01
Formula
Bushels = (cylinder cubic feet + cone cubic feet) ÷ 1.244.
Cylinder = π × radius² × sidewall. Cone = π × radius² × peak ÷ 3. The grain bin capacity calculator uses a 2,150.42 cubic inch bushel.
Apply for financingGrain bin
Grain bin calculator for bushels
This grain bin calculator treats the bin as a cylinder and an optional cone. Bushels equal cubic feet divided by 1.244, the cubic feet in a US bushel. The grain bin capacity calculator is that volume. It is level-full geometry, not a test-weight discount and not a compacted pack factor.
Level bushels
4,090bu
Cubic feet5,089
Bushel1.244 cu ft
PeakLevel fill
Planning estimate from the numbers you enter. Coverage, density, waste and price are assumptions, not a supplier quote or an engineering specification.
How it works
A bushel is 1.244 cubic feet.
Cylinder volume is pi times radius squared times sidewall height. Cone volume is pi times radius squared times peak height, divided by 3. An 18 foot diameter and a 20 foot sidewall, with no peak, holds 5,089 cubic feet, or about 4,090 bushels. Add a peak only for grain that is heaped above the eave, and measure that peak as the height of the cone, not as the roof steel. Grain hanging on the wall, a peaked center that is not a true cone, and a pack factor are not in the number. Sell off a scale. Use this to see whether a bin can hold a crop.
02
Example
18 foot diameter, 20 foot sidewall, no peak.
Volume is about 5,089 cubic feet and capacity is about 4,090 bushels. A peak of 6 feet adds a cone on top of that cylinder. Leave the peak at zero for a level fill.
03
Tips
Diameter is inside diameter.
A bin measured across the outside steel overstates the bushels. Sidewall height is the grain depth at the wall, not the eve height of an empty bin if you will not fill it. Corn, soybeans, and wheat share this volume. Their test weights do not change the cubic feet.
04
Equipment
The auger and the dryer move the grain.
Dengaro arranges financing for farm equipment. Bushels are not a loan amount.
Important questions
Know what to expect.
Why 1.244 cubic feet?+
A US bushel is 2,150.42 cubic inches, which is 1.244 cubic feet. The grain bin calculator uses that exact bushel for every crop's volume.
Does a peaked fill add a full extra cylinder?+
No. A cone is one third of a cylinder of the same height. A 6 foot peak is much less grain than another 6 feet of sidewall.
What about compaction?+
Not in this grain bin capacity calculator. A pack factor would change the bushels of a given volume. This page is the empty geometric volume.
Is the roof steel the peak?+
Only if grain is piled to the roof in a cone. Type the grain peak, not the roof pitch, unless the grain actually fills that shape.
Financing built into the sale