Buy bottled gasWeather Predictions Indicate Effective Crop Drying Facilities are Essential
Whether naturally occurring weather changes or global warming is to blame, the likelihood is that Britain’s weather is set to get wetter. With the floods causing a problem for many farmers again this year, Calor urges farm managers to ensure effective and efficient crop drying methods are in place.
Calor has been assisting farmers by providing a reliable bulk fuel supply for over 70 years and has a proven track record in the agriculture market. Calor liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) is an ideal fuel for many farm applications, not least crop drying where the most important factor in drying the crops is accurate and reliable control of heat.
LPG offers precise moisture control and an even heat, ensuring optimum drying temperatures are easily maintained and crops are dried evenly to the correct moisture content. Crops such as wheat, maize, barley, rape, peas, potatoes, bulbs and onions can all be dried economically and efficiently with Calor LPG.
Calor’s Kevin Houlden says farmers should take this summer’s extremely wet conditions as a sign to be prepared for next year. He says: “Although we cannot foresee exactly what the weather will be like next year, the predictions from the experts are that wetter summers could be here to stay.
“The Environment Agency is forecasting less predictable weather and in his independent review of the flooding emergency that took place in June and July 2007, Sir Michael Pitt stated that the risk of flooding continues to escalate.”
Kevin continues: “We typically get an influx of requests for LPG installations to power grain drying facilities in the summer as the drying season approaches. However, we are able to work with manufacturers and distributors to install LPG tanks and equipment any time of the year.”
Compared with oil which is also sometimes used for crop drying, LPG is a cleaner burning fuel producing fewer carbon emissions and less smoke meaning it can be used in more sensitive of areas and will not taint the crops in any way.
Calor offers the largest LPG delivery network in the country and a comparative rental cost for the tank covers regular maintenance checks, a 24 hour, 365 day emergency call out service and visual inspections every time the tank is refilled, giving customers complete peace of mind.
Offering the complete fuel solution for the UK’s farmers, in addition to crop drying, Calor LPG can be used for animal rearing, weedburning, heating and to fuel ATVs or other farming equipment.
For further information log on to www.lpg-farming.co.uk/crop-drying.htm, email: commercial@calor.co.uk or call 0800 216 659.
CASE STUDY - CALOR HELPS LANGMEAD FARMS MOVE ITS GRAIN DRYING FORWARD
A 2,000 acre, multiple site farm has turned to Calor to power a mobile Opico grain dryer resulting in an efficient, flexible grain drying solution.
Graham Gibson, Director of Langmead Farms, is responsible for four farm sites, located across the county of Kent, between Southfleet and Swanley. Having identified that a mobile Opico dryer would suit the farms’ grain drying needs, Graham turned to Calor to provide a reliable and efficient fuel supply.
Capable of drying up to 175 tonnes per day, the Opico 10 tonne 555XL dryer is used on two of the farm’s sites to dry milling and feed wheats. Graham says: “We chose the Opico mobile dryer as we needed to be able to use it at multiple locations and move it between two of our farms at a moment’s notice.
“We turned to Calor as the company has proven experience in the faming industry and can cope with the nature of our fuel demand for the dryer which is high volumes over a short period of time.”
The dryer features a ground level loading facility which can be fed by a bulk trailer or in the case of Langmead Farms, a 9 foot loading hopper, making it quick and easy to load, without the need for additional equipment.
The Opico 555XL model has an hourly loading capacity of 50 tonne with throughput per hour assumed at five per cent moisture reduction, from 21 per cent to 16 per cent including loading, heating, cooling and unloading time.
The dryer is supplied as standard with a 32 inch axial fan, standard jacks, two new tyres, a grain sampler and a grain cleaner.
Once loaded into the dryer, the grain is continually circulated at a rate of 60 tonnes per hour resulting in improved presentation of the grain, as it is effectively polished by the circulation motion, whilst the low 270 rpm means that the grain is handled gently at all times minimising damage.
Crop damage is further minimised thanks to the fuel provided by Calor. Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) offers precise moisture control and even heat ensuring crops are dried evenly and to the required moisture content. Using LPG to power the dryer also means that the grain is not tainted in any way as it does not leave a residue which oil can be prone to do.
Graham says: “The dryer is very easy to use with accessible controls and we are able to test the moisture levels of the grain at any time using the built in grain sampler. We simply take a reading of the grain’s moisture content prior to loading and can monitor the dried grain moisture levels at any time. We simply unload the grain once it has reached the required level of around 15 per cent moisture.
“The dryer itself is very easy to move between sites minimising any potential disruption, we hook it up to a tractor and transport it between sites.”
Calor’s Gary Battisson advised Graham on the purchase of the dryer and the installation of the three 2,000 litre tanks at each site. He says: “We worked together with Graham and his team at the farm to arrange a delivery schedule that would meet their needs and keep up with the fuel demand.”
As one of Britain's largest independent agricultural machinery distributors, Opico offers nearly 40 years experience and knowledge. The comprehensive range of grain dryers has proven to be the most reliable and efficient way of drying grain year after year and this success has made Opico a household name for many farms.
Graham concludes: “Once we had identified the need for the dryer, we had a very short amount of time to install the gas tanks and get the dryer up and running. Calor reacted efficiently and swiftly to our requests and enabled us to have the dryer operational within our required timescales.
“Our first season of grain drying has been a huge success thanks to the Calor and Opico and has enabled us to dry more than 4,000 tonnes of grain.”
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* Test results generated by an independent test body on behalf of Calor Gas at Millbrook Proving Ground. Test Date: March 2000. Report NO. MBKOO/0373
