News

Getting the most out of your precision equipment

Farmers are heading into the growing season facing the lowest commodity prices they’ve seen in recent years.  Andrew Hamilton, technical services and quality manager for Cenex says precision equipment can help farmers get the most out of their inputs.

But, he says, in order for farmers to maximize their return on investment, the equipment needs to run efficiently.  “Each piece of equipment that the farm has today has very specific tolerances and information about the type of lubricant that should be used,” he says.  “When they use a product that is not approved for that equipment, they reduce the effectiveness of that equipment.”

Hamilton tells Brownfield advanced lubricants can make a big difference in how the equipment operates.

Especially, he says, with the swings in weather during the spring planting season.  “You’re going to get moisture in that oil,” he says.  “With a synthetic material, the water doesn’t react with it.  But when you have a mineral oil based product, or a conventional oil, the water is going to react with it.  It’s going to form acids that are going to attack the equipment.”

He says if the oil wasn’t changed in the equipment last fall, it’s important to change it before the start of spring planting.