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Canola Watch received a couple of reader questions recently about the temperature of stored canola – and the point at which heating damage will start.
We’re not sure the exact temperature that heating will start. It will be somewhere above the recommended dryer ratings, which max out at 82°C. But you don’t want a sensor reading to get anywhere close to that hot, if you can help it. ANY unexpected rise in temperature should be a clear signal that action is required. Once an area starts to warm up, the reaction has started and the canola will probably just get hotter and hotter until spoilage starts. Then spoilage will spread until the whole bin is damaged.
Transferring canola from one bin to another on a cool is the best way to detect and stop heating. When transferring, move at least one third of the canola out of a bin. If green counts, moisture, weeds or dockage are high (in short, anything that may increase the storage risk), transferring the whole bin may be safest. Feel for heat and sniff for a burnt smell as the canola comes out of the bin.
Cables can identify a hot spot before it becomes a problem. But keep in mind that grain is a fairly good insulator. A hot spot that starts in the midpoint between two cables could be quite advanced before it shows up on the temperature cable…which is another reason to move quickly.