14 Follow us on Twitter: @PrairieFarming Better Farming | January 2024 The 2023 harvest has wrapped up, and as we enter the new year, many tractors, planters and combines are being put away for the winter. These months are also the ideal time for a bit of winter maintenance. It’s important to clean equipment, empty any fluids that could freeze and check for problems before equipment is put away. Equipment that isn’t clean holds dust, crop residue or grain that attracts rodents. This might cause trouble with wires and belts in the spring. Sprayers should be flushed to avoid clogged nozzles or contamination risk if it’s forgotten the next spring. Some producers might also have protocols to reduce the risk of rust on equipment that has seen road salt, fertilizer or liquid. Taking time to properly winterize equipment and check for required maintenance will have them closer to being field ready in the spring. This month, Better Farming asked our readers what steps they take to winterize their equipment. Here are some of the responses. Brennan, Sask.: We drain pumps, put in sprayer antifreeze, wash and service. Lucas, Alta.: We just blow off the dust and straw or wash them. Colin, Man.: We are probably a little different than most. We don’t wash them before we put them away. We’re trying to avoid any moisture in the machine. When we’re done with a piece of equipment, we will knock all of the dirt off and then blow them down with a leaf blower, trying to get them as clean as possible. After that we’ll run it through the shop, look for any issues to fix over the winter, check levels and then grease it before we put it away. We often leave the guards open to allow the cats access to them. For the sprayer we’ll run two to four pails of sprayer antifreeze through the tank and boom. Once we shut it off, we’ll turn the key on and open all the electric valves and then kill the power so that everything remains open all winter. Oh, and everything gets a quick cab vacuum. Jake, Man.: We take out monitors from tractors and combines and bring them inside. We drain the sprayer, fill the tank and rinse the tank with RV antifreeze. BF Emily Croft photo Digging Deeper HOW DO YOU WINTERIZE YOUR EQUIPMENT? Winterizing equipment can reduce field preparation in the spring. By Emily Croft Winter is a good time to keep up with equipment maintenance. Please send us interesting photos of Prairie farm life. We might feature them in the magazine! Paul.Nolan@Farms.com HAVE SOME COOL PICS?
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc0MDI3