Grain Bin Review
1. BROCK®
As the company says, design does matter! BROCK® offers over 750 models total, all designed to bring innovative and user-friendly features to the table to help you maintain and protect your valuable stored grain. Some of the features intended to help you do just that include 8-trough sidewall body sheets, 20-gauge commercial-grade G-90 galvanized steel with 6,500-psi minimum tensile strength and yield strength up to 50,000 psi, and identification codes on every body sheet to provide you with the manufacturing date, part number and steel gauge to help you keep track of and replace parts. On taller bins, BROCK® uses two sidewall panels laminated together, designed to increase strength.
Brock’s team of professionals can also help provide you with innovative grain handling, conditioning and drying solutions. Contact them to learn more.
Visit your local dealer or brock [at] brockgrain [dot] com.
2. GSI
No matter how high yields are, harvest time grain prices are no guarantee for maximum profitability. On-site storage offers many benefits, including increased harvest capacities and uptime, as well as the freedom to hold your commodity for better returns in the future. Those looking for an edge when markets are low can look to GSI's farm storage bins to help maximize profitability.
GSI bins are constructed using high tensile steel sidewall sheets up to 65,000 psi with a commercial G-90, bright spangle galvanized steel coating designed to increase your bin’s durability. GSI can also provide 5 and 6 gauge steel sidewall panels for increased strength – 5-gauge steel is 25% thicker and provide up to 37.5% (from 8-gauge steel) increase in overall strength. Some of GSI’s other features include bin anchor brackets with J or U-bolts, weather-resistant roofs, your choice of grill or auto roof vents, large peak openings, and bin access through walk-through doors without any bars or braces to remove, and last but not least a large diameter roof walkway with a full rubber bulb-type seal.
Visit your local dealer or visit www.grainsystems.com.
3. Sukup
While some companies base load ratings on 30 per square foot, Sukup was thefirst in the industry with a 5000 lb. standard roof rating for farm bins (these roofs are designed to carry 40 lb/ft squared and withstand up to 90 mph wind gusts), and all their roofs are made from high-strength G90 galvanized steel and supported every 9 3/8” at the eave by double-tab roof clips.
Sukup bins are not only designed to be strong, but also easy to use. The fill hole is an extra-large 38” to provide eight feet squared of air exhaust area, and the double-domed fill hole cap is mounted on steel rods to allow it to slide open and closed, yet prevent it from being thrown around on windy days. The manhole opening measures 20” by 35.5” to help you easily get in or out. Sukup roof sheets can also be pre-punched for 18” roof vents. Pre-punching the vent holes produces an extra-tall (1 1/8”) extruded lip that works as a barrier to prevent moisture from leaking into the bin through the vent opening.
Visit your local dealer or visit info [at] sukup [dot] com.
4. DMC
DMC's Standard: Grain Flow with Dry Grain Control
DMC's Dry Grain Control uses air temperature to determine grain dryness, automatically unloading your grain when the air reaches the pre-selected temperature. The Dry Grain Control measures air temperature 12 to 18 inches off the bin floor to determine when the grain is ready to be discharged. The company also offers accessories designed so you can move your grain where you want it with relative ease.
Some of the features you’ll find on DMC’s standard Model 84 Grain Flow include an exterior control box so your entire drying system can be operated from one location, heavy duty construction on all components designed to ensure long life, support feet designed to move floor augers through your grain at a smooth and even pace, hood and floor auger design allowing grain to be evenly removed at up to 700 bushels per hour, two sensing systems, a two-year warranty on gear box and floor augers, and an auger overload switch that shuts down the entire system if necessary.
Visit your local dealer or www.dmc-davidmanufacturing.com.
5. MFS York
Stormor EZEE Dry Bins from MFS York feature ‘common sense design’ and are designed for simplicity of operation and maintenance of quality grain in their overhead drying systems. Some other features you’ll notice right away include high volume airflow that combines with low static pressure, as well as low temperature drying and low horsepower requirements designed to efficiently and safely dry your grain. You won’t find too many moving parts so your maintenance time should be minimal and the leveling rings are designed to let gravity do all the work so no interior augers are necessary.
Some other features you’ll find include dump spouts to transfer grain from the draying chamber to the cooling floor of perforated steel planks supported by steel floor support legs designed for uniform air circulation, horn and pressure switches to indicate when the drying chamber is full so an operator can turn off the fill auger, and a built-in cooling fan recirculates hot air from cooling grain back up to the drying chamber.
Visit your local dealer or www.mfsyork.com.
6. Chief
Chief Agri Industrial Division manufactures a full line of stiffened and un-stiffened farm bins as well as a complete line of stiffened commercial bins, commercial hopper tanks and bulk feed tanks. The Titan Commercial Bin is designed to exacting standards of quality in diameters ranging from 15’6” to 105’2” and heights up to 115’7”. This range gives Chief flexibility to design a complete Titan Grain Management system to meet your requirements.
Chief’s line of un-stiffened farm bins are designed with a strong roof, featuring up to 30% more roof ribs than leading competitors. The 42.5” sidewall sheeting allows for easy assembly and less hardware to assemble, while the ‘Easy Walk’ Door is designed to provides simple and quick access without obstruction. Strong anchor systems, standard G115 Galvanization, a 5-year limited warranty are just a few of Chief’s standard features. The company also manufactures lines of material handling and conditioning equipment.
Visit your local dealer or www.agri.chiefind.com.
7. Sioux Steel
Sioux Steel Farm Storage Grain Systems are designed to protect grain from all weather conditions – based in Sioux Falls, SD they know first-hand how harsh weather can be on equipment and buildings. These bins are designed to stand up to high winds and northern snow loads while protecting grain as well as keeping it fresh and in condition for years. A ten-year warranty comes standard on every Sioux Steel farm bin and features a large man-way – when you’re out in the elements you won’t need to worry if you can make it through no matter how many layers you’re wearing.
Some of the other features you’ll find on a Sioux Steel Farm Storage Grain Bin include a solid tie-less walk-in door, four-inch corrugation on sheets to reduce the pressure on sidewalls, compression rings with locking collars to crown the roof for added strength (on bins 24-48 feet in diameter), and optional fill caps for permanent installation of cross augers or spouting.
Visit your local dealer or visit www.siouxsteel.com.
8. Superior
Superior grain bin roofs offer an 8,000 lb. center load capacity, are designed to withstand winds up to 100 mph, and designed to maintain a tight seal against wind, rain, and snow – all backed by a five-year warranty. Full 44” stiffener anchor brackets add the equivalent of two gauges of steel to the bottom ring, designed to reduce stress on the lower part of the bin. Superior’s exclusive Herculock “no-fines” floor system and strong 16-ga. steel floor supports are designed for loads up to 88’ high.
In addition, heavy duty and quiet centrifugal fans feature airfoil blades; close tolerances and dynamic balancing designed to give you for sufficient airflow and years of reliable performance, and all housings are made of heavy duty galvanized steel designed to resist rust and provide long life. Superior also offers optional heaters along with their standard and permanently installed powersweep with all controls operated from outside the bin and unload capacity up to 7,000 bushels per hour. The company uses step bin stairs (common stairway between two bins) for the maximum amount of safety when checking grain.
Visit your local dealer or www.superiorincnd.com.