He Sucks Up Grain For A Living

He sucks up grain for a living GRAIN HANDLING Miscellaneous 16-1-26 An enterprising Nebraska farmer has found away to make extra income using apiece of equipment he originally bought for his own operation. Tim Cada of Clarkson does custom grain vacuuming using a high-capacity vacuum that's capable of moving 4,000 bu. of corn per hour. As more and more grain is stored in larger bins, on the floor of buildings, or outside on the ground, the market for a tool that can easily pick it up without the use of a scoop shovel has grown. Cada charges 8 to 13 cents per bushel or $100 per hour. There's a $100 minimum charge. The customer supplies a tractor. At first Cada bought a small machine for his own use but when he ran an ad in his local paper offering to do custom work, the phone rang off the hook so he went out and bought a bigger machine with a 6-in. dia. tube. Typical special jobs include drawing off a top layer of corn that has spoiled in a bin, cleaning out bins with broken augers, and even filling bins at harvest. Cada says grain vacs are fast ("We can fill a semi-trailer with corn in 20 min.") and can handle spoiled grain that an auger wouldn't be able to move. It also causes less damage to grain. (Shirley Roenfeldt in Nebraska Farmer)

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.