By ALEXANDER SIMONE

Staff writer

Just like vehicles need proper preparation before winter arrives, so too does farm equipment. PrairieLand Partners uses the season to help farmers catch up on preventable maintenance since there is less urgency to have repairs done immediately, service manager Braden Fahey said.

“It’s definitely seasonal,” he said. “We try to get the row-crop tractors and stuff that’s not used throughout the winter. We try to get the combines and bailers in. That way when it’s time to use those, they’re able to run.”

While businesses like PrairieLand Partners mark the seasonal shift on their calendars, it isn’t such a clear distinction for Klayton Krispense, who farms with his brothers and father.

“We just watch the weather,” he said. “If we see there’s a forecast for really cold weather then that’s when we get in and start making sure everything is ready to go for winter.”

Krispense sees maintenance as something he enjoys doing, not just a means to an end.

“I like keeping things running and making sure it’s good to go,” he said. “Make sure everything is running and in good condition.”

Instead of harvest equipment, G and R Implement shop foreman Darrin Rhodes focuses mostly on livestock equipment during the winter.

“That’s pretty critical, too,” he said. “If they have only one way of feeding cattle then they don’t want it down very long. The push can be on for a loader tractor or feed wagon that they need to feed with.”

Some factors are similar to prepping vehicles for winter, like having the right mix of antifreeze and water, and keeping oil changes up-to-date.

Tire maintenance also is a major factor for vehicles on the road but it’s not as big a concern for tractor equipment, Rhodes said.

“You’re not out there on slick highways, usually,” he said. “There is some, but most of