Rebuilt Elevator Provides Economical Grain Storage

Rebuilt Elevator Provides Economical Grain Storage “We had a terrible drought in 2022 that lowered river levels and crashed the basis on our crops by negative $1.60, so I had to do something drastic,” says Arkansas farmer Dalton Dilldine. “Everyone was looking for storage, including me, so I inquired about a 75-year-old rusted and dilapidated grain elevator in a neighboring town. I called a friend who worked with bins. We looked at the facility, and I quickly decided to buy it. With our crew and help from a millwright, we were dumping grain there in 10 days.” Dilldine said many people thought the 750,000-bu. elevator, built in 1946, was a wreck beyond salvage. At one time, it was a thriving co-op elevator where Dilldine’s grandfather served as a director. The 11-acre site was served by a rail line, but that line was abandoned, and the facility eventually closed. Unused for six years, the facility’s hopper bins were rusting, the receiving building was in rough shape, and paint was peeling from the silos. Despite its outward appearance, Dilldine saw it as a diamond in the rough, a reclamation project worth pursuing. He acquired the 11-acre site, two dump pits, two scales, and the entire storage facility for just $115,000. “Because it was a commercial facility, it was built really well, so there was a lot of good, but a lot was wore out, too,” Dilldine says. “We had to restore the unloading pits, put new floors in some bins, and replace one of the leg belts. We drilled 2-in. holes through 7/16-in. steel bin walls to install GrainVue digital monitoring cables. Now, I can be anywhere in the country, and my phone shows me real-time grain moisture and temperature at the site. The system is great insurance against spoilage.” After completing initial rehabilitation on a portion of the bins, Dilldine says his crew can dump semi-trucks in about 6 min. and load them out in about 12 min. He says rebuilding the elevator has been one of his best accomplishments over the past 15 years of farming, since his father passed away when he was 18. Now married with a young daughter, he and his wife operate nearly 6,000 acres. The elevator is an integral cog in their operation, providing economical storage at a fraction of the cost of new construction. “We put about $900,000 into the reclamation, which computes to about $1.50 a bushel. The best part is we’re only 20 min. from the river and about the same distance from my furthest fields. A new facility like it would cost five times that much, not including the land it would be built on. A couple people have told me this facility might be worth $10 million. I’m feeling very blessed to have this opportunity to continue the legacy of Dilldine Farms.” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dilldine Farms, 540 E. State Hwy 239, Blytheville, Ark. 72315 (daltondilldinefarms@gmail.com).

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