Switching between harvesting different varieties of soybeans or corn does not typically require an in-depth cleaning session for your equipment, but for seed growers, it is a must.

Brent Bible, Romney, Ind., raises almost 100% seed soybeans for Beck’s, and he explains that harvest calls for some extra attention to his operation’s cleaning protocol.

“Harvest is the more challenging time when it comes to thinking about your cleanliness and logistics around what you harvest and when you harvest,” Bible says. “That’s when you really are concentrating on maintaining clean stock.”

Not just for seed growers

While Bible’s cleanliness measures need to go the extra mile to ensure high-quality seed, there are some pieces of advice that can extend to commercial operations. With harvest on the horizon, now is the time to thoroughly clean all equipment.

Bible outlines the measures he takes to clean the following pieces of equipment:

Combine. Blow out the grain head, paying special attention to the cutter bar. “There’s a lot of hand-picking of seed, especially on the cutter bar,” Bible adds. “A lot of times, seed will get stuck across the cutter bar, and you have to pick it out with a knife or a screwdriver.”

Try to blow out as much seed as you can from the hopper; then vacuum out whatever remains. Bible says to consider all the places where grain can get trapped, ensuring they are all checked while cleaning.

“There’s going to be places — a corner, a bend, a sharp edge — where grain and debris can collect,” he notes.

Hopper bottom trailer. As with the combine, blow out the entire trailer while inspecting rails, corners, the top of the trailer and the sliding mechanism of doors for trapped grain.

Grain cart. Follow the same steps as cleaning a hopper bottom trailer. Be sure to inspect all crevices and pinch points. Also ensure the auger on the grain cart is free of grain and debris.

Auger for bins. Don’t forget to clean the auger for loading bins. Run it empty and blow out any remaining grain. Bible explains to focus on vibrating all the seed out of it. Also, ensure the hopper is emptied.

Preharvest check

While it’s not necessary for commercial growers to run through this checklist each time they switch varieties, Bible explains that taking these measures before harvest can be key in catching any problems early.

“As you’re cleaning your equipment, you’re also inspecting it, whether you need to or not,” Bible adds. “You’re going to be looking things over, and you will see problems either early in their life or before they occur. You can prevent a costly repair or a repair altogether because you discover something that’s about to be a problem.”

There is also a safety component to cleaning your equipment several times during the season. You can regularly inspect for any potential hazards that otherwise would have been missed.

Bible recommends cleaning everything when you have some downtime on a rainy day. He says it usually takes two to three hours to run through his cleaning checklist.

“Our experience has been that it is not a cost — it’s an investment,” Bible says. “We don’t look at that time we spend on cleaning the equipment as a cost to the operation. We see it as an investment in the equipment and an investment in safety and quality.”