weevils in grain

[southerndesert]

A.T. Hagan :

I don't know of any major feed mill that uses DE to prevent weevils. I do know they are allowed to use it as a flow agent to improve handling properties.

I've been using DE for years and it has some practical value in some applications, but it will not eliminate an already established weevil infestation even presuming the OP had some way to thoroughly blend it into their feed as it would need to be. Against some grain pest species it simply does not work at all.

The dry ice is dead simple to use pretty much just as I outlined above and it works.

Not trying to be argumentative, but I have stopped infestations with DE in our feed more than once over the years by adding at 2% and mixing with infested feed as it is transferred to another container. The beetles and larvae are gone in just a few days and do not return. I should add we are in AZ where is is bone dry and the DE is able to work at it's best.

Your method to freeze will also do the job very quickly with dry ice as well.​

 

[A.T. Hagan]

The dry ice isn't freezing the grain. You'd need a great deal more of it for that to work. What it's doing is fumigating. The dry ice sublimates into carbon dioxide gas which then asphyxiates all stages of weevil growth if the container is not disturbed for a few days. It can be effective at much lower concentrations than one would need with other gasses such as nitrogen.

 

[southerndesert]

A.T. Hagan :

The dry ice isn't freezing the grain. You'd need a great deal more of it for that to work. What it's doing is fumigating. The dry ice sublimates into carbon dioxide gas which then asphyxiates all stages of weevil growth if the container is not disturbed for a few days. It can be effective at much lower concentrations than one would need with other gasses such as nitrogen.

Oh OK, I was figuring you meant cold since freezing them will work also. That is a great idea and I had not heard of it before now.​