In Galveston, Texas, low oxygen levels in the water resulted in thousands of dead fish washing ashore. In addition to their regular litter-removing uses, beach and sand cleaners have been used to clean up after natural disasters. By removing litter, unwanted seaweed, and other debris from the beach, municipalities and resorts are able to maintain their beaches with fewer invested hours. Sand cleaning machines are used all over the world for the purpose of the safety and happiness of beach-goers. Areas of operation īeach volleyball field after rework of a sand cleaner
S AND S CLEANERS MANUAL
The effort to manually agitate the sand can become tiresome however, a recent development of a battery-powered sand rake combines the spot cleaning effectiveness of manual screening with the ease of an auto-sifting hand tool. A more efficient method is the use of a screened fork at the place where the debris is located. While effective, it requires the movement of sand to the site of the tray, and then redistribution of the sand after sifting. Sand and debris is collected into a windrow or pile and manually shoveled onto screened sifting trays to separate the debris from the sand. Sand sifting by hand This is used for smaller areas or sensitive habitat. Once on the screen, combined raking and sifting machines use the same technology as normal sifters to remove unwanted debris from the sand. The tines' position can be adjusted to more effectively guide different-sized materials onto the screen. Combined raking and sifting technology This differs from pure sifting in that it uses rotating tines to scoop sand and debris onto a vibrating screen instead of relying simply on the pick-up blade. The size of the materials removed is governed by the size of the holes in the installed screen. Because sand and waste are lifted onto the screening belt, sifters must allow time for the sand to sift through the screen and back onto the beach. The waste is gathered in a collecting tray which is often situated at the back of the vehicle. The sand and waste are collected via the pick-up blade of the vehicle onto a vibrating screening belt, which leaves the sand behind. Sifting technology This is practiced on dry sand and soft surfaces. By keeping the sand on the beach and only lifting the debris, raking machines can travel at high speeds. Raking machines can remove materials ranging in size from small pebbles, shards of glass, and cigarette butts to larger debris, like seaweed and driftwood. When using this method, a rotating conveyor belt containing hundreds of offset tines combs through the sand and removes surface and buried debris while leaving the sand on the beach. Ĭommon technologies Raking technology This can be used on dry or wet sand. The word "sandboni" is a back-formation referencing the ice-surfacing machine Zamboni. Similar applications include lake beaches, sandfields for beach volleyball and kindergarten and playing field sandpits. Beach cleaning machines work by collecting sand by way of a scoop or drag mechanism and then raking or sifting anything large enough to be considered foreign matter, including sticks, stones, litter and other items. A chief task in beach cleaning strategies is finding the best way to handle waste matter on the beaches, taking into consideration beach erosion and changing terrain. Seaside cities use beach cleaning machines to combat the problems of litter left by beach patrons and other pollution washed up on their shores. They are manually self-pulled vehicles on tracks or wheels or pulled by quad-bike or tractor. A tractor-pulled beach cleaner at Hietaniemi beach in Helsinki, Finland.Ī sand cleaning machine, beach cleaner, or (colloquially) sandboni is a vehicle that drags a raking or sifting device over beach sand to remove rubbish and other foreign matter.