Kuhn Farm Machinery will be displaying its new Flexilift equipped trailed mixer wagon and Cleanstraw equipped straw bedder at The Dairy Show at the Bath and West Showground, Shepton Mallet on Wednesday 3rd October.
The patented Flexilift telescoping and tilting feed distribution conveyor system is available as an alternative to a standard cross-conveyor on all new Kuhn Profile mixer wagons and is designed to make it easier to distribute feed in buildings where space is limited: the reversible, cradle-shaped conveyor can be offset laterally via a telescoping mechanism to distribute feed to either side of the mixer wagon. One end of the conveyor (either left or right as determined when ordering the machine) can also be tilted by up to 45 degrees, enabling feed to be delivered to troughs up to 1.2-1.3 metres in height.
The Flexilift system uses a single, endless PVC belt which is driven by two hydraulic motors – one at each end of the conveyor – for improved belt traction irrespective of which side feed is being distributed to. The single belt design ensures all feed is distributed cleanly and accurately without any material being lost in the joint between two separate conveyors, and offers increased longevity compared to stapled conveyor belts.
The new Cleanstraw system, available as an option on new Kuhn straw bedders and mixer wagons equipped with a blowing turbine, or as a retrofit upgrade for existing machines, reduces the appearance of dust in livestock buildings by applying a fine mist of water to straw as it is distributed for bedding purposes.
The Cleanstraw system comprises a 64-litre water tank and three misting nozzles mounted at the exit of the straw blowing chute. The nozzles are fed by a 12v/15amp pump which provides water at a rate of 1.8l/min, enough to treat 12 to 18 bales of straw with 1 litre of water per 100kg of straw.
Applying a mist of water at this rate preserves the straw’s absorbency potential whilst eliminating excessive levels of airborne dust by reducing the amount of time that these particles remain suspended in the air: trials have shown that the air in a typical livestock building will be dust-free within 30 seconds after straw-bedding with the Cleanstraw system has ceased, compared to several minutes under normal conditions.
This creates a cleaner, more comfortable and more productive environment for cattle and farm workers who will be less susceptible to inhaling dust particles and other impurities.
The Cleanstraw system is available for all Kuhn machines equipped with a Polydrive blowing turbine: these include the Primor range of straw bedders and feeders and the Profile Plus range of mixer wagons with straw bedding capabilities. The system is automatically activated when the Polydrive system is engaged and can also be armed or disabled via an in-cab switch: this enables users of a combination straw bedding and feeding wagon to turn the system on when blowing straw for bedding, or off when dispensing feed.
