from the cut plate.

In this case, the thickness of each piece turns out to be noticeably less than its width , due to which the shape of the finished material fully satisfies the requirements for wood chips for the production of wood concrete.

Therefore, by changing these parameters, it is possible to obtain both wide chips suitable for the production of OSB and chips similar to rectangular chips for smoking or infusing alcohol.

The drum chipper can process any long wood whose diameter does not exceed the throughput capacity of the unit.

Therefore, most often the machine is used for chopping round wood, that is, debarked or unbarked trunks and thick branches.

In addition, the machine is also suitable for shredding long scraps , however, there is a limitation on the minimum thickness due to the peculiarities of the feed mechanism.

This unit is not suitable for processing used boards and logs , because an undetected nail will damage the knives and sharply reduce the efficiency of the mechanism.

Rotary chopper

The basis of this device is a heavy and thick rotor , which acts as a flywheel and is a platform for installing knives (usually 3 pieces).

The wood is fed through a special chute at an angle of 50–80 degrees, which increases the width of the cut annual rings, and hence the size of the crushed product. A counter knife is installed between the rotor and the housing on the wood entry side , facilitating the operation of the device.

After all, a chopping knife moving from above and a counter-knife fixedly mounted on the body create an analogue of scissors and not only increase cutting efficiency, but also eliminate wood from being pulled under the rotor and jamming of the unit.

Typically, such a grinder is used in tandem with a hammer crusher, installing them in a common housing. This combination completely eliminates the plates with several undivided growth rings, resulting in a needle-shaped finished product.

If there are no strict requirements for the shape and width of the chips, then a rotary chopper is used without a hammer crusher.

The main purpose of this device is processing cut branches , which is why such devices are often called garden shredders.

The unit is also suitable for processing thin trunks and various scraps of any length, the only limitation is related to the cross-section of the wood. After all, the gutter rests on a window with a relatively small cross-section (from 10x10 cm for garden ones and up to 30x30 cm for industrial ones).

Hammer chip crusher

This apparatus consists of a shaft with support disks, between which there are fingers that hold hammers, that is, rectangular steel plates that rotate freely around their axis.
Also, fender plates are welded to the shaft.

When the rotor disk has completely spun and its rotation speed has become constant, the hammers , due to the action of centrifugal force, form a three-rayed star .

Any change in the rotation speed also leads to a change in the position of the hammers, so they hit the impact plates designed for this purpose either in front of them or behind them. Moreover, the impact force is sufficient to separate the wood along the boundary of the annual rings, but not sufficient to damage the fibers.

Typically, such a crusher is used in conjunction with a rotary shredder , because the impact energy of the fingers is not enough to separate large fragments of wood.

Therefore, most often a complex consisting of a shredder and a crusher is used for the production of wood chips.

Indeed, despite the extremely low cost compared to a drum machine or shredder, such a complex produces chips that, in their size and shape, are ideal for the production of wood concrete.

Shredder

Devices of this type consist of a shaft with special hooks or teeth that pass through grooves intended for them. When wood of any shape enters the work area of ​​the shredder, the hooks crush and break it into pieces the width of which is equal to the width of the hooks.

Twin-shaft units are more efficient , because each shaft is both moving in one row and grooves in another row.
Thanks to the enormous torque with which the shaft rotates, the shredder easily crushes wood of any species .

Even a nail caught under the hooks does not affect their condition, because the shredder’s teeth do not cut or plane, but crush the wood, so small defects on their surface do not affect the result in any way.

More expensive and modern models of shredders are equipped with various systems that correctly position the wood, because the size and shape of the chips directly depend on the position of the wood relative to the shafts .

When the wood fibers are located along the shafts, crushing occurs at the joints of the rings, and the chips are of maximum quality. If the material enters the chipper as it turns out, then the chips turn out to be of different types.

Drum crushers for wood

They benefit in productivity compared to disk-type chippers. Accordingly, they require a larger engine. Drum crushers (chips) for wood can be powered by a diesel engine, a power take-off shaft, or an electric motor.

The retraction power unit is made in the form of a pair of drums with spikes. Feeding can be done manually or using a manipulator.

A more convenient scheme can also be implemented. The pressing drum with spikes is located on top, and the raw material is fed by a belt with spikes from below

What is she like?

A wood chipper is a unit designed for chopping wood . It has found application in logging and woodworking, in homestead farming and in breeding farm animals. In the first two cases, the device is usually used for disposal or recycling of waste and garbage. In the second - for the preparation of feed (goats and rabbits like to eat chopped branches of some tree species).

Types

Wood crushers are divided into several types according to certain criteria.

Depending on the scope of use, they can be professional or household. Professional ones are much larger and more powerful, sometimes combined on the same platform with a truck. Units for summer cottages and household plots are quite small, they are convenient to store in utility rooms (or even on the balcony) and transport in a car. Also, as an independent type, we can distinguish a feed crusher designed for grinding feed. It is very similar to the household one, but differs from it in the size of the dispersion obtained at the output - it is partially optimal for consumption by pets.

