Dennis Buckmaster used a hair dryer, plastic piping and a bit of ingenuity to build a handy tool for checking forage moisture levels at harvest or feeding time. Buckmaster, a Perm State University ag engineer, says his simple forage sample dryer is faster and easier to use than other methods. "It's inexpensive, provides a high volume of air and is inexpensive to replace," says Buckmaster after comparing his dryer to Koster testers and microwaves. "If the blow dryer goes, for $10 and a trip to your favorite department store, you can replace it." The blower end of the dryer is connected to a CPVC pipe attached to a funnel- or vortex-shaped container made from two round duct reducers. A 200-gram hay or silage sample is put into the dryer. Then a covermade from wood and window screen is secured on top and the dryer is turned on. It takes 20-60 minutes to dry a sample. While the sample is blown about within the dryer, a grower can finish some chores and not worry about burned test results, Buckmaster says.
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