sunflower fires 9610 « Thread Started on Oct 5, 2009, 8:02pm »
we are fixing to start cutting sunflowers with a 9610 for the first time and were wondering where we need to watch for fires besides the engine compartment?
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 507 Location: queensland
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #1 on Oct 6, 2009, 3:54am »
everywhere.... wherever dust builds up is potential for a smolder. have had smolders on the feederhouse, chasis, engine compartment etc etc. need to keep the combine clean and make sure your nose is working well!!
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #2 on Oct 7, 2009, 10:04am »
Just like bundybear said, everywhere. We had a little pile on the inside of the side access door that went up. We blew off combines with backpack blower every couple hours to prevent that happening again.
everywhere.... wherever dust builds up is potential for a smolder. have had smolders on the feederhouse, chasis, engine compartment etc etc. need to keep the combine clean and make sure your nose is working well!!
And pray, Mefarms68, just PRAY!
P.S. I hope next year, you will have canola and not sunflower, to combine. I'm a big promoter of canola oil and praise the Rocky Mountain Fruit and Nut Co for using canola, not sunflower or peanut oil, to fry certain snack foods with. Hopefully KFC [Trico, Inc.] will follow suit. Some changes really are good.
Joined: Oct 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 436 Location: Thetford England
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #5 on Oct 9, 2009, 2:06pm »
Disconect the fans on the feederhouse that suck the dust in and put a chain to the ground on the rear axle to help the static build up, this will help a little. and keep on top of blowing them off.
Joined: Jul 2007 Gender: Male Posts: 74 Location: North Dakota
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #6 on Oct 9, 2009, 7:10pm »
I second what everyone on here says. Been combining sunflowers for years and the best fire prevention is your nose and do walk arounds. This will be our third year running our 2388 in sunflowers. We've found that taking off the spreaders and just dropping the stalks and stuff helps some, not sure what your options on the Deere but that is just something we do on our Case.
Good question. Just reading this and a host of other posts on this very same topic, not only on here, but other forums, one cannot possibly overlook sunflowers' notorious fire hazards. This crop alone, claims more combines per acres harvested, than any other. For our combines, it is the world's deadliest job.
While canola may be a hard thresh and no less abrasive than sunflower, it is most definitely far more combine-friendly. It is also a heavier yielder of good oil per net ton of seed crushed/processed.
It is also endorsed by health and nutrition officials. Canola wins more culinary awards, too. So why shouldn't we focus more on better crop oil, more of it, and something that is better for both humans and combines?
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 507 Location: queensland
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #8 on Oct 9, 2009, 10:18pm »
if you keep the combines clean sunflowers aren't that bad! i have had little smolders but haven't lost a combine yet, neither has anyone else i know of.....
if you keep the combines clean sunflowers aren't that bad! i have had little smolders but haven't lost a combine yet, neither has anyone else i know of.....
Same here, and after we started taking the spreaders off, we havent even really had any smolders even, and we do about 400 acres per year. Never seen a combine lost to sunflower fire around here. I have watched combines burn in peas and soybeans though.
Joined: Nov 2005 Gender: Female Posts: 5,361 Location: Oklahoma
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #10 on Oct 9, 2009, 10:48pm »
I wish I could say the same for over here, Bundy. I know of five machines lost in just the past 7 years to sunflower. Yes, these belonged to people I actually know and I knew those combines, too.
Joined: Jun 2007 Gender: Male Posts: 1,921 Location: Guymon, OK
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #11 on Oct 10, 2009, 8:30am »
Like I've said before, Combiness, not everyone can grow canola. Canola isn't nearly as well adapted as sunflower. Spring canola doesn't work this far south, and winter canola is iffy (at best) here on the High Plains. It also has more rotation options than winter canola. It can be planted early, giving the farmer a larger window to rotate to wheat; and it can be doublecropped after wheat, giving options to make up for a failed wheat crop or just make some extra income in the fall. I'm not sure where mefarms68 is from, but making a blanket statement that nobody should grow sunflowers is a little shortsighted. He can grow whatever he wants. Besides, there is demand for sunflower oil (both NuSun and high oleic) and someone has to help meet that demand.
We've been growing flowers since 2001 and have only had one incident of smoldering on a 1480. Like everyone has already stated, keep the machine clean and pay attention to your nose and you'll be just fine.
