Technology | Winter 2010
Grain dryers add harvest flexibility.
By Angela Lovell
If you don’t have easy access to commercial grain drying services, the alternative is to dry your grain on-farm. The many possibilities for this job range from basic batch units all the way up to $500,000 fully automated, drying and conditioning systems. Here are a few points to consider in making your decision:
Time
- Manual and even semi-automated dryers can be labour intensive because they have to be checked frequently.
- A fully automated, computerized system saves both time and manpower. “You can buy drying systems where you program the type of grain you are drying and how you want to dry it. Then the dryer does the rest,” says Adrien Caillier of ARK New Tech in Manitou, MB, which specializes in grain handling and storage equipment.
Grain quality
- An on-farm grain drying system can be as valuable a harvesting tool as a combine.
- The earlier grain can be harvested, the less the chance of grade loss. Being able to dry grain quickly and efficiently generates good quality product that is market-ready faster. “You can get a system that will dry in 24 hours what you can harvest in 12 hours,” says Caillier. “Next morning that grain is ready for market.”
Cost
- Although automated systems are expensive, the investment can eliminate some harvesting costs. “A grain dryer can be a fraction of the cost of a combine,” says Caillier. “One combine and a grain dryer do more than two combines if you have a wet year.”
- Dryers are generally easy to maintain and can last 10 to 20 years without replacement.
- Savings in manpower and time can all add up to a short pay-back period on a grain drying system.