According to the mechanism of crushing material, crushers are divided into the following types:

• Knife . The branches are crushed in it due to rapidly rotating disc blades. Most often, such a mechanism is used in household equipment, since it is not capable of chopping branches thicker than 40 - 45 mm.
• Auger . The wood is crushed in such a unit using a special shaft called an auger. Passing between the shaft and the guide, the branches are literally crushed, turning into a mushy mass.
• Hammer . A wood hammer crusher crushes wood by striking a metal block (or several blocks). The mechanism is quite voluminous and is capable of crushing even whole tree trunks. This led to its use in the logging industry.
• Cheek . Consist of a movable and fixed cheek. The movable presses the material being processed against the stationary one and exerts strong pressure on it. As a result, the wood is flattened and crushed. Mainly used in the professional field.
• Conical . The basis of the mechanism is a glass and a movable cone-shaped finger. The wood is placed in a glass, the finger moves and crushes it.

Depending on their ability to be transported, units are divided into mobile and stationary. The former are either a compact device or a unit on wheels that can be transported from place to place using a car. They can also be made on the same platform as a truck, in the form of a self-propelled vehicle. The latter are installed in one place for a long time.

Expert opinion

Levin Dmitry Konstantinovich

For a summer residence, it is best to choose a small mobile crusher. This will allow you to easily transport it to your apartment for storage at the end of the warm season using your personal car.

According to the type of power supply, wood crushers can be:

1-Fuel powered crusher 2-Electric crusher

• Gasoline or diesel.

• Electric.

Manual crushers are designed for domestic use and are driven by the muscular power of the person who works with them. Gasoline and diesel engines can be both professional and household. They are powered by an internal combustion engine. Electric ones operate using an electric motor, powered from a household electrical network with a voltage of 220/230 V. This type of crushers has found application both in the professional sphere and in everyday life.

Please note that gasoline and diesel crushers are very noisy, so working with them is not very comfortable. But electric ones produce much less noise during operation, although it is also quite noticeable.

Garden wood shredders

Branches, bushes, and dried grass are collected at the dacha and garden plot. They need to be disposed of. A wood chipper can make your work easier. The advantages of the equipment are:

• Small dimensions.
• The finished raw materials can be used as fertilizer.
• Efficiency.
• Low energy or fuel consumption.

The choice of unit depends on the size of the site and the volume of work. Equipment for recycling wood waste is produced by manufacturers from different countries. One of the disadvantages is the high cost.

Russian industry produces shredders at affordable prices. If the installation is needed for seasonal use at a summer cottage, it can be rented.

Technical capabilities

The garden unit can be equipped with an electric or gasoline engine. Equipment that consumes electrical energy is silent in operation, light in weight, and small in size. But the need to have a power source on hand makes it not always convenient to use.

A gasoline shredder is more bulky and noisy during operation, but it can be used in any corner of the garden. It is more powerful than electrical equipment and processes a larger volume of wood.

Can I do it myself?

You can make the simplest household crusher yourself!
For this you will need:

• Electric motor.
• Transmission belt.
• Table base.
• Two transfer wheels.

• Casing.
• Disc knives or auger.
• Steel shaft.
• Bearings.
• Steel staples.

The transmission wheels and knives (auger) are attached to the shaft, and the shaft itself is attached to the table using steel brackets. Bearings must be included in the design to avoid friction of the shaft on the brackets. The table can be welded from metal or made from wood. A second wheel is attached to the electric motor, secured to the bottom of the table, and the motor wheel is connected to the shaft wheel. A casing is secured around the knives.

Expert opinion

Levin Dmitry Konstantinovich

The casing can be made of galvanized iron, connecting it with rivets, but such a design will not be very reliable. The best solution is to weld it from sheet steel. This is also more preferable because in this case the casing can be given almost any shape. The casing must have a high socket for feeding wood and a hole for waste.

What kind of wood chipper do you use?

GasolineElectric

Safety precautions

Be aware of safety when working with a wood chipper. Below are some recommended safety tips:

1. Be sure to read the operating instructions before operating any equipment.
2. Use the parking brake. This ensures that unexpected situations do not arise where the machine begins to move unintentionally.
3. Wear safety glasses to prevent small debris from getting into your eyes.
4. Wear clothes that fit your body to prevent being pulled into the car.
5. Wear gloves to protect your hands.
6. Children and animals should be kept away from the machine.
7. Do not try to knock out tree branches while the machine is running.
8. You cannot grind non-wood materials (stones, metal, plastic, textiles, etc.) in the machine.

Removing dead tree branches and trimming shrubs can create tons of debris. Using a shredder will easily solve this problem. Wood grinding machines are now widely used in the textile, paper, suspension and wood processing industries, as well as for the production of wood pellets. These machines have no special raw material requirements and can process logs, peeled tree shoots, bamboo and fallen branches.

Requirements for wood chippers

To ensure that the installation meets the owner’s wishes, when choosing, you need to pay attention to the following parameters:

• power and performance level;
• degree of noise;
• operational purpose;
• equipment weight;
• design of working elements;
• dimensions of the opening for loading raw materials.

