• Spring 2024 meetup in Calgary - tentative date Saturday, April 20/2024. Other regions are also discussing meet ups. If you want one in your area get going on organizing it! discussion
  • We are having email/registration problems again. Diagnosis is underway. New users sorry if you are having trouble getting registered. We are exploring different options to get registered. Contact the forum via another member or on facebook if you're stuck. Update -> we think it is fixed. Let us know if not.
  • Spring meet up in Ontario, April 6/2024. NEW LOCATION See Post #31 Discussion NEW LOCATION

Hangar door suggestions

Tecnico

(Dave)
One thing I think should be designed into any large overhead (as opposed to horizontally sliding) door is a brake system in case the lifting mechanism fails. My electrically operated vlb door has a brake in case power fails. I'm not sure how one would go about a brake system with a hydraulic system if a hose busted, maybe a flow control device? I imagine the commercially made hydraulic lift systems have something but I do not know what that is.
@DPittman Good point! There are hydraulic valves which mount on cylinders to provide fail to safe conditions should a hose etc. fail, I can't recall what they're called right now. The basics are that with no pressure in any line, the valve blocks flow to and from the cylinder. To move the cylinder either way a positive pressure is required to release the valve.

D:cool:
 
Last edited:

ShawnR

Ultra Member
Premium Member
One thing I think should be designed into any large overhead (as opposed to horizontally sliding) door is a brake system in case the lifting mechanism fails. My electrically operated vlb door has a brake in case power fails. I'm not sure how one would go about a brake system with a hydraulic system if a hose busted, maybe a flow control device? I imagine the commercially made hydraulic lift systems have something but I do not know what that is.
Yes, one reason (of many) that as much as I would like to build the vertical bifold, I was stumbling on a brake system. Simplest would be a belay system but a solenoid on a brake shoe would be a fun project and not too difficult I don't think.

Another vote for Horizontal bi fold. Not as cool but simpler, cheaper, safer, quicker ....

 

ShawnR

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Please take my comments as not entirely analytical but indicative without hitting the (code) books. Here is one example of something to compare to without doing any math.

At our flying club they have some Tee hangers in a continuous building and when they had a structural engineer look at it for insurance purposes they wound up replacing the engineered (wooden) truss over the (sliding) doors with I think a 22 inch steel I-beam.

At first I thought it looked excessive but I was assured that when you drill down into the building codes (legally not binding on an airport but your insurer may insist anyway) the strength is needed for things like snow load and maximum deflection. The company that made your truss may be able to give you a load rating/application sheet that would give some useful data too.

In the end, you pays yer money & takes yer chances but your desire to learn a bit is a good way to stack the deck in your favor.


D:cool:
Makes sense. Looking more closely at the photos I took, I see that some improvements could be made to the center beam too. Luckily, I have 14 foot steel I beams that yearn for a purpose. This might be one. I am still getting acquainted with the project.
 
Why I said undersize is you seem to have some sag in the roof line.

Age and snow loading maybe. Rot maybe.

Check it out, 40ft is a long span. Even with light loading cause extreme stresses in members.

Depending on how your hangs and what it weighs can over stress what is there.

Do your homework or at least video it so we can get a chuckle if it fails ;).
 

historicalarms

Ultra Member
Im with Degen on this one, if you already have roof sag without door weight or snow, your already at a safety thresh-hold. It is quite simple to build a door header with conventional dimensioned lumber. stand a bunch of 2 x6 or 2x8's side by side & nail (as in "spiked") together to form a solid wood standard for both sides of the door then do the same with a bunch of 16 footers bolted or nailed together with the joints of each length offset that will solidly perch on top the sides you built. if the 40 ft span of nailed together planks worries you , you could bridge that with another set.
Its an easy one man job to build the header but one heavy enough for a 40 ft span is gonna take some power lift assistance to put in place. I did one myself for a 20 ft span door but your in a whole different ball park with 40 ft.
 

