Grain drying resources

Grain with higher moisture content may need to be dried to bring the moisture content to an acceptable level. However, when you dry your grain, you risk damaging it. The Canadian Grain Commission provides resources to help you dry your grain safely.

Drying wheat

The ideal moisture content for wheat is around 14 percent. To reach this level, you may need to dry your wheat.

How grain dryers work

• Wet wheat in dryers is cooled as moisture from the wheat evaporates into the air around it.
• As the wheat dries, the cooling effect decreases.
• As the moisture content approaches 14 percent, the wheat is almost as hot as the air in the dryer. This is when damage is most likely to occur.

Grain dryers at terminal elevators

Large terminal elevators use one of the best methods to dry wheat.

• Wheat moves constantly through a dryer and against a current of hot air.
• Each kernel receives the same treatment, allowing the wheat to dry uniformly.
• Wheat may be dried safely with air temperatures as high as 80°C (176°F).
• Wheat is dried to 15 percent moisture content.
• Final 1 percent of moisture evaporates as the wheat cools.

Farm dryers

There are many kinds of farm dryers on the market. For safe drying of your wheat, the dryer must:

• Keep the wheat moving in the dryer
• Mix the wheat with the hot air

If wheat is not kept moving, kernels lying next to the heat source dry first. These may be damaged if the air temperature is above 60°C (140°F).

Drying wheat safely on the farm and in elevators

Determine the temperature in your dryer

• Take the temperature of the hot air before it enters the dryer.
  • Temperatures taken within the wheat layers may be misleading.
• You may need to install extra temperature sensors to determine the highest air temperature in the plenum.
  • Dryer thermometers may be inaccurate or incorrectly placed in the plenum.
• Watch the thermometers inside the dryer to ensure the temperature stays constant.
  • Outside air temperature and wind may affect drying.

Keep temperatures at levels safe for your dryer

• If your dryer has not been tested, keep temperatures below 60°C (140°F).
• If you use a non-recirculating dryer or a cross flow continuous dryer, keep temperatures at 60°C (140°F) or below.
• If you use another type of dryer:
  • Dry batches at 60°C (140°F).
  • Have the results tested.
  • If tests show no damage, raise the temperature to 65°C (149°F).
  • Test again. (With some dryers, you may be able to raise the temperature to 70°C (158°F).)

Do not overdry

Stop drying when the moisture level in your wheat reaches 14.5 percent. As the wheat cools, more moisture will be lost.

Dry very wet wheat slowly

If your wheat is over 20 percent moisture:

• Remove less than 6 percent of the moisture in one pass through the dryer. Do not attempt to remove more.
• Keep the temperature below 60°C (140°F).
• Reduce the drying temperature to 50°C (122°F) to for the last quarter of the heating cycle.

How grain dryers can damage wheat quality

Some dryers may overheat the wheat. This partially cooks the protein inside the kernel. Wheat flour with cooked protein is not good for baking. Wheat with cooked protein is only good for feed.

The bread in the left photo was made with flour from improperly dried wheat. Its volume is significantly lower and the texture of the bread is inferior. The wheat itself is good only for feed. The bread in the right photo was made with flour from properly dried wheat. It has good volume and texture.

Dried-wheat testing service

The Canadian Grain Commission’s Grain Research Laboratory can determine if your dryer is damaging your wheat. The service is available to grain producers and to primary and terminal elevators. Test results are confidential and you are notified of your results within 3 working days.

It tests samples of milling grades of the following wheat classes:

• Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) wheat
• Canada Western Hard White Spring (CWHWS) wheat
• Canada Prairie Spring Red (CSPR) wheat
• Canada Western Red Winter (CWRW) wheat
• Canada Prairie Spring White (CPSW) wheat
• Canada Western Extra Strong (CWES) wheat

The test shows whether the wheat has been damaged by drying.

• Wheat is milled into flour.
• Flour and water are mixed into dough with a mixograph, a dough-testing instrument.
• Results show if the protein characteristics of the dried sample have been altered due to improper drying.

If there is damage, the dried-wheat testing service suggests ways for you to make your drying procedures safer. Keep in mind, the service tests your dryer. It is not a way to monitor wheat samples for possible damage. 

How to use the dried-wheat testing service

1. Take a 500-gram sample of your wheat before drying. Mark this as your before sample.
2. Dry your wheat as you normally do.
3. Take a 500-gram sample of the dried wheat. Mark this as your after sample.
4. Print and complete this card. (Dried-Wheat Testing, PDF, 88 kb). Refer to our PDF help page for information on how to view, print and download PDF documents.
5. Place it in the after drying sample.
6. Tie or package the two samples together and send them parcel post to the contact listed below.

The Canadian Grain Commission gives you your results by telephone or email within 3 working days. It sends a confirmation letter after. If your wheat shows damage, suggestions for changing your drying procedures are included with your results.

Contact

Ed Lysenko
Dried-Wheat Testing Service
Grain Research Laboratory
Canadian Grain Commission
Room B46 - 303 Main Street
Winnipeg MB R3C 3G8
Telephone: 204:984-6636
Email: ed.lysenko@grainscanada.gc.ca

Grain drying information agriculture sites

All types of grain

• Grain Drying And Storage Of Damp Grain - Crop Production. Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives
• Commonly Asked Questions about Grain Drying. Saskatchewan Agriculture, Food and Rural Revitalization
• Grain Storage - Frequently Asked Questions. Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development

Barley and wheat

• Drying barley a very risky proposition. This article appeared in the September 2004 issue of Go Malting!, a newsletter of the Canadian Wheat Board.
• Cereal Grain Drying and Storage. Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
• Cereals: Drying and Storing Wheat. Ontario, Ministry of Agriculture and Food

Canola

• Storage of Canola. Alberta Agriculture, Food and Rural Development