In a small area where professional tree shredders are not needed, a household installation is used. If areas where mature plants grow are being processed, then using a device with high power is justified.

Equipment size is related to power. The more powerful, the more cumbersome the unit will be.

The variety of types allows you to choose the installation. Taking into account all the parameters, you can find a unit for processing thin branches or thick logs into wood chips, sawdust or shavings.

By using a wood shredder, you will be able to avoid the loss of valuable raw materials needed for recycling in the form of paper, cardboard or furniture boards.

Working principle of wood chipper

The unit turns wood waste into chips or granules of the same size. By crushing, a suspension from 0.6 cm to larger pieces is obtained. Grinding produces granules smaller than 0.5 cm.

There are several principles by which grinding occurs:

• Bending and breaking of raw materials.
• Trituration.
• Grinding with a strong blow.
• Fixation of raw materials with shift.
• Compression with crushing.
• Splitting and grinding.

The processing process involves capturing wood with toothed shafts. It is transferred to the grinding chamber. Through outlet sleeves, the finished raw materials are placed into containers.

Best models

Below is a short ranking of the six best wood chippers. It contains both professional equipment intended for use in logging and feed processing, as well as devices for a summer cottage or garden plot.

Atlas Copco PC1055J

This is a professional level crusher for logging work. It is a self-propelled tracked vehicle weighing one and a half tons, equipped with a SAT diesel engine with a capacity of 250 horsepower.

The crushing mechanism is jaw crushing with hydraulic adjustment of the compression force of the processed material. The entrance hole is rectangles, one side of which is 100 centimeters, and the other is 50 centimeters. This allows the unit to be used for chopping the trunks of young trees, shrubs, and pre-prepared large trunks.

Atlas Copco PC1055J weighs 33 tons, the length of the machine is 5.5 meters, the width is 2 meters. A new crusher costs about 8,000,000 rubles. However, used cars can be purchased at a price within 1,000,000 rubles.

DM-T

DM-T is an inexpensive stationary wood crusher of domestic production. Moving is not provided: the unit is fixed to the floor using screws or bolts.

This model is best suited for domestic use or for small wood processing enterprises (for example, a sawmill, a carpentry workshop).

The DM-T weighs half a ton, the length of the unit is 1.4 meters, the width is 0.7 meters. The operating mechanism is hammer.

It can be bought for 50,000 – 60,000 rubles. The device runs on electricity.

SKORPION 120 R

SKORPION 120 R is a universal mobile crusher. It can be transported as a trailer on a truck or as an attachment on a tractor (for this, the wheels are replaced with a special rack).

The SKORPION 120 R is powered by a Lambardini petrol engine with 28.5 horsepower. The grinding system is knife. In total, the design includes four knives: two main and two additional (they chop what the main ones couldn’t handle).

You can chop shrubs, medium-sized tree trunks, and pre-prepared wood material.

The average cost of SKORPION 120 R is 1,300,000 rubles.

RM-520

Domestic stationary wood crusher. Unlike the DM-T described above, the RM-520 is equipped with a gasoline engine from the Chinese company Lifan, as well as a special socket for discharging chopped wood.

The grinding system is auger. At the same time, the PM-250 auger shafts are equipped with special teeth, which make it possible to grind the processed material to a state close to sawdust.

Despite the fact that the RM-250 is a stationary device, it can be easily transported in the back of a truck. This makes the device very convenient for clearing bushes from power lines, railway embankments, and roadsides.

The crusher is one and a half meters long and 0.7 meters wide. The mass of the unit is 350 kilograms.

The cost of PM-250 on the Russian market varies greatly. A new device costs about 700,000 rubles. However, on the secondary market this model can be purchased for less than 100,000 rubles.

STIGA BIO SILENT 2500

STIGA BIO SILENT 2500 is a household wood chipper. Due to its size, it is perfect for a summer house or homestead. It cannot be used for professional purposes. This is due to the fact that the device can only process branches with a diameter of up to 40 mm.

STIGA BIO SILENT 2500 operates from a household power supply voltage of 220/230 V. The power of the device’s electric motor is 2,500 Watts. Weight – 27.5 kilograms. This makes it easier to transport the device. The set includes a special container for recycled wood with a capacity of 60 liters. The branch processing system is auger.

The average cost of STIGA BIO SILENT 2500 is 15,000 rubles.

CALIBER ESI-2400N

CALIBER ESI-2400N is an ultra-compact garden wood chipper of domestic production. It operates from an electrical network with a voltage of 220/230 V. The grinding system is knife-type. Thanks to its light weight and small dimensions, CALIBR ESI-2400N can be easily transported in a car and stored on the balcony of a city apartment.

Engine power CALIBER ESI-2400N – 2,400 Watts. The maximum diameter of processed branches is 40 mm. There is no waste container. For transportation within the personal plot, the device has two wheels. There is also a metal stop that is used during operation.

A distinctive feature of CALIBR ESI-2400N is its low price. It ranges from 7,000 to 8,000 rubles.