Grain Moisture Shrink, Dry Bushels and Drying Cost Calculator

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Table of contents

• How to use
• Common mistakes
• Definitions
• Methodology
• Limitations & assumptions
• Sources

Wet bushels: Bushels in the incoming load before moisture is removed or shrink is calculated.

Wet-basis moisture: Water weight as a percentage of the grain's total wet weight. Moisture readings on grain tickets are normally reported this way. [1]

Moisture points removed: The difference between incoming moisture and target moisture. Drying from 20% to 15.5% removes 4.5 percentage points.

Dry-matter bushels: Estimated bushels at the target moisture while keeping the grain's dry material constant.

Conversion weight: Pounds per bushel used only to convert net scale-ticket pounds into wet bushels. It is not automatically the same as a measured test weight.

Handling loss: A separate deduction based on incoming wet bushels. It reduces estimated payable dry bushels but does not change the drying charge in this calculator.

Mistake: Entering 4 in "Drying rate" when the posted charge is 4 cents per wet bushel per point.
Fix: Enter 0.04 because "Drying rate" uses dollars, not cents.

Mistake: Using a measured ticket test weight as "Conversion weight" without checking the buyer's conversion rule.
Fix: Use the pounds-per-bushel value required by the buyer when converting "Incoming grain quantity" from pounds.

Mistake: Entering 20.5 as the difference between moistures instead of entering the ticket reading in "Incoming moisture."
Fix: Enter the actual moisture reading; "Moisture points removed" is calculated from incoming moisture minus "Buyer or storage target moisture."

Mistake: Adding a handling deduction when the buyer's quoted shrink already includes it.
Fix: Leave "Extra handling loss (% of incoming bushels)" at 0 unless the buyer states it as a separate deduction.

Mistake: Treating "Flat load fee ($)" as a per-bushel charge.
Fix: Enter the one-time charge only once; use "Other fee ($ per wet bu)" for a charge based on incoming wet bushels.

Mistake: Expecting a minimum charge when no drying is needed.
Fix: If "Incoming moisture" equals "Buyer or storage target moisture," the "Applied drying charge" is $0 because no moisture points are removed.

• This is a dry-matter shrink estimate. A buyer may use a commercial shrink table, rounding rule, discount schedule, or other settlement method that produces a different payable-bushel figure.
• The calculator requires incoming moisture to be at least the target moisture. It does not estimate added water, blending, spoilage, dockage, foreign material, quality discounts, or storage losses.
• For pound entry, the pounds-per-bushel conversion must match the buyer's rule. A standard conversion weight and a measured ticket test weight can be different values.
• The default 15.5% target moisture and 56 lb per bu are editable corn planning values. Replace them with the buyer contract, settlement schedule, or storage target for the grain and location involved.
• Drying charges are calculated from incoming wet bushels, moisture points removed, and the entered rate. A minimum drying charge applies only when moisture points are removed.
• Extra handling loss, other per-bushel fees, and flat load fees are included only when entered. Check that a quoted buyer shrink does not already include handling before adding a separate handling loss.

Calculation method

The calculator first converts the incoming load to wet bushels. If "Incoming quantity unit" is wet bushels, it uses the entered quantity directly. If it is net pounds, it divides pounds by "Conversion weight."

wet bushels = incoming quantity, or incoming quantity / conversion weight

Moisture points removed are the incoming wet-basis moisture minus the target wet-basis moisture. The dry-matter calculation holds the non-water part of the grain constant as moisture falls.

moisture points removed = incoming moisture - target moisture

dry-matter bushels = wet bushels * (100 - incoming moisture) / (100 - target moisture)

If entered, extra handling loss is calculated from incoming wet bushels and subtracted after the dry-matter calculation.

payable dry bushels = dry-matter bushels - (wet bushels * handling loss / 100)

The drying charge uses wet bushels, moisture points removed, and the entered dollar rate. When drying is needed, an entered minimum drying charge replaces the calculated drying charge only if it is larger. Other per-bushel fees use wet bushels, while the flat load fee is added once.

drying charge = max(wet bushels * moisture points removed * drying rate, minimum drying charge)

total estimated fees = drying charge + (wet bushels * other fee per wet bu) + flat load fee

Worked example

For 1,000 wet bushels at 20% moisture dried to 15.5%, the moisture difference is 4.5 points. Dry-matter bushels are 1,000 * 80 / 84.5 = 946.75 bu, so estimated water shrink is 53.25 bu. At $0.04 per wet bu per point, the drying charge is 1,000 * 4.5 * $0.04 = $180.00.