A grain silo is a structure for storing grains in bulk. Silo, in general, can be used for storing any solid material in bulk, like cement, fly-ashes, etc. Silo storage specifically used for the storage of other fermented agriculture material like animal feed stored in farm silo.

How Farm Silo is Differently Used

Farm silos are storage structures for high-moisture grains or silage for livestock feeds of animals. Silos are a common fixture in livestock and mixed-farming operations across India and other countries.

What is Stored in Farm Silo & Why

Farm silos are storage structures for silage and high-moisture grains used for livestock feeds. Silos are a common fixture in livestock and mixed-farming operations across Canada. As the silos are the solution for livestock feed therefore silage is stored in it for a long time. Generally, Silage is generated from microbial fermentation of plant material (like Whole-plant corn silage) in airtight containers. These container does not let the silage spoiled during the storage period. The high moisture grain (like ground-shelled, barley & ear corns) also go through with the same fermentation process but during fermentation loses around 65% of water as compared to silage (which only loses around 35% water) thus also known as haylage & used for high energy feeds.

There are three types of silos which are used in industries:

Tower silos
Bunker silos
Bag silos

Tower Silos
Tower silos are in the cylindrical structure of 15 to 30 meters tall. These silos are closed with a domed roof and are made up of concrete or steel. The concrete silo also was known as stave silo built from concrete staves which is usually 30 cm wide and 75 cm high. These concrete slabs are stacked up in a cylindrical wall & held together by steel hoops. Whereas the steel grain silos are more robust & reliable solution for grain storage.

Bunker Silos
Bunker silos are paved areas surrounded on 3 sides by concrete or 3–5 m high concrete or timber walls. Forage is dumped within the walled area, compacted by tractor, covered with polyethylene sheets and weighed down with old tires. Unloading is by a front-end loader or by allowing cattle to feed directly from the exposed face of the silage. The size of the silo will depend on the size of the herd to be fed.

Bag Silos
Silo Bags, a safe and economical way to store grain, are being successfully used by farmers across many parts of India. The bags are filled with grain by mechanized equipment and then sealed. The resulting storage area, dry and near-airless, creates an effective barrier against spoilage by insects and other pests.

Conclusion

The benefits of silos are more than anybody can think of, as these storage structures protect your bulk grains for a long time from spoilage & insects. So are you going to install these silo storage in your project now?