2013 - Volume #BFS, Issue #13, Page #27
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Don’t Let Your Farm Become A Breeding Ground For West Nile Virus!
No tires are needed for covering a bunker silo with Secure Covers. Just lay down the plastic sheet but instead of covering it with tires, roll out the tear resistant mesh. As farming practices have moved away from using upright silos to store their ensiled corn silage and haylage, concrete bunker silos and drive over piles have become increasingly popular. The standard on most farms is to cover their piles and bunkers with plastic sheeting and used tires. A typical 50’x100’ bunker silo could use as many as 500 tires. These unsightly tires can hold standing water and become a magnet for mosquito populations that transmit the West Nile Virus and other diseases. Secure Covers eliminate the need for unsightly, water logged tires all while reducing feed spoilage.
  Secure Covers are the leading tire-less covering system in the United States. Instead of using tires to hold down the plastic sheeting, the system incorporates sections of durable, high density polyethylene mesh, held down on the seams and perimeter by Secure Gravel Bags. Jim Kautz, Bag Man LLC, US Distributor for Secure Covers explains, “They were developed in England to prevent bird damage but as an added benefit, farmers found that they no longer needed to use tires to hold the plastic down and the quality of the feed increased”. Secure Covers effectively disperse wind velocity holding the plastic sheeting closer to your feed creating a tighter seal, which in turn reduces spoilage.The material is strong enough to protect the plastic sheeting from hail damage, prevent or deter animals from puncturing holes and comes with an industry leading 10 year warranty against UV breakdown. Secure Covers are the easy way to eliminate tires and problems that come with them.
  Do you store your feed in bags instead? Not to worry! Bag ArmourTM, made from the same material as Secure Covers and are cut to sizes that will fit any size and brand of silage or grain bag. This material gives you excellent protection against damage from hail, birds, animals, and much more. Depending on where your damage is occurring, Bag ArmourTM can cover your bag in two different ways. Crown Coverage covers the top portion of the bag providing excellent protection from birds and hail. Ground to Ground Coverage covers all exposed sides of the bag preventing deer and other animals from damaging the plastic lower on the bag. Bag ArmourTM is simple, effective insurance for your valuable feed. A 9’ x 200’ bag can hold 8500 bushels of high moisture corn. At $7.00 per bushel, that bag is worth $59,000. Looking at the value of your feed, especially this year, even a small amount of damage can be costly!
Secure Gravel Bags are the ideal way to weigh down your Secure Covers and Bag ArmourTM. Made from the same material Secure Covers, Secure Gravel Bags also have a 10 year UV warranty. Secure Gravel Bags are 3 feet in length when filled to 30lbs with gravel and fit tightly into a bunker edge reducing spoilage by creating a tighter seal than tires can provide. They intelligently use weight where it is most effective on a bunker or pile to create tension therefore only requiring weight on the perimeters and seams. This tension across the surface prevents air from entering under the plastic sheeting along with reducing the labor time needed to lug 100’s or 1,000’s of tires onto a bunker. Secure Gravel Bags have three handle options to choose from to make them most convenient for you.
  The Secure Cover System for covering bags, bunkers, or piles can be purchased all at once or added to over time as a producers budget sees fit. The 10 year warranty ensures product longevity and excellent forage protection for years to come.
  Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bag Man LLC, P.O. Box 162, Hammond, WI 54015 (ph 800-796-5333 or www.afsbagman.com).


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2013 - Volume #BFS, Issue #13