Grain Handling

As we prepare for harvest, I can’t help but think how this unusual spring will impact growers and not just from a yield perspective. Between a pushed back fall and the itch to get in the field, there will likely be higher than normal moisture levels harvested, making it more important than ever to improve your grain dryer efficiency. To ensure your drying equipment is running at peak efficiency and to prevent any downtime, check out these five simple tips.
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Benjamin Franklin once said, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Although we always advocate for preseason maintenance on your grain drying system, the cool and wet spring has put us on track for a later harvest. This could also bring with it wetter than normal harvest moisture. With this looming, it’s even more important to have your grain handling system ready to go before the season hits. Regardless if you are taking care of issues from last fall, doing a preventative check-up or even toying around with some upgrades, now is the time to cross these grain bin maintenance items off your to-do list.
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By: Tom Miller, Grain Handling Equipment

This spring’s weather conditions may make harvest seem awfully distant, but after the rush of planting is through, it’s a good idea to reflect on your portable grain dryer setup. Seldom as we imagine our upcoming fall, do we remember the hassle of setting up the dryer. That is, of course, until the time actually comes to fire it back up again. Amidst the busyness and anticipation that comes with harvest the last thing you want to do is spend hours setting up your portable grain dryer. Thanks to GSI’s Auto-Start, what used to take 2-4 hours can now be done in minutes.
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By: Tom Miller, Grain Handling Equipment Sales

Grain entrapment can happen in a matter of seconds. Two seconds is the time you have to react when an auger starts to turn. In four seconds, you are trapped and need assistance to escape. After an additional 18 seconds, you have been fully engulfed by the moving grain. At this point, unless a successful rescue is had, suffocation will occur. A Purdue University study shows that there were 29 grain entrapment cases in 2016. Of those, 38% were fatal. When it comes to fatalities, one is too many.
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By: Dave Miller, Bin Sales and Service Manager

Nothing compares to the frustration of putting harvest on pause to fix an issue with your grain bin setup (especially when maintenance could prevent it). Even worse, a full bin that refuses to unload come spring time. Before we start pulling augers up to the grain bins this harvest season, we need to do some house cleaning.More

By: Tom Miller, Grain Bin & Equipment Sales

Regardless of industry, safety continues to be a major force behind change. Unfortunately, it usually takes an accident of some sort to catalyze improvements and prioritize grain handling safety. Often overshadowed by more fatal accidents like tractor rollovers, grain entrapments or entanglements in PTO’s, falls are still a hazard of the job that plagues producers of all ages.
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Spring is just around the corner and temperatures are starting to rise (very slowly). Now is the time to start thinking about warming stored grain. Keeping stored grain within 10 to 15 degrees of the ambient temperature outside will help the grain keep longer. Tom Miller has shared three tips that he suggests you consider and incorporate into your spring grain management.More