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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Lucknow Sentinel, 1996-07-24, Page 12a a Page liAlteknow Sex thselz i eduesday, July 24 New j - l �...rw'sr� c*r`-r- n,. �.. n , -c "` '-'-ar- '-.. .-.-s-a+w•-r.-r -►,.,.... f.M 996 by Jeer':. audear High .- 'tech equipment. and systems continues to. -work its way into the ® Huron Countyrs Complete 13 tjEN HICLE I'd 1 RENTAL Headquarterso ®a Small & Mid-sized Carse a Nssenger & Cargo Vans, " ckup Trucks ®O Daily, Weekly, Monthly E � .lnsurance Rentals & • More C:1 Free Delivery 1El. 0 LI 13 a drive shed that contains a Erevolutionary hay drying system. The dryer allows al CAR & TRUCK RENTALS hay producers to bale ['Division of Suncoast Ford their hay when it contains CR 500Huron Rd., Goderich t�'as much as 30 ..per cent CALL COLLECT Ask for Helen. moisture. Normally, hay ao 524-8347 Q isn't baled until about 15 o _ omermele memmele n per cent. .:.immi p.m — em• — = mil — ether es or not rieulture industry, „mak- ing things easier and more profitable for those who make their living „off the land. Fred Durnin Kingsbridge • a, hasinstalled some new technology that has already given him a hand up in the hay export busi- ness. Durnin and his father have built a new of' Inside the drive shed is one bay where the hay ,is piled mechanically on. to of a grate. in.the floor. The grate covers a trench four feet wide by four. feet . deep the length -of the building. .Heavyy plasic hangs frim the ceiling to the floor on all -sides. The bay is filled with the aid of special equipment that piles the hay without a person having to handle every bale. When the bay is filled,to capacity with about 1,000 small bales, a wooden top is dropped down on the hay. The end is closed off with plastic. That is when the 12 horsepower, three foot suction fan is turned on. Theplastic is sucked Fred Durnin 1 PROMOTIONAL ADVERTISING i tight to, the hay. ?ileo rureeirteem t ircedace to cagey "lee iiufritdirt Ogt`i ; de the building, 2 the fan sucks the mois- x Pc,g§4.Stuff 4 1'. titure out from under the hay, via the trench. At the same time, air is E drawn from outside through a heater and blown on top of . the hay. ..1 The air goes 0 ,Umefut WEDDING GIFTS for your Guests + 25% Off on invitations etc..' I Call for our Free Catalogue Pens, Coffee Mugs, Caps, Calendars & morel 'Cowan Printing & Advertising Lucknow, Ont. L(519) 528-2730 Fax. (519) 528-3348 war Imo ® sow mem ..mmu mos .moo .1.0 RRY ■ . REID B.A. CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT P.O. BOX 300 • WINGHAM, ONT. NOG 2W0 • Y GHA�'1 • KINCARDINE 306 Josephine St. 3 7-1522.357-1551 (Fax) 1-396-7977 • • Auditing. % Accounting • Tax Services RUSS TAYLOR C.A. l(EITHfixiemOND C.G.A. BARRY REID, C.A. Jassier PNYS/OTNERAPY CLINIC REHABILITATION and INJURY TREATMENT CENTRE T • Doctor Referrals not Required "We uvork on the pain, so you stay in the game." 3 PATRICK ST.. WINGHAM 519-357-1383. GALLANT °11i�r�I©r�lml3g�esoustualeatUita +hut orized affiliate of Empire Telecommunications, Northern Telecom's leading distributor for Norstar business telephone and voicemail systems. • •8nsiness and. residential telephone wiring, MOVes, additions or repairs *On-site paging systems. *Pax machines 'Personala' ers *Cellular hones' Drop by our store�and browse through our :e a tsive selection of Call's and tapes! We special: order ;any artist or titin. 625 Campbell St,.Ltwknow 528-2063 1-888420.4262 NEW LU('1fION in at about 160 degrees Fahrenheit and goes out at about 122 degrees Fahrenheit. Durnin said the out going air is very damp with ` humid ity ; but after, about 12 'hours, is much dryer. At this time, a bypass is put in place and..the out- going air is recycled back . into the heater. Recycling the air reduces fuel costs by as much as 30 per cent. The unit is fuelled by. propane'. The drying time „is. about 24 hours for 1,000 bales. "It works wll:,� Durnin said, e: Construction +af.�t• re �r dryeUnit: wraS something . Durnin stands with the heating and suction fan setup that is instru- mental to drying hay that was baled with a moisture content as high as=30 per cent, instead of the normal 15 per cent} (Vandermeer photo) of an ;experiment. Durnin got plans . from Trauttmansdorff and hired local contractors to do the work. "Everyone was . quite interested in working on. it and seeing it up and running," he said. Durnin isn't worried that everyone will be the farming business for about nine years. He exports his -hay to Florida for use on the horse farms there.. - The idea for ;the drying shed came from a maga- zine article. Fritz Trauttmansdorff of Jerseyville, Ontario came up with the idea about five years. ago. Durnin built his unit this spring at a cost of a. b.:o u t. $60,0,00,. including the new building that `houses the unit. " "It„ gives you an edge on the weath- er," Durnin said. This year was an. opportune one for using the • dryer. With the wet This machine picks up small bales without the need for a crew to stack bales on a wagon. building these drying units. He said there - isn't much benefit unless ,a farmer' is producing large amounts of hay for export. The unit is designed- for• drying small bales ,uand' not many farmers in this area use .smallbales any- more. ruin has • been working. with his .dad sin spring, farm- ers .weren't :able to gel onto their :f elds as early ' as. usual. The dryer allowed ' Du'rnin. to ger his hay off the land 'faster ,`thane. he - would have Wtlhout';the dryer. .Baling of the; first .cut began. about three‘days -after it was cut. The alfalfa/tirnothy tnx ..bras at :about 25 per cent,. moisture when it Waig baled and dried. Durnin believes the. dryer will be of best use for the second cut, which will be pure alfalfa. He said when alfalfa is cut and laying in the field drying ' for about four days, it gets bleached on the exposed side. With the dryer, the second cut can be baled after about two days. The ,quality will be better and there- fore, so will the price. Premium hay will sell for about three dollars per bale. Durnin's cost is 18 , cents per bale to dry plus other costs for time and equipment use. This year about 12,000 bales will be exported, thanks to the dryer. If he had produced 12,000 bales without the dryer, he believes he would have lost half the crop to the weather, a cost of about $18,000. About 150 of the Durnin's' 400 acres was, devoted to hay this year. That is more than usual. • "We wouldn't have took on the acreage we lead for export without this setup,"he said. 'T'he dryer has helped hit- ,speed up production • and increase his export business. Another sign b � that modern technology is giving farmers the edge on competition tai he agriculture industry. 1