Joined: Jul 2007 Gender: Male Posts: 74 Location: North Dakota
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #12 on Oct 10, 2009, 3:25pm »
The number 1 reason why we dont raise canola is that we've seen too many times where the wind has blown and shelled out the canola of our neighbor's crops. My parents tell me stories of combining sunflowers when I was just a baby, and that was 20 years ago. So we've had sunflowers for around 15-20 years.
Joined: Nov 2005 Gender: Female Posts: 5,361 Location: Oklahoma
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #14 on Nov 4, 2009, 8:35pm »
Canola is not suitable for here. We are too hot. I only suggested canola as an alternative, if you all really wanted or needed to grow an oilseed crop. Otherwise, just grow more corn, soys, wheat or anything but sunflowers. Canola oil is a better rust preventer and is used in industry as well as for food/cooking.
I'm not saying there will never be need for sunflowers or that their use will cease, but as many alternate crops and especially quality oilseeds are available, it is prudent to reduce their acreage which also will help save more of our combines in the long run.
Like I've said before,... I'm not sure where mefarms68 is from, but making a blanket statement that nobody should grow sunflowers is a little shortsighted.....
That's because I never said any such thing. I'm only extolling the virtues of canola, as an alternate to sunflower oil.
Other than that, I only said sunflowers were dangerous for combines.
Like I've said before,... I'm not sure where mefarms68 is from, but making a blanket statement that nobody should grow sunflowers is a little shortsighted.....
That's because I never said any such thing. I'm only extolling the virtues of canola, as an alternate to sunflower oil.
Then how come every time someone asks for help dealing with sunflower fires your suggestion is to grow something other than sunflowers? You agree that there will always be a market and need for flowers. Someone has to grow them, and since I don't know anyone who will harvest them by hand that means a combine will have to do the job. Fire is a risk every sunflower producer is prepared for, and when someone asks for advice on how to mitigate that risk maybe you should list some hot spots to keep an eye on instead of saying, "I hope next year, you will have canola and not sunflower, to combine."
To answer your question, deerefarm, winter canola is being pushed for Central and North Central Oklahoma. The research I've seen out of OSU says it's a pretty good fit for that part of the state. It makes a good rotational crop for the continuous wheat guys, since they don't usually have row crop equipment. I've seen some grown as far west as Woodward, but I don't know how well it did. It doesn't have the winter hardiness to go much farther west than that (unless varieties have improved in the last couple of years).
Joined: Nov 2005 Gender: Female Posts: 5,361 Location: Oklahoma
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #17 on Nov 4, 2009, 10:32pm »
Of course, I do encourage anything to grow instead of them. They're so hard on the combines and the oil may have some good qualities, but more chefs prefer canola for superior culinary properties. The American Heart Association also endorses canola. Sunflower, corn and safflower oil are not as good as an industrial lubricant. Claas is using canola in a lot of their combines [Europe] right now.
Other than wild bird feed and confectionary seed, not a huge demand I can think of. If you're confident you have the combine fire factor under control, more power to you, and I pray you NEVER lose any combine to it or any other crop for that matter.
Who knows; maybe the coming Middle East crisis will raise the price of wheat right up there, again.
Joined: Jun 2007 Gender: Male Posts: 1,921 Location: Guymon, OK
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #20 on Nov 5, 2009, 8:43am »
Look, you're the one who dug up an old thread just to call me out on something I said a month ago. I responded and have made my point abundantly clear on numerous occasions. Now, I could give a lesson on the different types of sunflower oil and the myriad uses for them, and I could throw out some market data to show the demand for flowers. However, that would be a waste of my time since you are so dead set on your anti-sunflower stance.
I would like to say a lot more, but I was taught that if I didn't have anything nice to say, I shouldn't say anything at all. I am going to take the high road and move on. If you want to have to last word, that's fine by me.
Re: sunflower fires 9610 « Reply #22 on Dec 21, 2009, 10:21pm »
Your probably done with the flowers by now but I will tell you anyway where my 9600 wanted to try to burn up. Never did light up this year but had some funny smells. Of course right on the right side of the muffler. front of the motor(hopper side) on top by the exhaust manifold. The left side of the combine by the straw chopper drive. It seemed to drip from the engine compartment. top of the engine gear case. For the most part I didn't have alot of fires. Just blew combine off 2 times a day. Plus confections and con oil aren't as "flammable" as the Nu Sun are. Or thats what I found this year. My neighbor and I combined 1000 Nu Sun, 400 con oil, and 300 confection.
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