With global demand cooling down, farm-stored grain is becoming an important investment. You want to be sure to manage stored grain so that it's in good condition when it eventually gets sent to the end-user.

But as bin sizes have grown, management tactics have changed also says Jeff Green, Sales Manager at GSI, Assumption, Ill. The old rules may not apply if your bins are pushing 100,000-bu. capacity.

Grain is less likely to spoil in a small bin of 25,000 bu. or less because those vessels are easier to aerate. "The first thing to look at is adequate aeration for what you're trying to accomplish," says Green. "Grain bins of today may be too large to have stirrators moving grain inside, so if you're talking about long term storage through March and beyond, you'd want to be set up with a temperature detection system to detect spoilage."

Pay careful attention to grain as weather warms into spring. If you're unloading stored grain be careful not to walk across crusted or bridged areas because there is a great danger you can fall through and suffocate. "During unloading we never recommend anyone be inside the bin," Green says.

Repetitive coring can keep grain in good condition. As grain is loaded into the bin the majority of fines are deposited in a 10-foot diameter core in the center of the bin. Much of that fine material can be removed by drawing out 200 to 300 bushels repetitively for every 10-feet of grain deposited in the bin. Coring can also help level the grain mass.