Estimating Moisture Content of Forages and Silage

Hand Method for Estimating the Moisture Content of Forage and Silage
Forage or silage squeezed in hand	Moisture (%)
Water easily squeezed out and material holds shape	More than 80
Water can just be squeezed out and material holds shape	75-80
Little or no water can be squeezed out but material holds shape	70-75
No water can be squeezed out and material falls apart slowly	60-70
No water can be squeezed out and material falls apart rapidly	less than 60

Microwave oven method for determining moisture content of forages
1. Weigh out approximately 100 g sample of the chopped forage (W1) excluding the weight of the container. Weigh to the nearest gram.

2. spread the weighed forage sample on a paper plate or place it in a paper bag and put it in the microwave oven.

3. Place an 8oz glass three-quarters full of water in the oven to prevent igniting the sample.

4. Heat at 80 per cent to 90 per cent of maximum power for 4 minutes.

5. Remove the sample, mix it and weigh it.

6. Continue to reheat for 2 minute intervals, re-weighing each time. To prevent burning use lower heat and 30 second time intervals as it approaches being dry. If the weight of the sample does not change after two or three drying intervals, it is 100 per cent dry This is the final dry weight (W2). A slightly charred sample should not affect accuracy of the moisture determination but if the sample burns the test should be repeated,

7. Calculate moisture content as follows:

	(Wl - W2)
Moisture content =	---------------
	(W1) x 100

Example:

	100 - 36
64% =	------------
	100 x 100

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