Grain Ventilation

Low volume grain ventilation systems consist of three key elements, the air distribution system, the fans and the fan control system.  

The air distribution system can be either vertical or horizontal, selecting the most effective system will depend on how the grain store is filled and emptied and where the fans can be located. 

There is then the further option of an in-floor or on-floor air distribution system, an example of the in-floor system is the BDC System's Ventilation Pyramid or SØBY drive over laterals. These systems are permanent or semi-permanent fixtures in the grain store. Common on-floor solutions are BDC Airstacks steel pedestals or SØBY Corraducts, this air distribution solution requires no modification to the grain stores floor, making for simple construction and easy retro-fitting to existing buildings. 

Once the decision is made on the air distribution system, the most suitable fans must be selected. Low volume ventilation requires significantly lower airflows then grain drying applications, fans can be installed one per ventilation duct or several ducts can be linked to a larger fan. For larger air flows where three phase power is available and the fan is not regularly moved the SØBY TLR centrifugal fans are a popular choice, for fans that must be regularly moved smaller fans are available in either single phase or three phase variants. 

Finally, there is the fan control system. A system that monitors grain temperature and only runs the fans when the ambient conditions are right for cooling may reduce energy bills by over 40% compared to constant operation. An automatic system reduces time spent looking after stored crop and reduces energy consumption. Consideration needs to be given as to if this function delivers a return on investment over the lifetime of the system compared to a simpler manual solution.