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Before you start bringing in the harvest, it’s worth it to take the time to prepare your grain bins by conducting a pre-harvest inspection. Preventative maintenance on grain bins can prevent a host of problems, from pest infestation to structural damage.

Making sure your grain bins are in tip-top shape can prevent a lot of frustration and lost time during harvest season. Follow this pre-harvest inspection checklist to help make sure your grain bins are in ideal condition for grain storage.

Clean Your Grain Bins Thoroughly

Old grain can cause mold growth and attract pests. Before you start bringing in the crop, make sure your grain bins are free from any trace of grain from the previous harvest season. You can do this with brooms, a vacuum, or a high-powered air hose. Avoid pressure washing as it creates moisture that can cause corrosion.  

Clean the areas around grain bins. Mowing long grass and clearing shrubbery around grain bins discourages rodents from nesting nearby.  

Clear the Vents

Clogged vents reduce airflow, causing your grain to take longer to dry. In addition, they can cause excessive pressure inside the bins, which can result in damage to the roof. Make sure to include in your pre-harvest inspection checklist the need to check your grain bins’ vents and clear away any debris that could cause clogs.

Check the Gearboxes

Make sure your grain bins’ gearboxes are well-lubricated and have proper oil levels. In addition, address any leaks you may find in the oil seals.

Inspect the Exterior

Go over your grain bins and seal any holes that can serve as entry points for rodents, insects, and moisture. Also, assess the walls and roof of your grain bins for bulges, missing bolts, and changes in shape, as these may indicate structural damage. It’s best to get repairs done as soon as you spot problems because the damage may worsen with daily operations of your grain bins, such as during loading and fan operation.

These are just some of the pre-harvest inspection steps you can take to make sure your grain bins are in tip-top shape. Are your grain bins ready for the harvest season? If not, come on over to KC Supply and get what you need in time for the season.

Many businesses recognize that their greatest asset is their workers. For this reason, creating a safe environment for employees is essential, even though safety signs. The COVID-19 pandemic has made staying safe in the workplace even more challenging.

 Employers should have a communications plan in place to keep all employees informed about changes and updates to work processes due to the pandemic. This may involve holding meeting and training sessions. To further strengthen their message, employers should consider putting up signage throughout the workplace.

 With signage, businesses can:

 Remind Employees to Wear PPE

If you have a “no mask, no entry” policy, a sign at the door will help make sure your workers know about it before they try to enter. In addition, if the nature of your business requires your workers to wear other types of personal protective equipment (PPE), safety signs can remind employees of this policy while providing information on how to wear it properly.

 Reinforce Proper Hand-Washing Hygiene

Frequent hand-washing is an important preventative measure against the coronavirus. Signs in bathrooms and break rooms will remind employees to continue practicing good hand hygiene.

 Help Employees Navigate Business Premises

Businesses may need to make changes in how employees enter, exit, and navigate their spaces to avoid crowding. Directional signage, safety signs, and floor decals help make sure your employees know how to get around your store or office while maintaining social distancing.

• Remind Employees Not to Enter if They’re Feeling Sick

Employers can utilize signs to remind employees to watch for COVID-19 symptoms and to not enter the premises if they suspect they’re infected. Employers can include a phone number employees can call for instructions in case they are unwell.  

 Signage is a tool that businesses can utilize to help communicate important health and safety information to employees during the pandemic. Have you put up COVID-19-related signage in your workplace? Contact KC Supply Co in case you need more safety materials in place.

When it comes to grains, choosing the right spouting is vital to ensuring that everything works smoothly. You have to consider the shape, such as round or square, and truss kits, elbows, liners, and distributors.

How to Choose the Best Option

Here are a few things to ask your supplier:

● What material will the spout handle come into contact with? How abrasive is this material, and what are its flow characteristics? What is the density and moisture content?

● Is there a required flow rate for the spout?

● What would the exterior exposure of the spouting be?

● Is a liner necessary?

● What is the capacity of the actual spout area?

● How long is the spout going to be?

● What is the service life or life span of the spouting?

● Do you need a dead box or an elbow at the end of the spout?

If the material you are handling is low volume and only mildly abrasive, you can get away with a 10-gauge steel tube material. The exterior of this tubing should be either painted or galvanized. If more volume will be handled, or if the material is more abrasive, consider using a liner or a thicker gauge tubing. You can also use thick wall steel pipe rather than tubing.

If your spouting is longer than 40 feet, it’s a good idea to use external trussing to support its weight and prevent the spouting from wavering in strong winds. Then, at the end of your long spout, ensure there is an elbow or a dead box for slowing the material moving through and direct it to the appropriate bins.

There are still more things to consider as you choose the right spouting for your needs. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to get in touch with KC Supply Co.

Explosion-proof lighting is an integral part of any facility that works with any potentially explosive materials. Without EPL, there is a chance that any small spark from the lighting fixtures can trigger a catastrophic failure costing lives and money. However, just choosing any EPL will not do either. Because conditions can vary from one place to another, a system of classes and divisions has been created to help you choose the right lighting you need.

There are three main classes to be aware of: class I, class II, and class III. Within each class, there are two divisions. To help you out, here are all the classes and divisions of explosion-proof lighting, and what they are for.

• Class I, Division 1 – These lights are used when the workplace atmosphere has ignitable concentrations of hazardous vapors, gases, and liquids continuously, or even frequently.
• Class I, Division 2 – CI D2 lighting is used when the atmosphere in the workplace has ignitable concentrations of these hazardous vapors, gases, and liquids under any abnormal working conditions.
• Class II, Division 1 – If under normal working conditions, the area’s atmosphere has ignitable levels of combustible dust, then the class II division 1 lights are used.
• Class II, Division 2 – These lights are used instead of the class II division 1 explosion proof lighting if the ignitable levels of combustible dust only exist in abnormal working conditions.
• Class III, Division 1 – If under normal operating conditions, combustible particles from flammable fibers or materials are present in the atmosphere, these lights are used.
• Class III, Division 2 – If the combustible particles are only present in the atmosphere during abnormal conditions, then these lights are used in place of CII D1 lights.

To ensure the utmost safety, it is important to source the appropriate explosion proof lighting from companies that are trusted in the industry. Contact KC Supply today to know more.

In a maintenance technician’s regular rounds, one of the things that they would check for is the temperature of the bearings in your equipment. If they are found to be running at a high temperature, the technician will make sure to take action. However, the action taken depends on the condition of the bearings. There are four different conditions to watch out for:

• Caution – A bearing would fall under this category if its temperature lies between 180 to 200F. This temperature range is higher than the ideal, but when it comes to some equipment, this may actually be their normal operating temperatures.
• Alert – If the bearing temperature is hovering around 200 to 250F, this can be considered an alert condition.
• Alarm – Anything operating at 250 to 300F is at an alarm condition. Generally, this can mean that they are experiencing some failure. A technician will have to take immediate action.
• Shutdown – If bearings are operating at temps higher than 300F, they are in critical failure.

Monitoring Temperatures

Keeping an eye on your equipment and keeping track of their regular working temperatures is essential. That way, if any temperature out of the ordinary occurs, you can immediately take action. You see, a bearing that reaches alarm or even shutdown conditions without being replaced can cause a catastrophic equipment failure that will cost tons of money and can even cost lives.

As a business owner, you do not want that type of liability—besides, would you not want to take good care of your employees and your equipment?

To make monitoring the temperature of bearings an easier and more automated task, you can look into some sensors and monitors. A computerized system that can detect temperature anomalies can save lives, not to mention your business. Contact KC Supply to learn more.