ShawnR

Ultra Member
Premium Member
As for the hangar, I have a had a couple of days from the house reno to work on the hangar. Both sides had rotten rail ties supporting the walls and the East wall even had a rotten bottom plate. That side was fixed up yesterday. It is interesting to lift and brace (apparently, when one jacks a wall holding a 40' truss, using a Jack-all, the wall wants to deflect away .....who woulda thunk?...:) ) I winched the lower part of the door to an upper ceiling rafter and that seemed to hold the wall in. The west wall plate was not as bad but I found one tie under it was very rotten and the one under that one was solid, but very misaligned. Probably doing a few little things when this structure was built might have gone a long way in a better structure today, but it is what it is. It has been an interesting project. I have yet to finalize my door design but going with bifolds. Not sure how many panels per side yet. 4 make a nice number, easily supported but 5' wide doors. 5 make nice 4x8 panels that play nice with a 4x8 sheet of plywood, but one end will not be supported by the track unless I come up with a quick release gadget. As mentioned above, smaller doors put less strain on the hinges. Or toying with 4 panels on one side and 6 on the other. My OCD struggles with that but it is practical. Fully supported doors that result in the same opening. Just the part is not centered in the middle. For this little plane, the doors do not need to be fully opened anyways but still, ...
 

ShawnR

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Looking good but is that a stuffed mouse head under the nose?

lol..yes...a slipper actually. Came with the plane. Something to block the air intake from critters nesting, but it has been such a conversation starter, I might just keep it.

Remove before flight.

;)
 

Susquatch

Ultra Member
Administrator
Moderator
Premium Member
@ShawnR - How does one get certified to fly a single seat plane like that?

Or is it just that the test pilot in the photo is just so big that the instructor has to be a tiny little pint size?

Cute little plane!

Range?
Flying Speed?
Top Speed?
Cargo Capacity?
Stunt Capability?
Engine?
 

ShawnR

Ultra Member
Premium Member
Or is it just that the test pilot in the photo is just so big that the instructor has to be a tiny little pint size?
lol....

It is a 2 seater, tandem aka front and back seating, like a Piper cub aircraft

Certification is a pilot's license. Nothing special about the plane. Any single engine private or rec license will suffice. Not ultralight though.

Range depends on winds. ie at no wind conditions, landing on fumes, hopefully at an airport, would be about 600 miles in 4 hours. Probably more but I would not even go that far. Bladder will want a break and the back a stretch after sitting in it for that long. In-cabin service sucks. I won't know how comfortable or uncomfortable it is till next season, probably. Upholstery is on the to do list.

It should easily cruise around 150 mph, more like 150 knots. When Jeff (seller) brought it here last week, he sent me a photo of his GPS showing 187 knots ground speed. Probably a bit of a tail wind. Regina to Thunder Bay was 4 hours in the air.

Cargo is only about 50 lbs and it goes behind a panel behind the rear passenger.

For aerobatics, loops, rolls, wingovers, just basic maneuvers, which will be more than I will be comfortable with! Not continuous inverted flight though. Fuel and oil system not designed for that but as long as the maneuvers maintain a positive G, fluids will still flow. I see them as confidence builders and to teach how to get out of adverse conditions rather than something I will be doing for fun, but I never know what I will be interested in come next week so time will tell. The engine is a Lycoming O-360 at 180 hp. Gross weight on the plane is 1500 lbs. Attached is a screen shot of some of the specs from the kit manufacturer's website.

Thanks for the interest. I know this is not an aviation forum but also that there are some pilots here, so, hopefully, a bit of interest.

Cheers,
 

Attachments

  • Specs photo.jpg
    Specs photo.jpg
    365.2 KB · Views: 9

Susquatch

Ultra Member
Administrator
Moderator
Premium Member
Thanks for the interest. I know this is not an aviation forum but also that there are some pilots here, so, hopefully, a bit of interest.

Hey, I'm no pilot. But I am keenly interested! Thanks for the info.

I once dreamed of building a Seawind amphibious 4 seat. Then discovered that getting a license to fly it required spin training. The dream died that same day.

The dream may be dead, but still lots of love in my heart. I have one top-notch gaming computer dedicated to Microsoft Flight Simulator (MSFS). I just pretend I'm flying now. But MSFS let's me takeoff and land on my own farm and also fly to northern lakes or cottages.

Where is your airfield? Maybe I'll fly up there and visit next time the weather permits....... LOL!
 
Top