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PrestiVac

Vacuum solutions engineered for agriculture & grain handling

Grain dust wrote the history of dust explosions, and it's the one material family with its own codified housekeeping number — OSHA's grain handling standard sets a 1/8-inch action level in priority areas. Elevators, legs, galleries and mills each generate the fuel; the program's job is to keep removing it.

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Grain elevator complex with steel storage silos and conveying legs

  • Explosion-Safe Design

    Engineered to NFPA 61 / 660 practice

  • HEPA Filtration

    Fines retained, not redistributed

  • Static Control

    Grounded & bonded recovery

  • Built for Bulk

    Headhouse to load-out

  • Explosion-Proof

    Manufacturing specialists

  • 1000+

    Vacuums sold worldwide

  • USA

    Designed & manufactured

  • Direct

    Buy from the manufacturer

  • NFPA 660

    ATEX / IECEx principles

Agriculture & Grain Handling production process explorer

Every stage. Every challenge. The right vacuum solution.

Grain liberates dust at every transfer between the receiving pit and the load-out spout — each stage below is a generation point, and the enclosed ones concentrate fuel and ignition together.

Stage 01 — Receiving & pit

Dump turbulence at intake is the first generation point — boot pits join the scheduled rotation with tools sized for spillage plus fines.

Key challenges

The original combustible dust, still earning its reputation

  • Historic hazard, codified rules

    Grain elevator explosions shaped this field — NFPA 61 and OSHA's grain handling facilities standard (29 CFR 1910.272) both govern housekeeping directly.

  • The 1/8-inch action level

    OSHA's grain standard sets a codified accumulation trigger in priority housekeeping areas — a number the program is designed never to reach.

  • Elevator legs concentrate risk

    Enclosed bucket elevators combine suspended dust with friction ignition sources — slipping belts, hot bearings — making leg areas the classic initiation point.

  • Confined spaces

    Bins and silos complicate cleaning; long-reach vacuum recovery reduces how often anyone has to enter at all.

  • Seasonal surge

    Harvest compresses a year's dust generation into weeks — the housekeeping program has to scale with throughput.

  • Horizontal surface area

    Bin decks, gallery floors and headhouse levels accumulate layers across enormous flat footage between cleanings.

Dust & materials knowledge center

Understand the grain dusts. Match the recovery.

Common Agriculture & Grain Handling materials and recovery approaches
MaterialCombustibleRecovery approachDeep dive
Grain dust (mixed)Yes — the historic hazardExplosion-proof recovery; priority areas on the 1/8-inch action-level frequency
Corn dustYesExplosion-proof recovery with grounded accessories
Wheat & flour dustYesExplosion-proof HEPA recovery; elevated surfaces on schedule
Soybean dustYesExplosion-proof recovery; sealed disposal
Feed & pellet dustYesHEPA-filtered recovery in mill and pelleting areas
Treated seed dustCombustibility varies — treatment chemistry adds exposure handlingHEPA capture and sealed disposal per the treatment's documentation

Combustibility and severity are material- and particle-size-specific — testing and your Dust Hazard Analysis govern. Full directory: agricultural dusts.

Applications in agriculture

Built for performance. Built for compliance.

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Representative case study

Managing Grain Dust in a Grain Elevator & Feed

How a representative grain cooperative runs housekeeping in the industry that wrote the rules — priority areas on the 1/8-inch action level, elevator legs treated as the initiation points they historically are, and bins cleaned without climbing in.

Read the full case study

Talk to the manufacturer

Get the right explosion proof vacuum for your application.

Tell us what you need to vacuum and where. Our technical team will recommend the PrestiVac model best suited to your material, your classification and how hard you will work it — and because we build every unit ourselves, we can modify it to fit.

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  • Legally certified explosion proof
  • Solid stainless steel construction
  • Industry-best 3-year warranty
  • Designed & manufactured in the USA
  • 200+ vacuum versions