Solutions · Malt Storage
Breweries, distilleries, malt houses, and bakeries store several malts side by side – and every kernel that breaks or ages costs quality. PW Silo Systems designs aluminum and stainless steel malt silos with mass-flow discharge, dust collection, and clear product separation.
Malt Storage at a Glance
A malt silo stores malted grain close to production – for brewing, distilling, malt extract, or baking. It protects the malt from moisture, pests, and contamination and feeds it in a controlled way to milling and mashing.
Malt kernels are brittle, filling and conveying create dust, and base malts and specialty malts must stay separate. PW Silo Systems designs the silo around your malts and your process.
Why Malt Is Demanding
Malt is the main raw material of every brew. Its quality depends on how it is stored.
Malt is dried to a low moisture content and absorbs moisture during storage.
In funnel flow, malt can stay in the silo for a long time while fresh product passes through the center.
Fine malt dust is combustible. Filling and conveying release dust into the silo and its surroundings.
In coated carbon steel silos, flaking paint and steel particles can end up in the malt.
Deliveries differ, and a silo filled in batches forms horizontal layers of different quality.
Base malts, wheat malt, and roasted specialty malts must not be mixed by accident.
Silo Materials
Aluminum and stainless steel silos are widely used for flour, sugar, starch, and other food ingredients. Both materials offer high corrosion resistance, good hygiene, and a long service life.
Carbon steel is not an option for us: its coating is the only protection against corrosion. Once it wears, paint particles and steel can get into the product. Which of our two materials fits your malt silo depends on your product, your process, your cleaning requirements, and your site – we review it with you.
Your Malt Silo System
Silo, discharge, blending, filtration, and safety equipment are engineered as one system. That means fewer interfaces for your team and components that are designed to work together.
Storage
Concentric mass-flow discharge without asymmetric flow zones – as standard, site-assembled, indoor, or multi-compartment silos.
Learn moreBlending
Gravity blending and homogenizing with four technologies, including PW ConeBlend with a hopper that is quick to clean.
Learn moreDischarge
Air fluidization for uniform discharge of poorly flowing products – prevents bridging and can be retrofitted to existing silos.
Learn moreDischarge
Vibration from unbalanced motors breaks up cohesive forces, resolves caking, and keeps the outlet clear.
Learn moreFiltration
Dust separation during filling and conveying, in a hygienic design for the food industry.
Learn moreSafety & Monitoring
Rupture discs or explosion vents for combustible dust, level measurement for reliable monitoring of the silo content.
Learn moreMalts & Hops
Products marked “Tested in our lab” are on our list of bulk materials. The others we review with you based on your material data before designing the silo.
Tested in our lab
Barley malt, base malt, pale malt
Barley malt is on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab. It is the base of most beers and whiskies.
Tested in our lab
Wheat malt
Wheat malt is on our tested list. A dedicated silo keeps it apart from barley malt.
Tested in our lab
Rye malt
Rye malt is on our tested list. It is used in rye beers, rye whiskey, and bakery products.
Tested in our lab
Spelt malt
Spelt malt is on our tested list. Separate storage keeps this specialty malt apart.
Tested in our lab
Hops, hop pellets
Hops are on our tested list. A closed silo protects them from moisture and contamination.
Review with us
Roasted malt, crystal malt, caramel malt
Roasted and caramel malts are used in small quantities. We review your product data with you.
Also tested in our lab:
Send us your material data and we will review the right solution with you:
Malt Check
Type in your malt or any other bulk material to see whether it has already been tested in our lab. The list covers 287 bulk materials.
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Service in the U.S.
With more than 40 years of experience in silo engineering, we support your malt silo project from the first design discussion to commissioning. We deliver to every U.S. state and install with our own qualified personnel.
FAQ
Answers to the questions brewers, distillers, plant managers, and buyers ask most often about storing malt in silos.
Malted grain can be stored in a properly designed silo. These products are on our list of bulk materials tested in our lab:
Roasted and caramel malts, oat malt, malt flour, and dry malt extract we review with you based on your material data.
Both. Aluminum and stainless steel silos are widely used for malt and other food ingredients because they offer high corrosion resistance, good hygiene, and a long service life. Which material fits your project depends on your product, your process, your cleaning requirements, and your site. We review the options with you.
In a carbon steel silo, the coating is the only protection against corrosion. If it wears or flakes off, paint particles and steel can end up in your malt. That is why we build silos exclusively in aluminum and stainless steel.
We recommend a dedicated silo per malt – or PW StoreLine multi-compartment silos that keep several malts separate in one silo.
In mass flow, the entire silo content moves downward when material is discharged – not just a channel in the center. Your malt leaves the silo in the order it came in (first in, first out), and no product is left behind in dead zones where it could age or cake. Our PW StoreLine silos are designed for concentric mass-flow discharge without asymmetric flow zones.
Fine malt dust is combustible, and many bulk solids carry an explosion risk. For combustible bulk solids we supply explosion-protected silos designed in accordance with applicable codes and regulations. Venting devices – rupture discs or explosion vents – are selected for your silo, your product, and your application. Integrated filters and dust collectors reduce dust during filling and conveying.
Deliveries vary, and a silo filled in batches forms horizontal layers of different quality. PW BlendLine gravity blending silos homogenize the content so your production receives a consistent product. We offer four blending technologies; the right one depends on your malt and on whether you operate continuously or in batches.
The right size depends on your daily consumption, delivery intervals, the number of products, and the space available at your site. PW StoreLine silos are available in a wide range of sizes and diameters, and silos too large for road transport are assembled on site. We size the system with you – without oversized investment.
Yes. We deliver to every U.S. state and support your project with silo transport, field assembly, silo installation and supervision, and site relocation of existing systems.
Very likely. Our silo systems are designed for nearly all free-flowing, granular, and powdered bulk solids. Send us your material details – kernel size, moisture, and how the product is filled and discharged – and we will review the right storage solution with you.
Tell us about your products, required storage capacity, how the silo is filled and discharged, and your site conditions. Based on this, we work out the material, silo type, and configuration with you and send you a detailed quote.
Your Project
Whether you need a single malt silo, several silos for different products, or a complete system with blending and discharge, tell us about your requirements. We'll develop a solution that fits your product, your process, and your site.
Send a Request NowWhat Happens Next
Tell us about your bulk material, your process, and your site conditions.
We work with you on material, silo type, and configuration – based on a bulk material analysis if needed.
You receive a custom-engineered solution with a detailed quote.
