Farmer builds simple device to stop grain-bin deaths

Guy Mills (photo provided)

Grain bins may seem innocuous to non-farmers, but dozens of people in the past few years have died in them, after being engulfed by grain. Nebraska farmer Guy Mills says he's invented a simple machine that can help prevent such deaths by making it unnecessary for farmers to enter a grain bin to manually break up a clump, or plug, of stored grain, Chris Bennett reports for AgWeb.

Mills, a fifth-generation farmer who grows alfalfa, corn and soybeans in Custer County, says two Nebraska farmers died in bin deaths last year alone and the thought weighed heavily on him. "Essentially, Mills' eureka moment centers on the use of a commercial air compressor to blow out plugs as a preventive measure related to the dangers of bin entry and grain collapse," Bennett reports. "Mills contends the shop-solution technology only takes a few minutes to build, is extremely low-cost, and removes clogs in just a few minutes."

Mills got the idea for his invention after snow got into one of his corn bins in early 2019 and caused some of his corn to clump together. "I ran into an employee working for Trotter Fertilizer Inc. of Arcadia Nebraska. He was using a commercial air compressor to remove a plug. I was in shock and wondered why I’d never heard of this," Mills told Bennett. "I made my own version and it worked great, and now I want everyone to know about this."

Removing a grain-bin plug requires a commercial air compressor, much more powerful—and expensive—than those farms normally have. Though such compressors cost about $25,000, farmers can rent one for about $50 per day. With about $150 of parts, a commercial air compressor can be rigged up to unplug a bin auger in three to four minutes, Mills told Bennett.

In the article, Mills explains in detail how to replicate his invention. Ruben Lomeli, who works with Mills, told Bennett he was initially skeptical but is a true believer after seeing it in action. "Nobody has to go inside the bin. The pressure from the compressor breaks all the chunks, and no one has to crawl over the corn or push anything down," Lomeli said.

Mills' invention comes just in time for Grain Bin Safety Week, Feb. 16-22. Insurance company Nationwide began the observance in 2014 to raise awareness about grain-bin deaths and promote safe bin practices on farms and commercial grain-handling facilities. Click here for more information.