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Bin Drying Excessively Wet Wheat Risky
The initial wheat moisture content should not exceed about 18 percent for natural air or low temperature drying.
The allowable storage time for 20 percent moisture wheat is only about 14 days. To dry 20 percent wheat in 13 days requires an airflow rate of 2.5 cfm/bu. This is an impossible airflow rate since the static pressure required to move the airflow through a 17 foot depth of wheat would be about 24 inches. There are no fans used for grain drying that will move air against that static pressure. Drying 20 percent moisture wheat with an airflow rate of 1.0 cfm/bu would require about 33 days, which is much beyond the allowable storage time.
Filling the bin about one-fourth full will reduce the static pressure and permit the higher airflow rates required to dry higher moisture content wheat. There are even risks with this due to the possibility of a "crust" forming that will greatly reduce the airflow. Also, wheat kernels at higher moisture contents are more pliable and will tend to pack together which will reduce the airflow.
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