![]() Unload 2–6 inches per day, and maintain a smooth surface.Leave the silo sealed for at least 14 days to allow complete fermentation to occur.Using this approach will optimize fermentation. Ensile at 30%–50% dry matter content (i.e., 50%–70% moisture content), based on the silo manufacturer’s recommendations.Follow the silo manufacturer’s recommendations. The TLC for hay crop silage is 3/8 inch the TLC for corn silage is 1/4 inch. Chop forage at the correct theoretical length cut (TLC).Minimize drying time to reduce respiration.Implementing the following steps for harvesting and storing forages will decrease the risk of a silo fire occurring: Check for damaged insulation or terminals on the unloader power cable, and repair or replace damaged materials as needed. Lubricate the lift cables, and immediately replace any lift cable showing signs of kinks, cuts, or corrosion. Many fires have started in oxygen-limiting silos that have been unused for several years but not emptied.įor the unloader system, examine belts, bearings, wiring, and the motor. If air is allowed to leak into an oxygen-limiting silo, forage quality can decline, and the chance of a fire developing increases. If you have an oxygen-limiting silo, pressure-test it on a regular basis (at least once every other year, preferably when empty). ![]() When a silo is empty, inspect the silo walls (especially the lower 10–15 inches), the silo doors, and the unloader system. Prevention of silo fires involves performing proper maintenance on silos and unloaders and taking appropriate steps when harvesting and storing forages. The two most common examples of these types of fires are a fire in the chute from a shorted-out electrical wire or a fire from an adjacent barn fire. That trapped air can allow excessive heating and support a smoldering fire.Ī silo fire can start from a source outside the silo as well. The dryer the material is, the more air that will be trapped when fresh, wetter material is placed on top of it. Putting new silage on top of old silage is especially risky if the old silage is too dry. Spontaneous combustion can occur when new silage having a too-low moisture content (less than 45%) is placed in the silo, when fresh silage is placed on top of old silage, or when the silo has poorly maintained doors and walls. Such fires can be the result of an overheating unloader motor but more often are caused by spontaneous combustion. Many silo fires occur in the top layer (approximately the top 10 feet) of dry, loosely packed silage. Typically, silo fires occur more frequently in conventional silos than in oxygen-limiting silos because oxygen is present in greater amounts in conventional silos. The three main types of upright silos found on farm operations are conventional, oxygen-limiting, and modified oxygen-limiting. Even dry silage is too wet to burn quickly.
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